What types of cancer can Lapatinib treat?

Lapatinib (Lapatinib) is a targeted therapy drug that belongs to the kinase inhibitor class and is mainly used to treat certain types of breast cancer , especially HER2-positive breast cancer. HER2 (human epidermal growth factor receptor 2) is a receptor whose expression is increased in a variety of cancers, especially in breast cancer. Overexpression of HER2 is often associated with increased malignancy and poor prognosis of cancer. Therefore, targeted therapy targeting HER2 occupies an important position in the treatment of breast cancer.

Lapatinib is mainly used to treat patients with advanced or metastatic breast cancer, especially those HER2-positive patients whose disease has progressed despite treatment with trastuzumab (Herceptin). Lapatinib is often combined with capecitabine in these patients. Capecitabine is an oral chemotherapy drug that exerts its anticancer effects by converting it into fluorouracil (5-FU) in the body. Combination treatment regimens have been shown to significantly slow disease progression and improve patients' quality of life.

In addition, lapatinib can also be used in combination with letrozole to treat HER2-positive and hormone receptor-positive metastatic breast cancer, especially in postmenopausal female patients. Letrozole is an aromatase inhibitor that effectively inhibits tumor growth by reducing estrogen levels in the body and reducing the stimulating effect on breast cancer cells. Although the treatment regimen of lapatinib combined with an aromatase inhibitor has shown positive efficacy, there have been no studies directly comparing the efficacy of this regimen with trastuzumab-containing chemotherapy regimens in metastatic breast cancer. Therefore, clinicians usually choose the most appropriate treatment regimen based on the patient's specific situation.

In general, lapatinib, as a targeted therapeutic drug targeting the HER2 receptor, plays a key role in the treatment of advanced metastatic breast cancer, especially for those patients who have become resistant to conventional treatments, providing a new treatment option.

Keyword tags: lapatinib, HER2-positive breast cancer, capecitabine, letrozole, targeted therapy

Reference materials:https://www.drugs.com/mtm/lapatinib.html