Study Establishes Role For Gefitinib In Asian Nonsmokers With Lung Cancer

The targeted therapy gefitinib should be considered a first-line therapy for non-smoking Asian patients with adenocarcinoma of the lung, one of the most common types of lung cancer, suggests a presentation at the 33rd Congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) in Stockholm. Asia has a high proportion of lung cancer patients who are non-smokers, a significant proportion of whom develop a form of cancer known as adenocarcinoma. "Around 50% to 60% of this population have tumors with mutations in the epidermal growth factor receptor, and we know that patients with such mutations have a significantly better treatment outcome with gefitinib," said researcher Prof. Tony Mok from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. "Curr...