What is the HercepTest?
HercepTest™ is a semi-quantitative immunohistochemical assay to determine HER2 protein overexpression in breast cancer tissues routinely processed for histological evaluation and formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded cancer tissue from patients with adenocarcinoma of the stomach, including the gastroesophageal junction*.
What does HER2/neu positive mean?
HER2-positive breast cancer is a breast cancer that tests positive for a protein called human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2). This protein promotes the growth of cancer cells. In about 1 of every 5 breast cancers, the cancer cells have extra copies of the gene that makes the HER2 protein.
What’s the difference between HER2-positive and HER2-negative?
Breast cancer cells with higher than normal levels of HER2 are called HER2-positive. These cancers tend to grow and spread faster than breast cancers that are HER2-negative, but are much more likely to respond to treatment with drugs that target the HER2 protein.
What does HER2-negative mean in breast cancer?
When a breast cancer is HER2-negative, it means that the cancerous cells do not contain high levels of the protein HER2. There are many treatment options available for this type of breast cancer, but the outlook can vary.
How accurate is FISH test for HER2?
The FISH test results will tell you that the cancer is either “positive” or “negative” (a result sometimes reported as “zero”) for HER2. Generally, the FISH test is not as widely available as another method of HER2 testing, called ImmunoHistoChemistry, or IHC. However, FISH is considered more accurate.
Can HER2-positive be cured?
HER2-positive breast cancer is highly curable because of the availability of these HER2-targeted therapies, so we treat patients fairly aggressively upfront to reduce the risk of them experiencing a stage IV recurrence.
Does HER2-positive mean metastatic?
Since this protein can make cancer cells grow more quickly, it’s natural to worry that your HER2-positive breast cancer might spread, or “metastasize.” If breast cancer spreads to other parts of your body, doctors call it “metastatic.” That means it’s at a more advanced stage than if it’s only in your breasts.
What is a good HER2 score?
Testing for HER2 status
The IHC gives a score of 0 to 3+ that measures the amount of HER2 proteins on the surface of cells in a breast cancer tissue sample. If the score is 0 to 1+, it’s considered HER2-negative. If the score is 2+, it’s considered borderline. A score of 3+ is considered HER2-positive.
How long can you live with HER2?
The survival rate among patients differ based on the molecular subtype and stage. The survival rate at four years among women with HR+/HER2− is estimated to be 92.5%, followed by HR+/HER2+ at 90.3%, HR−/HER2+ at 82.7%, and HR−/HER2− at 77.0% [1].
Is chemo necessary for HER2-negative?
Many women with hormone-positive, HER2-negative, lymph node-negative early-stage breast cancer who have intermediate risk of cancer recurrence do not need chemotherapy. The exception is that some women who are younger than 50 may benefit when chemotherapy is added to hormone therapy.
Is HER2 breast cancer curable?
How do you interpret HER2 FISH results?
FISH testing usually returns one of two results: positive or negative. Positive means your breast cancer cells make too much HER2 and your doctor should treat you with drugs that target that protein. Negative means the protein isn’t involved in the growth of your tumor.
How do I read my FISH test results?
How your doctor interprets this test is as follows:
- A result of 0 is negative.
- A result of 1+ is also negative.
- A result of 2+ is considered equivocal (uncertain).
- A result of 3+ is positive.
Does HER2 always return?
While HER2 positive breast cancer recurrence affects some patients, recent advancements in targeted therapies and long-term treatment approaches have made relapse less likely than ever before. The majority of patients with HER2 positive cancer do not experience recurrence.
How do you read HER2 results?
Is HER2 curable?
Can FISH results be wrong?
Accuracy and limitations. Prenatal interphase FISH testing is highly accurate, with reported false-positive and -negative rates usually less than 1%. The main problem, however, is that not all specimens are informative. Uninformative rates will vary among laboratories, but rates of 3% to 10% are considered typical.
How do you stop HER2 recurrence?
Treating HER2-positive, early-stage breast cancer with Herceptin after surgery has been shown to lower the risk of recurrence. Current treatment guidelines recommend using Herceptin only when the cancer is larger than 1 cm because the risk of recurrence is higher for cancers of that size.
What does HER2 +3 mean?
IHC (immunohistochemistry) is usually done first. It involves a special staining process performed on a sample of breast cancer tissue. It’s reported as a score of 0–3. A score of 0 or 1+ means the breast cancer is HER2 negative. A score of 2+ is borderline and a score of 3+ means the breast cancer is HER2 positive.
What do FISH results tell you?
What does a FISH test show? With a FISH test, we’re looking at the number of chromosomes or their structural makeup within a cancer cell. There are a few genetic mistakes that can occur: Duplication/amplification – We find extra copies of chromosomes, parts of chromosomes or genes.
How accurate is the FISH test?
Prenatal interphase FISH testing is highly accurate, with reported false-positive and -negative rates usually less than 1%. The main problem, however, is that not all specimens are informative. Uninformative rates will vary among laboratories, but rates of 3% to 10% are considered typical.
What if FISH test is negative?
What the Results Mean. FISH testing usually returns one of two results: positive or negative. Positive means your breast cancer cells make too much HER2 and your doctor should treat you with drugs that target that protein. Negative means the protein isn’t involved in the growth of your tumor.