Dr. Hurvitz on FDA Approval of Subcutaneous Trastuzumab Formulation in HER2+ Breast Cancer

Sara A. Hurvitz, MD, director of the Breast Oncology Program, medical director of the Clinical Research Unit, University of California, Los Angeles Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses the recent FDA approval of subcutaneous use of trastuzumab (Herceptin) and hyaluronidase-oysk injection (Herceptin Hylecta) in the HER2-positive breast cancer space.

The formulation is indicated in combination with chemotherapy for the treatment of select patients with HER2-positive early breast cancer, in combination with paclitaxel in patients with metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer as a frontline treatment, and alone for patients with metastatic disease who have received at least 1 prior chemotherapy regimen.

This approval is going to have a positive impact on patients, explains Hurvitz, as it will minimize patients' time in the infusion room, and it will also improve the quality of life for patients with metastatic breast cancer, in which doctor visits can be both time consuming and overwhelming.

However, this approval does not address patients who are receiving trastuzumab combined with pertuzumab (Perjeta), Hurvitz adds, as patients must be present for the pertuzumab infusion. However, it is applicable to those patients who receive trastuzumab combined with oral endocrine therapy or oral chemotherapy, or single-agent maintenance trastuzumab.

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