Trastuzumab in combination with chemotherapy has become a standard of care\nfor patients with HER2+ breast cancer. The cost of therapy, however, can limit patient access\nto trastuzumab in areas with limited financial resources for treatment reimbursement. This\nstudy examined access to trastuzumab and identified potential barriers to its use in the United\nStates, Mexico, Turkey, Russia and Brazil via physician survey. The study also investigated\nif the availability of a biosimilar to trastuzumab would improve access to and use of HER2\nmonoclonal antibody therapy. Across all countries, a subset of oncologists reported barriers\nto the use of trastuzumab in a neoadjuvant, adjuvant or metastatic setting. Common barriers\nto the use of trastuzumab included issues related to insurance coverage, drug availability and\ncost to the patient. Overall, nearly half of oncologists reported that they would increase the\nuse of HER2 monoclonal antibody therapy across all treatment settings if a lower cost\nbiosimilar to trastuzumab were available. We conclude that the introduction of a biosimilar\nto trastuzumab may alleviate cost-related barriers to treatment and could increase patient\naccess to HER2-directed therapy in all countries examined
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