Herceptin

Herceptin is a prescription medication used to treat breast cancer. However, not all women with breast cancer will benefit from Herceptin, because the medication is targeted to treat cancers that have a high concentration of HER2 receptors (a protein on the outside of certain cancer cells). You can receive your Herceptin dose intravenously every seven days at your healthcare provider's office, a hospital, or an infusion center. Potential side effects include diarrhea, nausea, and fatigue.

 

What Is Herceptin?

Herceptin® (trastuzumab) is a prescription medication used to treat breast cancer.
 
(Click Herceptin Uses for more information on what the drug is used for, including possible off-label uses.)
 

Who Makes Herceptin?

Herceptin is made by Genentech, Inc.
 

How Does Herceptin Work?

Herceptin is part of a group of medications called monoclonal antibodies. Monoclonal antibodies are used to treat a wide variety of conditions, including breast cancer. Herceptin is a special type of monoclonal antibody that is designed to bind to HER2, a protein on the outside of certain cancer cells. When Herceptin binds to HER2 receptor proteins, it has several effects. It may interfere with the cancer cells' ability to grow and multiply. By binding to the HER2 receptor, Herceptin may also serve as a signal to the immune system, which can help destroy the cancer cells.
 
Herceptin is not a form of chemotherapy. It is a biologic therapy, also known as biological therapy (see Biological Therapy for Breast Cancer). Herceptin is less "toxic" than chemotherapy, as it specifically targets the HER2 receptors. Because Herceptin is only used to treat cancers that have a high concentration of HER2 receptors, it targets the tumors, having less of an effect on healthy, noncancerous cells.
 
Before Herceptin can be prescribed for a particular patient, certain tests must be performed to make sure that the tumor "overexpresses" HER2. When a cell makes a certain receptor or protein, it is said to "express" that receptor or protein. Tumor cells that overexpress HER2 have a high concentration of the HER2 receptor. Not all breast cancers overexpress HER2, and not all people with breast cancer will benefit from Herceptin.
 
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Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD; Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD;