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©2013 Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Jul 28, 2013; 19(28): 4511-4519
Published online Jul 28, 2013. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i28.4511
Published online Jul 28, 2013. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i28.4511
First-line erlotinib and fixed dose-rate gemcitabine for advanced pancreatic cancer
Vanja Vaccaro, Alain Gelibter, Francesco Cognetti, Michele Milella, Department of Medical Oncology, Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, 00144 Rome, Italy
Emilio Bria, Medical Oncology, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Integrata, 37134 Verona, Italy
Isabella Sperduti, Department of Biostatistics and Scientific Direction, Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, 00144 Rome, Italy
Luca Moscetti, Enzo Maria Ruggeri, Medical Oncology, Ospedale “Belcolle”, 01100 Viterbo, Italy
Giovanni Mansueto, Teresa Gamucci, S.S. Trinità Hospital, Sora, 03039 Frosinone, Italy
Author contributions: Milella M designed clinical protocol; Vaccaro V, Gelibter A, Bria E and Milella M enrolled and treated patients and analyzed the results; Moscetti L, Mansueto G, Ruggeri EM, Gamucci T and Cognetti F enrolled and treated patients; Sperduti I analyzed data; Vaccaro V wrote the paper.
Supported by A Grant of the National Ministry of Health and the Italian Association for Cancer Research (AIRC); An AIRC fellowship to Vaccaro V
Correspondence to: Michele Milella, MD, Department of Medical Oncology, Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, Via Elio Chianesi 53, 00144 Rome, Italy. michelemilella@hotmail.com
Telephone: +39-6-52666919 Fax: +39-6-52665637
Received: January 31, 2013
Revised: April 3, 2013
Accepted: May 8, 2013
Published online: July 28, 2013
Revised: April 3, 2013
Accepted: May 8, 2013
Published online: July 28, 2013
Core Tip
Core tip: The most important finding reported in this study is the strong predictive value of the appearance of skin rash, related to epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-pathway inhibition. Our data suggest that patients developing any grade of skin rash during the treatment, can achieve disease control and survival comparable to those obtained with more intensive and more toxic chemotherapy. These findings underline the relevance of further investigation of the biological mechanisms related to the occurrence of skin rash upon EGFR blockade in order to identify clinical/molecular biomarkers predicting toxicity and efficacy and to prospectively select a subset of patients who could potentially benefit from Gem/erlotinib.