MONDAY, June 29, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- A breast cancer treatment that can be administered at home has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Phesgo is a combination of pertuzumab, trastuzumab, and hyaluronidase that is approved for injection under the skin to treat adults with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer that has spread to other parts of the body, and for treatment of adults with early HER2-positive breast cancer. Phesgo is initially used in combination with chemotherapy and could continue to be given to a patient at home by a qualified health care professional after the patient completes chemotherapy.
"Currently, most patients with HER2-positive breast cancer receive trastuzumab and pertuzumab at infusion centers. With a new administration route, Phesgo offers an outpatient option for patients to receive trastuzumab and pertuzumab," Richard Pazdur, M.D., director of the FDA Oncology Center of Excellence and acting director of the Office of Oncologic Diseases in the FDA Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said in an agency news release.
Phesgo carries a boxed warning about the risk of heart failure, fetal harm, and lung toxicity. A study found that the most common side effects among patients taking Phesgo were hair loss, nausea, diarrhea, anemia, and lack of energy. Phesgo can cause worsening of chemotherapy-induced neutropenia, according to the FDA.
The FDA granted approval of Phesgo to Genentech.
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