The majority of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are not candidates
for curative resection because of advanced disease at the time of diagnosis. Systemic
chemotherapy has been employed with modest success to provide symptom relief and prolonged
survival for patients with this incurable disease. Any benefit derived from chemotherapy
in this palliative setting must be balanced against the substantial toxicity associated
with cytotoxic drugs. A novel approach to anticancer treatment based on specific targeting
molecular processes has recently demonstrated efficacy. ZD1839 is a low-molecular-weight
molecule that is capable of inhibiting epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-associated
tyrosine kinase activity. Consequently, ZD1839 interrupts EGFR-mediated activities
such as tumor cellular proliferation, motility, survival, and invasiveness. In vitro
and in vivo studies have shown that ZD1839 has activity against NSCLC. The results
of ZD1839 in randomized clinical trials of patients with advanced NSCLC are reported
in this review. In addition to evaluating response rates and clinical endpoints, these
trials prospectively evaluated symptom improvement and quality of life.
KEYWORDS
Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) - symptom control - quality of life - ZD1839
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Ronald B NataleM.D.
Cedars-Sinai Comprehensive Cancer Center
8700 Beverly Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90048
eMail: rnatale@csccc.com