Herceptin (lovingly referred to here as "Vitamin H") may become a widespread tool for

[Lani]

thanks--Just what I needed to know!

[RobinP]

Sounds like Herceptin's use here is gone weird, a bit off course for its orginal use, Lani.

[Lani]

There are many drugs whose use has gone off-purpose allowing it to help many more people than it helped in its original indication. Many have benefited as it is much quicker to get an already approved drug utilized for another purpose--first, off-label, then with approval.

Here it is not the drug itself doing the work, but rather its attachment as a combination with something else. (like with tdm1) here rather than serving as a trojan horse and guidance system as with TDM1, serving as a body guard to allow the other drug/hormone to avoid things that break it down so it last long enough to be useful.