EGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitor treatment beyond progression in long-term Caucasian responders to erlotinib in advanced non-small cell lung cancer: a case-control study of overall survival.

Introduction: Some patients with advanced NSCLC show prolonged disease stabilization on treatment with an EGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) such as erlotinib. It is not clear how to treat patients who progress after prolonged response to erlotinib. We hypothesized that TKI therapy beyond progression with added chemotherapy, radiotherapy or best supportive care may improve survival.

Benefit of erlotinib in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer is related to smoking status, gender, skin rash and radiological response but not to histology and treatment line.

Background: Erlotinib is a standard of treatment for metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer after failure of initial therapy. Patient selection based on clinical factors is under discussion.

Methods: We analyzed the outcome in relation to clinical factors of 121 consecutive Caucasian patients treated with erlotinib in a routine clinical setting in a comprehensive cancer center and 2 regional oncology centers.