EGFR Targeting in Hormone-Refractory Prostate Cancer: Current Appraisal and Prospects for Treatment

Pharmaceuticals

Olivier Guérin¹  Jean Louis Fischel¹  Jean-Marc Ferrero¹  Alexandre Bozec¹ 

[1] Oncopharmacology Unit, Centre Antoine Lacassagne, 33 Ave Valombrose, 06100 Nice, France

关键词: chemotherapy;    targeted therapy;    EGFR;    kinase inhibitors;    prostate cancer;    hormone-resistant prostate cancer;    geriatric oncology;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ph3072238

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

The incidence of prostate cancer increases with age and because of its high prevalence this disease has become a major public health concern. Despite advances in our understanding of the biological mechanisms responsible for the development of this cancer, the transition to the hormone refractory stage (HRPC) and metastatic progression pose real problems of clinical management. Currently, docetaxel chemotherapy has been shown to have a slight but significant impact on survival, though the gain in median survival is still less than three months. Research is therefore continuing to improve treatment outcomes. The progression of prostate cancer is accompanied by the overexpression of EGFR (epidermal growth factor receptor) in a very large majority of cases, suggesting that this may play a mechanistic role. Unfortunately, although preclinical findings seem to be promising for therapies targeting the EGFR in HRPC, current clinical results are disappointing. These results should however encourage us to look for different ways of using anti-EGFR agents or combining them with other targeted therapies.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2010 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.