Can breast cancer be cured with drugs alone?

[genelie]

can i Know about the drugs Herceptin and Iressa?

[stephenflair]

HI,  
              If you have been diagnosed with breast cancer, your doctor will most likely prescribe drugs as part of your treatment. In some patients, medications are used without surgery, though you most likely will take breast cancer drugs in conjunction with, and following your other treatments. Drug therapy is intended to stop cancer cells from dividing into new cells, and spreading to other parts of the body. The most common drug used in breast cancer therapy is tamoxifen. Because breast cancer medication can increase the risk of other cancers, carefully follow your doctor's advice about using prescribed drugs and getting additional cancer screening tests.

[Fernando Roque, MD]

Hi.  Herceptin and Iressa are types of drugs which are called "targeted treatment" since they were designed to disrupt a very specific molecular mechanism responsible for the growth of cancer cells.  Both drugs target human epidermal growth factor receptors (EGFRs).  These are molecules found on the surface of cancer cells which accept growth stimuli from the cells' outside environment.  Disrupting the function of the EGFRs stops the growth of cancer cells and makes them more susceptible to the effects of cytotoxic chemotherapy drugs.  Herceptin is an antibody which attaches to the outer structure of the EGFR, while Iressa is a small molecule which attaches to the portion of the EGFR found inside the cell.  

See the following links for more information on these drugs:

http://www.fda.gov/Cder/foi/label/2000/trasgen020900LB.htm
http://www.fda.gov/CDER/Drug/infopage/gefitinib/default.htm