Herceptin is a drug that is given to treat certain breast cancers.However, it is most effective on tumors that are overexpressing the gene HER2.Which of the following strategies would be best for determining whether Herceptin would be effective in a given patient?
A)Sequence DNA from the patient's sperm or eggs to determine whether the patient's germ cells contain gain-of-function mutations in HER2, and treat with Herceptin only if they do.
B)Determine the patient's HER2 sequence and compare it to a database of known HER2 mutations to determine whether the overexpression allele is present; if the overexpression allele is present, give Herceptin .
C)Determine the patient's HER2 sequence and compare it to a database of known HER2 mutations to confirm that the patient has a mutation in the gene; give Herceptin if any mutation is found.
D)Perform microarray analysis to determine the location of the patient's HER2 gene and give Herceptin if the HER2 gene is not in the normal location.

Question

Herceptin is a drug that is given to treat certain breast cancers.However, it is most effective on tumors that are overexpressing the gene HER2.Which of the following strategies would be best for determining whether Herceptin  would be effective in a given patient?
A)Sequence DNA from the patient's sperm or eggs to determine whether the patient's germ cells contain gain-of-function mutations in HER2, and treat with Herceptin  only if they do.
B)Determine the patient's HER2 sequence and compare it to a database of known HER2 mutations to determine whether the overexpression allele is present; if the overexpression allele is present, give Herceptin .
C)Determine the patient's HER2 sequence and compare it to a database of known HER2 mutations to confirm that the patient has a mutation in the gene; give Herceptin  if any mutation is found.
D)Perform microarray analysis to determine the location of the patient's HER2 gene and give Herceptin  if the HER2 gene is not in the normal location.

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Herceptin is effective in patients whose tumors overexpress the HER2 gene. The best strategy is to determine if the patient's tumor cells have the overexpression allele of HER2, as this directly correlates with the drug's effectiveness.

Herceptin Is a Drug That Is Given to Treat Certain