The GlaxoSmithKline PLC drug, Tykerb (lapatinib) in combination with Xeloda (capecitabine) is to be taken once daily in pill form by women who have received prior treatment with the intravenous drug Herceptin and older chemotherapy drugs called taxanes and anthracyclines.
It is the first targeted, once-daily oral treatment option for the women with aggressive state of breast cancer to be used in conjunction with the chemotherapy drug Xeloda. The drug, which is expected to be available in two-week's time, will cost about $2,900 a month.
Initial studies have shown that Tykerb in combination with Xeloda delayed tumor growth for an average of 8 1/2 months. This is two times as long as Xeloda alone did. The delay in tumor growth has also been found to be as closer to nearly seven months for women on both drugs, compared to almost five months for those on Xeloda alone.
However, the FDA says how much benefit both the drugs offer is unclear but experts have acknowledged that Tykerb expanded the options available to women with a type of advanced breast called HER2 positive when it has spread beyond control.
The other combination drug Xeloda, or capecitabine, is made by Switzerland's Roche Holding AG. South San Francisco-based Genentech Inc. makes Herceptin, also known as trastuzumab.
