Epidermal growth factor receptor Herceptin with

First-line treatment of her metastatic breast cancer should therefore incorporate the monoclonal antibody trastuzumab (Herceptin). NICE (2002b) have issued a technology appraisal on the use of trastuzumab in metastatic breast cancer which states that trastuzumab be used in combination with paclitaxel for women with tumours with excessive human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) at levels of 3+ who have not had chemotherapy for metastatic breast cancer and for whom anthracycline treatment is inappropriate. ... 

Herceptin is the trade name given to one such antibody-based cancer therapy product (Table 8). It is a humanized niAb with binding specificity for the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), which is overexpressed on the surface of 25-30% of metastatic breast cancers. HER2 overexpression induces abnormal proliferation of cells (see also Part I, Chapter 5). The niAb binds specifically to the... 

Trastuzumab (Herceptin) is a humanized monoclonal antibody against the extracellular domain of the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2). Treatment of cancer patients with trastuzumab has been associated with an increased incidence of cardiac toxicity including left ventricular cardiac dysfunction, arrhythmias, hypertension, disabling cardiac failure, cardiomyopathy, and cardiac death. Trastuzumab can also cause asymptomatic decline in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) (Herceptin PI 2010). 

The identification of targets with complete or nearly complete specificity is a key challenge. Herceptin , used in breast cancer treatment, binds the Her-2 receptor for epidermal growth factor (EGF). This receptor is present only in a subset of breast cancer patients, providing the specificity... 

Trastuzumab (Herceptin) is a humanized monoclonal antibody against the HER2/neu (ErbB-2) member of the epidermal growth factor family of cellular receptors. The internal domain of the HER2/neu glycoprotein encodes a tyrosine kinase that activates downstream signals and enhances metastatic potential and inhibits apoptosis. HER2/neu is overexpressed in up to 30% of breast cancers and is associated with clinical resistance to cytotoxic and hormone therapy. A number of mechanisms of action have... 

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