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The erbB 2 oncogene and chemotherapy: a mini-review
E A Torre1, V Salimbeni, R A Fulco
1Sezione Decentrata di Tecnologie Biomediche dell'Istituto Tumori di Genova, Messina, Italy.
Abstract:
The erbB 2 gene, also known as Her-2/neu, is an oncogene that encodes a transmembrane glycoprotein receptor. When overexpressed erbB 2 is an indicator of poor prognosis in a number of cancers. Recent studies show that erbB 2 expression plays a role in the prediction of responsiveness to adjuvant treatment: tumors that had an overexpression of the oncogene were less responsive to treatment than those with a normal amount. Some studies on this oncogene have examined the production of anti-erbB 2 monoclonal antibodies and evaluated the combined effect of monoclonal antibody and chemotherapeutics.
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