Abstract:
Objective To verify the efficacy of TKI retreatment after the failure of initial TKI therapy, and to explore possible clinical factors (initial TKI therapy, interval of TKIs) associated with the response to TKI retreatment.
Methods Data of Fourty advanced NSCLC patients retreated with EGFR - TKI after the failure of prior TKI therapy during a period from Mar 2003 to Mar 2012 were collected. The association of their clinical characteristics with median progression - free survival time (PFS) of TKI retreatment was retrospectively analysed.
Results Of the 40 patients, the median overall survival (OS) from the beginning of the initial TKI therapy was 29 months (95 % CI : 21.67 - 36.33), the median OS and PFS from the beginning of 2nd TKI therapy were 13 months (95 % CI : 8.65 - 17.35) and 2 months (range, 1 to 20 months), respectively. The disease control rate (DCR) of 2nd TKI treatment was 50 %. There was no significant difference in median PFS of 2nd TKI therapy between the interval of TKIs treatment longer than 1 months, 2 months, 3 months group and the interval not longer than 1 months, 2 months, 3 months group (P > 0.05). The patients who didn't receive chemotherapy in interval between initial TKIs treatment and TKIs retreatment seemed to have longer median PFS of TKI retreatment, the difference was not statistically significant (4 m vs 1 m P = 0.650).
Conclusion The retreatment of EGFR - TKI should be considered effective in patients who previously achieved disease control with TKI, even followed by a failure of initial TKI. The median PFS of TKI retreatment is not related to the time or chemotherapy between TKIs' initial treatment and retreatment.