Standing the test of time in Europe? Gefitinib in the treatment of non-small-cell lung cancer

Review

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Authors: Caroline Wilson, Sarah J Danson

Published Date May 2010 Volume 2010:1(Default) Pages 37 - 51

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/LCTT.S9974

Caroline Wilson, Sarah J Danson

Academic Unit of Clinical Oncology, University of Sheffield, Broomcross Building, Weston Park Hospital, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield, UK

Abstract: Lung cancer is the most common cancer worldwide, with 1.3 million new cases diagnosed every year. Non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) has previously had a very poor prognosis with few effective therapies; however, research has identified that it is associated with a high rate of expression of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase. This has led to discoveries in drug manipulation of this receptor, to provide effective new therapies against NSCLC. Gefitinib is a small molecule kinase inhibitor which inhibits the cytoplasmic domain of the EGFR; the evidence behind its use and future role is presented in this review.

Keywords: non-small-cell lung carcinoma, gefitinib, epidermal growth factor receptor, tyrosine kinase, cigarette smoking