New drug formulation offers simpler, quicker treatment for breast cancer

Trastuzumab isn’t exactly new, but it is offering simpler and quicker treatment for women living with breast cancer. Previous formulations for dealing with breast cancer, which affects millions of women around the world, have been administered as intravenous medication, injected into a line attached to a patient. Sold under the brand name Herceptin, the drug […]

Trastuzumab isn’t exactly new, but it is offering simpler and quicker treatment for women living with breast cancer.

Previous formulations for dealing with breast cancer, which affects millions of women around the world, have been administered as intravenous medication, injected into a line attached to a patient.

Sold under the brand name Herceptin, the drug comes as a subcutaneous formulation, allowing it to be administered as an injection, according to the Swiss pharmaceutical firm Roche, which makes the formulation.

Herceptin is designed to target and block the function of HER2, a protein produced by a specific gene with potential to cause cancer when it is over expressed, according to Oladipupo Hameed, country manager for Roche Nigeria.

The drug works by activating the body’s immune system and suppressing a mechanism that signals HER2, essentially targeting and destroying the tumour.

Administration medication subcutaneously is believed to be less invasive, and it takes approximately five minutes to get to work. The entire administration could take around five minutes, compared with up to 90 minutes for an entire dose through an IV line.

It is great convenience to patients and simplifies health care procedures by removing the need for reconstruction or calculating dosage according to patient body weight, said Hameed.

The formulation has been around in developed countries for some time, but is only being introduced in Nigeria.

“We believe that patients in Nigeria should receive the same treatment as those in other parts of the world, and the launch of Herceptin is testament to that,” said Hameed.

He said the drug represents the next level of innovation in breast cancer treatment and may enable patients spend less time in hospital and more time getting on with their lives.