[Clinical response to gefitinib retreatment of lung adenocarcinoma patients who benefited from an initial gefitinib therapy: a retrospective analysis]

Abstract

Background and objective: Gefitinib is an epidermal growth factor receptor-tyrosine kinase inhibitor (EGFR-TKI) that has been widely used for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). It is most effective in women, as well as in patients who have never smoked, have pulmonary adenocarcinomas, or are of Asian origin. Several treatment options are available for NSCLC patients who responded to initial gefitinib therapy but demonstrated tumor progression, of which gefitinib readministration is the chosen therapeutic option. The present study aims to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of gefitinib readministration.

Methods: The clinical data of 18 patients with NSCLC who had shown partial response (PR) or achieved a stable disease (SD) status after gefitinib administration and were retreated with gefitinib due to failure of the initial therapy were reviewed and retrospectively analyzed.

Results: Of the 18 patients studied, 1 (6%) showed partial remission (PR), 11 (61%) achieved SD, and 6 (33%) experienced disease progression. The disease control rate was 67%, and the median progression-free survival was 5.16 months (range, 1 to 24.8 months). The median overall survival from the start of the gefitinib therapy was 39.4 months (range, 15.38 to 52.44 months). Moreover, the median overall survival from the beginning of the 2nd therapy was 12.41 months (range, 3.98 to 38.24 months). Mild toxicity was observed with the 2nd gefitinib therapy.

Conclusion: The results of the present study indicate that patients with NSCLC may still be expected to achieve prolonged survival through gefitinib readministration if they initially responded to gefitinib and underwent various subsequent treatments.