Are There Different Ways to Receive MBC Drugs?
Medications for MBC can be given by mouth, by IV, by injection under the skin (also called subcutaneous), or by injection into the muscle (also called intramuscular). The way that you receive your medications can affect how well they work. Sometimes researchers find that two ways of giving a drug work equally well against cancer, but one method is more convenient for patients.
Read below to learn how researchers are studying different ways that people with MBC can receive their cancer medications.
Paclitaxel (Taxol®) by Mouth Compared to by IV
- Breastcancer.org: Paclitaxel (Taxol®) by mouth is just as effective and less likely to cause neuropathy than when given by IV (scroll to “Oral paclitaxel seems…”)
Selective Estrogen Receptor Degraders (SERDs) by Injection Compared to by Mouth
- Oncology Nursing News: Elacestrant (Orserdu®), a SERD given by mouth, is an option for some people with MBC and may improve quality of life compared to the SERD, fulvestrant (Faslodex®), which is given by injection
Immunotherapy by Injection Compared to by IV
- MedPage Today: Pembrolizumab (Keytruda®) by injection is now FDA approved
- Bristol Myers Squibb: Immunotherapy given by injection may be more convenient for the patient than when given by IV
- Cure Today: Nivolumab (Opdivo®) given by injection works equally as well and is more convenient compared to when given by IV
Anti-HER2 Therapy by Injection Compared to by IV
- Breastcancer.org: Trastuzumab (Herceptin®) can be given by IV or by injection
- Breastcancer.org: Pertuzumab, trastuzumab, and hyaluronidase (Phesgo®) given by injection plus docetaxel (Taxotere®) is FDA approved for HER2+ MBC
MBC Clinical Trials
- Metastatic Trial Search: Trials for People with MBC