Trastuzumab emtansine 100mg powder for solution for infusion vials
Requires a prescription from a doctor or prescriber
Trastuzumab emtansine, formerly called Trastuzumab-DM1 (T-DM1) is a first-in-class HER2 antibody drug conjugate (ADC) comprised of Genentech's trastuzumab antibody linked to ImmunoGen's cell-killing agent, DM1.
Safety information for pregnancy and breastfeeding
Pregnancy
Always consult your doctor or midwife before taking any medicine during pregnancy or while breastfeeding. Source: DrugBank (CC BY-NC 4.0).
Official documents, adverse reaction reporting, and safety monitoring
Report a side effect
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Official medicine documents
Yellow Card
Report side effects (MHRA)
Drug safety updates
MHRA alerts for Trastuzumab emtansine
Safety monitoring data
Yellow Card reports
The MHRA Yellow Card scheme collects reports of suspected side effects from healthcare professionals and patients. View the Drug Analysis Profile (iDAP) for real-world adverse reaction data.
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Suspected adverse reactions reported for Trastuzumab emtansine
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Interactive Drug Analysis Profiles for all medicines
Report a side effect
Submit a Yellow Card report to the MHRA
Data from the MHRA Yellow Card scheme. A reported reaction does not necessarily mean the medicine caused it. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
EudraVigilance
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) collects suspected adverse reaction reports from across the EU/EEA through the EudraVigilance system. Search for safety data on this medicine.
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Suspected adverse reactions reported for Trastuzumab emtansine
About EudraVigilance
Learn about EU pharmacovigilance and safety monitoring
EudraVigilance data is published by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). A suspected adverse reaction is not necessarily caused by the medicine.
2 branded products available
MHRA licensed products
View all licensed products for Trastuzumab emtansine on the MHRA register
Kadcyla 100mg powder for concentrate for solution for infusion vials
WHO defined daily dose (DDD)
12 mg
Not a recommended dose. The DDD is the assumed average maintenance dose per day for a drug used for its main indication in adults. It is a statistical measure used for research and comparison purposes only.
Source: WHO Collaborating Centre for Drug Statistics Methodology, distributed via the NHS dm+d supplementary mapping files (NHSBSA). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Therapeutically similar medicines
Similarity is based on WHO Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classification and on a factual NHS dm+d therapeutic-grouping code prefix. Source data: NHS dm+d via TRUD (OGL v3.0), WHO ATC/DDD Index.
NHS prescribing volume and spending trends
Guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence
NICE clinical guidance(8)
Trastuzumab emtansine for treating HER2-positive advanced breast cancer after trastuzumab and a taxane (TA458)
Trastuzumab emtansine for adjuvant treatment of HER2-positive early breast cancer (TA632)
Trastuzumab deruxtecan for treating HER2-positive unresectable or metastatic breast cancer after 1 or more anti-HER2 treatments (TA862)
Trastuzumab deruxtecan for treating HER2-positive unresectable or metastatic breast cancer after 2 or more anti-HER2 therapies (TA704)
Tucatinib with trastuzumab and capecitabine for treating HER2-positive advanced breast cancer after 2 or more anti-HER2 therapies (TA786)
Pertuzumab for the neoadjuvant treatment of HER2-positive breast cancer (TA424)
Early and locally advanced breast cancer: diagnosis and management (NG101)
Osimertinib for adjuvant treatment of EGFR mutation-positive non-small-cell lung cancer after complete tumour resection (TA1043)
Source: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Check stock at pharmacies and supply information
Pharmacy stock checkers
Search for this medicine at major UK pharmacy chains. These links open the retailer's own website — results depend on their current online catalogue.
Supply & safety information
Official UK regulator monitoring and safety alerts
Pharmacy links redirect to the retailer's own search and do not represent real-time stock levels. Shortage and safety information sourced from MHRA drug safety updates (gov.uk, Crown Copyright under OGL v3.0).
Codes for healthcare professionals and prescribing systems
These codes are used by healthcare IT systems and prescribers to identify this medicine.
NHS UK identifiers
Browse tools
SNOMED CT and dm+d codes from NHS TRUD (Technology Reference data Update Distribution), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. ATC codes from the WHO Collaborating Centre for Drug Statistics Methodology (whocc.no).
Active and completed clinical studies from ClinicalTrials.gov
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health (NIH). Data accessed via ClinicalTrials.gov API v2. Trial information is provided for research purposes and does not constitute medical advice.
Academic studies and reviews for this medicine's active substance
Showing the 50 most relevant studies.
Reviews & meta-analyses: 16 · Randomised trials: 17 · 2012–2026
Showing the 50 most relevant studies, sorted by most relevant.
S. Hurvitz, R. Hegg, Wei-Pang Chung, et al.
Lancet, 2022
V. Diéras, D. Miles, S. Verma, et al.
The Lancet. Oncology, 2017
I. Krop, Sung-Bae Kim, Antonio González Martín, et al.
The Lancet. Oncology, 2017
S. Hurvitz, Miguel Martín, W. Symmans, et al.
The Lancet. Oncology, 2018
L. Emens, F. Esteva, M. Beresford, et al.
The Lancet. Oncology, 2020
F. Hunter, H. R. Barker, B. Lipert, et al.
British Journal of Cancer, 2019
S. Tolaney, N. Tayob, C. Dang, et al.
Journal of Clinical Oncology, 2021
Anna-Maria Lazaratos, Sarah M. Maritan, Andrea Quaiattini, et al.
Breast, 2023
Juan Balapradhana Santoso
International Journal of Health Engineering and Technology, 2026
HER2-positive breast cancer is one of the subtypes of breast cancer with a poor prognosis and a strong need for effective targeted therapies. Trastuzumab deruxtecan (T-DXd) and trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1) are two antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) used as second-line treatments for patients with this condition. To evaluate the cost-effectiveness between T-DXd and T- DM1 through a systematic review of relevant literature. Literature search was conducted using Scopus, PubMed, Science Direct, and Google Scholar databases with the keywords “cost effectiveness analysis” AND “metastatic breast cancer” OR “HER2-positive breast cancer” AND “trastuzumab deruxtecan” AND “trastuzumab emtansine”. A total of 521 articles were identified, but only 4 met the inclusion criteria. T-DXd was considered more cost-effective in high- income countries such as the United States (ICER as low as $13,342/QALY) and Finland (ICER approximately €55,360/QALY), but not in China, where the ICER reached $186,017/QALY,
Abstract licence: CC BY-NC 4.0
Kuan Liu, Yanhong Li, Xi Zhang, et al.
Expert Review of Clinical Pharmacology, 2022
Sources: aggregated from Europe PMC (EMBL-EBI), OpenAlex, Crossref, PubMed and other open scholarly databases. Retracted articles are excluded. Study information is provided for research purposes and does not constitute medical advice.
Pharmacology and chemical data from DrugBank
Key facts
Drug status
Approved
Major interactions
None known
Half-life
4 days
Mechanism
Trastuzumab emtansine is a HER2 antibody-drug conjugate.
Food interactions
1 warning
Human targets
1 target
Data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
Pharmacokinetics at a glance
Absorption
100%
Half-life
4 days
Protein binding
93%
Volume of distribution
3.13 L
Metabolism
Elimination
Clearance
0.68 L
Pharmacokinetic data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
Known interactions with other medicines. Always consult a healthcare professional.
Showing 50 of 1394 interactions
Trastuzumab emtansine binds to the HER2 receptor’s sub-domain IV and goes into the cell by receptor-mediated endocytosis. Lysosomes degrade trastuzumab emtansine and release DM1. DM1 binds to tubulin in microtubules and inhibits microtubule function producing cell arrest and apoptosis. As well, similar to trastuzumab, in vitro studies have shown that both HER2 receptor signalling inhibition and antibody-dependent cytotoxicity are mediated by trastuzumab emtansine.
How the body processes this drug — absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination
Proteins and enzymes this drug interacts with in the body
Regulates outgrowth and stabilization of peripheral microtubules (MTs). Upon ERBB2 activation, the MEMO1-RHOA-DIAPH1 signaling pathway elicits the phosphorylation and thus the inhibition of GSK3B at cell membrane. This prevents the phosphorylation of APC and CLASP2, allowing its association with the cell membrane.
In turn, membrane-bound APC allows the localization of MACF1 to the cell membrane, which is required for microtubule capture and stabilization
Enzymes involved in drug metabolism — important for understanding drug interactions
Proteins that transport this drug across cell membranes
PMID:2897240 PMID:35970996 PMID:8898203 PMID:9038218 PMID:35507548
Catalyzes the flop of phospholipids from the cytoplasmic to the exoplasmic leaflet of the apical membrane. Participates mainly to the flop of phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine, beta-D-glucosylceramides and sphingomyelins .
PMID:8898203
Energy-dependent efflux pump responsible for decreased drug accumulation in multidrug-resistant cells PMID:2897240 PMID:35970996 PMID:9038218
ATC L01FD03
Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
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Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
Linked compound data from DrugBank Open Data (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Trastuzumab emtansine
Additional database identifiers
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
22146
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:3430
GenAtlas
ERBB2
GeneCards
ERBB2
GenBank Gene Database
M11767
GenBank Protein Database
553282
Guide to Pharmacology
2019
UniProt Accession
ERBB2_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2637
GenAtlas
CYP3A4
GeneCards
CYP3A4
GenBank Gene Database
M18907
Guide to Pharmacology
1337
UniProt Accession
CP3A4_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2638
GenAtlas
CYP3A5
GeneCards
CYP3A5
GenBank Gene Database
J04813
GenBank Protein Database
181346
Guide to Pharmacology
1338
UniProt Accession
CP3A5_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:40
GenAtlas
ABCB1
GeneCards
ABCB1
GenBank Gene Database
M14758
GenBank Protein Database
307180
Guide to Pharmacology
768
UniProt Accession
MDR1_HUMAN
DrugBank citations
If you use DrugBank data in your research, please cite:
- DrugBank 6.02024Recommended citationKnox C., Wilson M., Klinger C.M., et alDrugBank 6.0: the DrugBank Knowledgebase for 2024Nucleic Acids Res. 2024 Jan 552(D1):D1265-D1275
- DrugBank 5.02018Wishart D.S., Feunang Y.D., Guo A.C., et alDrugBank 5.0: a major update to the DrugBank database for 2018Nucleic Acids Res. 2017 Nov 846(D1):D1074-D1082
- DrugBank 4.02014Law V., Knox C., Djoumbou Y., et alDrugBank 4.0: shedding new light on drug metabolismNucleic Acids Res. 2014 Jan 142(1):D1091-7
- DrugBank 3.02011Knox C., Law V., Jewison T., et alDrugBank 3.0: a comprehensive resource for 'omics' research on drugsNucleic Acids Res. 2011 Jan39(Database issue):D1035-41
- DrugBank 2.02008Wishart D.S., Knox C., Guo A.C., et alDrugBank: a knowledgebase for drugs, drug actions and drug targets.Nucleic Acids Research2008 Jan36(Database issue):D901-6
- DrugBank 1.02006Wishart D.S., Knox C., Guo A.C., et alDrugBank: a comprehensive resource for in silico drug discovery and exploration.Nucleic Acids Research2006 Jan 134(Database issue):D668-72