PHARMAC funding of 9-week concurrent trastuzumab (Herceptin) for HER2-positive early breast cancer.

A 9-week regimen of trastuzumab (Herceptin) given concurrently with a taxane will be funded for HER2-positive early breast cancer patients in New Zealand. The use of trastuzumab in this population has been investigated in sequential (after chemotherapy) or concurrent (with taxane chemotherapy) settings. Five RCTs have been reported--HERA, NSABP B31, NCCTG N9831, BCIRG 006, and FinHer.