Trastuzumab

Trastuzumab is a humanized monoclonal antibody which binds to the extracellular domain of the HER2 molecule. Proposed mechanisms of action include antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity, inhibition of intracellular signal transduction, inhibition of tumor angiogenesis, and inhibition of repair of DNA damage induced by concurrent chemotherapy. Notably, removal of trastuzumab routinely results in tumor progression. Prior to trastuzumab, the general practice in oncology was to switch to a different regimen upon documented growth of metastatic tumor lesion. Over the last decade, treating oncologists have routinely continued trastuzumab beyond progression well before there was any prospective data to support this practice leading to an unprecedented treatment paradigm in the solidtumor arena. One of several retrospective trials investigating the benefit of continuation of trastuzumab was a multicenter, international study which identified 105 patients with metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer who had received trastuzumab after documented progression on a trastuzumab-containing regimen

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Last date updated on May, 2025