How Herceptin is given
Herceptin is given during visits to a hospital or clinic.
It can be given in two ways:
- by infusion – where the medication is fed slowly into your bloodstream through a drip; the first treatment usually takes about 90 minutes and further treatments take about 30 minutes
- by subcutaneous injection – an injection under the skin of the thigh that takes a few minutes (this can only be used for breast cancer)
The first time you have Herceptin you'll need to stay in hospital for around six hours so you can be monitored for any side effects. Further treatment sessions usually only require up to two hours in hospital.
If you have breast cancer, you'll have treatment every one or three weeks. Stomach and oesophageal cancer is usually treated once every three weeks.
Early-stage breast cancer will require treatment for a year. For breast, oesophageal or stomach cancer that has spread, treatment is used for as long as it helps.
Introduction 