[Molecular targeted therapy in lung cancer]

Nihon Rinsho. 2010 Oct;68(10):1848-53.
[Article in Japanese]

Abstract

Lung cancer continues to be the leading cause of cancer death worldwide, and nonsmall cell lung cancer(NSCLC) is the most common type of lung cancer. Despite many clinical trials of platinum-based chemotherapy in combination with various drugs, the median survival time of NSCLC patients remains poor. The overall 5-year survival rate is approximately 15%, and has improved only marginally over the last few decades despite the introduction of new therapeutic agents. A recent milestone in this field has been the development of molecular-targeting drugs, among which gefitinib and erlotinib targeting the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) have improved the efficacy of therapy for NSCLC. Anti-angiogenetic drug, such as bevacizumab, had become clinical use in the treatment for NSCLC. Moreover, discovery of EML4-ALK made the marvelous progress in cancer research in NSCLC. In this review, we discuss about the development of molecular-targeting drugs, such as EGFR-TKI, anti-angiogenetic drug, and EMLA-ALK inhibitors.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Antibodies, Monoclonal / therapeutic use
  • Antineoplastic Agents / therapeutic use*
  • Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / drug therapy*
  • ErbB Receptors / antagonists & inhibitors
  • Humans
  • Lung Neoplasms / drug therapy*
  • Molecular Targeted Therapy*
  • Protein Kinase Inhibitors / therapeutic use
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / immunology

Substances

  • Antibodies, Monoclonal
  • Antineoplastic Agents
  • Protein Kinase Inhibitors
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A
  • ErbB Receptors