Abstract
Two decades ago best supportive care was considered a valid therapeutic option for advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients until the evidence derived from meta-analysis showed symptom improvement and a survival advantage from systemic chemotherapy. A further advantage was reported when docetaxel and pemetrexed were used as second-line treatment after failure of first-line platinum-based chemotherapy. Furthermore, the biologic therapies targeting the epidermal growth factor receptor - erlotinib and gefitinib - have modified the therapeutic approach to second- and third-line treatment of NSCLC patients. In fact, to date, erlotinib is the only drug to be licensed for third-line therapy worldwide. So, third-line represents a new frontier to be assessed in advanced NSCLC patients. Third-line therapy is very hard to define correctly as it is difficult to interpret the currently available evidence-based data. A better knowledge of cellular biology will certainly encourage clinical research and could allow oncologists to best select patients and treatments. Here we review the state of the art of third-line therapy in the treatment of NSCLC patients.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 113-121 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Oncology |
Volume | 77 |
Issue number | SUPPL. 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Feb 2010 |
Keywords
- Biologic agents
- Chemotherapy
- Erlotinib
- Gefitinib
- Non-small-cell lung cancer
- Third-line therapy
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Cancer Research
- Oncology