Potential new drug for some patients with treatment-resistant lung cancer
Mutations in the growth factor gene EGFR are present in about 10 to 15 percent of patients with the most common form of lung cancer, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Most NSCLCs harboring these EGFR mutations, called activating mutations, respond to the EGFR inhibitor drugs erlotinib and gefitinib. A majority of such cancers, however, develop resistance to these drugs within about nine to 11 months. …