US Brand Name Herceptin Descriptions Trastuzumab is used to treat new cases of breast cancer or disease that has spread to other pas of the body. It may prevent the growth of some breast tumors that produce extra amounts of a ceain substance known as the HER2 protein. Trastuzumab should only be used in patients whose breast tumors have been shown to produce extra amounts of this protein. It can be used alone or with other cancer medicines (chemotherapy) such as doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, paclitaxel, docetaxel, and carboplatin. Trastuzumab is also used in combination with cisplatin and capecitabine or 5-fluorouracil to treat malignant tumor of the stomach and esophagogastric (esophagus and stomach) cancer, metastatic, HER2 overexpression. Trastuzumab is a monoclonal antibody. It interferes with the growth of cancer cells, which are eventually destroyed by the body. Since the growth of normal body cells may also be affected by trastuzumab, other effects will also occur. Some of these may be serious and must be repoed to your doctor. Other effects, such as a skin rash, may not be serious but may cause concern. Some effects do not occur until months or years after the medicine is used. Before you begin treatment with trastuzumab, you and your doctor should talk about the benefits this medicine will do as well as the risks of using it. This medicine is to be administered only by or under the immediate supervision of your doctor. Once a medicine has been approved for marketing for a ceain use, experience may show that it is also useful for other medical problems. Although these uses are not included in product labeling, Trastuzumab is used in ceain patients with the following medical conditions: Breast cancer, HER2-overexpressing disease, primary treatment in combination with chemotherapy, before surgery. This product is available in the following dosage forms: Powder for Solution REFERENCE: www.mayoclinic.org