Effect of Gefitinib Combined with Chemotherapy in Patients with Advanced NSCLC: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Abstract

Background There are currently no methods for the treatment of reversible drug-resistant EGFR-TKI lung cancer in the clinical setting, and thus, the patients finally return to the currently used drugs. This study aimed to compare the efficacy of chemotherapy alone and gefitinib combined with chemotherapy in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients in advanced stage with the mutation of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). Methods A retrospective analysis was carried out on 120 patients with advanced EGFRm+ NSCLC who were divided into the control group (CG, received chemotherapy alone) or the observation group (OG, received chemotherapy and gefitinib) according to the treatment methods. Results Comparison of the objective response rates (ORRs) showed no statistical significant difference between OG (36.92%) and CG (29.09%, P > 0.05), whereas in OG, disease control rate (DCR) was significantly increased in comparison with CG (P < 0.05). The medians of progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in OG were 8.0 months and 24.0 months, respectively, which were longer than 5.0 months and 18.0 months in CG (P = 0.031). The univariate analysis revealed that clinical stage of tumor (HR = 1.590, 95% CI: 1.097–2.343) was the prognostic factor for advanced lung cancer. Multi-factor Cox regression analysis revealed that clinical analysis was an independent prognostic factor (HR = 1.701, 95% CI: 1.099–2.632). Conclusion In PFS patients, the OS rate was significantly improved, which was worth for clinical use.

Comparing Gefitinib and Traditional Chemotherapy for Better Survival in Patients With Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: A Systematic Review

“…However, the recent retrospective cohort investigation carried out by Dai and colleagues in 2022 that solely focused on the influence of gefitinib when administered in combination with conventional chemotherapeutic agents in advanced NSCLC corroborated our study results [24]. This particular investigation analyzed therapeutic outcomes within a total of 120 clinical cases of advanced EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC across two separate cohorts control cohort (CC) -treated with conventional chemotherapy alone; observation cohort (OC) -treated with conventional chemotherapy + gefitinib [24].…”

“…However, the recent retrospective cohort investigation carried out by Dai and colleagues in 2022 that solely focused on the influence of gefitinib when administered in combination with conventional chemotherapeutic agents in advanced NSCLC corroborated our study results [24]. This particular investigation analyzed therapeutic outcomes within a total of 120 clinical cases of advanced EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC across two separate cohorts control cohort (CC) -treated with conventional chemotherapy alone; observation cohort (OC) -treated with conventional chemotherapy + gefitinib [24]. The dataset outcomes from this specific investigation indicated that median values for PFS and OS were both extended within the observation cohort in comparison to the control cohort (PFS: eight months in OC versus five months in CC; OS: 24.0 months in OC versus 18.0 months in CC, respectively) [24].…”

“…This particular investigation analyzed therapeutic outcomes within a total of 120 clinical cases of advanced EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC across two separate cohorts control cohort (CC) - treated with conventional chemotherapy alone; observation cohort (OC) - treated with conventional chemotherapy + gefitinib [ 24 ]. The dataset outcomes from this specific investigation indicated that median values for PFS and OS were both extended within the observation cohort in comparison to the control cohort (PFS: eight months in OC versus five months in CC; OS: 24.0 months in OC versus 18.0 months in CC, respectively) [ 24 ]. Such study results further confirm that the introduction of gefitinib, in tandem with conventional chemotherapeutic options, carries significant clinical value in extending PFS and OS statistics within such NSCLC cases.…”

Preventive and therapeutic effects of green tea on lung cancer: a narrative review of evidence from clinical and basic research

“…EGFR is a member of the receptor tyrosine kinase (RTKs), and TKIs, such as gefitinib and erlotinib, have been recommended as the first-line treatment in NSCLC patients with the EGFR mutation. However, acquired resistance occurs after long-term exposure to gefitinib ( 76 ). EMT is a possible mechanism underlying TKI resistance.…”