Get your healthcare questions answered
by doctors, scientists, and clinical experts
A free service by Curio to support patients and their loved ones
Your team
I was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer. I was told I need immunotherapy. What should I expect?
- Anna(AI First Responder)••Verified by Curio clinician
I'm really sorry to hear about your diagnosis of triple negative breast cancer. Immunotherapy a cancer treatment that uses the body's immune system to fight cancer cells It is an exciting and promising treatment types of cancer, including triple negative breast cancer.
Here's what you can generally expect during immunotherapy treatment for breast cancer:
-
Treatment drug: Immunotherapy drugs work by helping the immune system recognize and attack cancer cells. The specific drug used for immunotherapy in breast cancer can vary, but commonly used drugs include pembrolizumab (Keytruda) and atezolizumab (Tecentriq).
-
Treatment schedule: Immunotherapy is typically given intravenously (through a vein) in an outpatient setting. The treatment schedule can vary depending on the drug being used and your individual situation. It may be given once every two weeks, or sometimes less frequently.
-
Length of treatment: The duration of immunotherapy treatment can also vary. may be given for a specific number of cycles or continue for a longer period depending on how well respond to the treatment.
-
Potential side effects: While immunotherapy is generally well-tolerated, it can cause side. The most common side include fatigue, low-grade fever, rashes and a. some cases, immunotherapy lead to serious the lungs, liver, or other organs. It's important to report any side effects to your healthcare team so that they can be managed promptly.
-
Monitoring and follow-up: Throughout your immunotherapy, your healthcare team will closely monitor your progress and response to the involve tests, imaging scans, and physical examinations's essential to attend all scheduled appointments and communicate any concerns or changes in your health to your teamIt important to that everyone's experience with immunotherapy can be different. Your healthcare team will closely monitor your individual situation and adjust the needed. They will also personalized information and support to guide you through the treatment process.
Do you have any other questions or concerns about or anything else related your diagnosis?
-