Immunotherapy for Breast Cancer

Immunotherapy is a breast cancer treatment that uses medications to boost your immune system’s ability to identify and kill cancer cells.

At UPMC, breast medical oncologists use the latest immunotherapy medications — often in combination with other therapies or as part of clinical trials — to optimize your breast cancer treatment.

What Is Immunotherapy for Breast Cancer? 

Immunotherapy for breast cancer involves using medications to boost your immune system’s ability to identify and kill cancer cells.

What Conditions Do We Treat? 

Immunotherapy is most often used in combination with other therapies to treat triple-negative breast cancer that:

• Has returned and can’t be treated with surgery.
• Has spread to other parts of your body.
• It is Stage 2 or Stage 3 and can be treated with surgery.

Triple-negative breast cancer occurs in 15% of breast cancer cases. It is called “triple-negative” because these cancer cells don’t have receptors for progesterone, estrogen hormones, or HER2 proteins.

Who’s Eligible for Immunotherapy for Breast Cancer?

Immunotherapy may be a treatment option if your breast cancer is advanced, can’t be treated with surgery, has spread to other parts of your body, or has returned or not responded to other treatments. Your doctor will let you know if immunotherapy is a breast cancer treatment option for you.

What Immunotherapy Treatments Do We Offer for Breast Cancer? 

Immunotherapy treatment options for breast cancer include:

Checkpoint inhibitors

Checkpoint inhibitors help your immune system identify specific proteins found in breast cancer cells. When your immune system identifies these proteins, it triggers an immune response that destroys the cancer cells, causing tumors to stop growing or shrink.

Targeted therapies

Targeted therapies are similar to antibodies produced by your immune system, which identify and attack foreign cells, including cancer cells. A type of targeted therapy medication known as monoclonal antibodies uses antibodies that have been specially “programmed” in a lab to find and destroy breast cancer cells.

Immunotherapy clinical trials

UPMC experts participate in national, multicenter clinical trials studying promising immunotherapy treatments for breast cancer.

That means you can participate in research with the potential to advance breast cancer care and access groundbreaking treatments years before they are available to the public. Your doctor will let you know if an immunotherapy clinical trial may be an option for you.

What Can I Expect? 

Your doctor will let you know if immunotherapy is a breast cancer treatment option for you. Most immunotherapy medications are given through an IV infusion every few weeks.

Because immunotherapy treatments stimulate your immune system, your doctor will monitor you closely for side effects, including signs of an autoimmune reaction that could cause your immune system to mistakenly attack healthy parts of your body.

Why Choose UPMC for Immunotherapy for Breast Cancer? 

When you choose UPMC for immunotherapy care for breast cancer, you will receive:

• Comprehensive breast cancer expertise — The breast cancer experts at UPMC provide state-of-the-art care for every form of breast cancer at every stage of the disease.
• Personalized, collaborative care — Our surgical, medical, and radiation oncologists work together to plan the best course of therapy for you.
• Supportive services tailored to your needs — Our approach to breast cancer care honors your preferences by blending advanced clinical methods with supportive services for the best possible results.

By UPMC Editorial Staff. Last reviewed on 2025-09-18.