Journal Article

Feasibility and effectiveness of afatinib for poor performance status patients with EGFR-mutation-positive non-small-cell lung cancer: a retrospective cohort study

Yang, Cheng-Ta, Huang, Chen-Yang, Hsu, Ping-Chih, Chang, John Wen-Cheng, Wu, Chiao-En, Chang, Ching-Fu, Kuo, Chih-Hsi Scott

2021

Overview

Background Afatinib is one of the standard treatments for patients with epidermal growth factor receptor ( EGFR )-mutated non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, data on the use of afatinib in patients with poor performance status (PS ≥ 2) are limited. This study aimed to retrospectively review the clinical outcomes and safety of afatinib treatment in EGFR -mutation-positive (EGFRm+) NSCLC patients with PS ≥ 2. Methods The data for 62 patients who were treated at Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital from January 2010 to August 2019 were retrospectively reviewed. Patients’ clinicopathological features were obtained, and univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify possible prognostic factors. Data on adverse events were collected to evaluate general tolerance for afatinib therapy. Results Until February 2020, the objective response rate, disease control rate, median progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) were 58.1% (36/62), 69.4% (43/62), 8.8 months, and 12.9 months, respectively. The absence of liver metastasis (PFS: p  = 0.044; OS: p  = 0.061) and good disease control ( p  < 0.001 for PFS and OS) were independent favorable prognostic factors for PFS and OS. Bone metastasis ( p  = 0.036) and dose modification (reduction/interruption, p  = 0.021) were predictors of disease control. Conclusion Afatinib demonstrated acceptable efficacy and safety in the current cohort. This study provided evidence to support the use of afatinib as a first-line treatment in EGFRm+ NSCLC patients with poor PS.

• Publisher: BioMed Central,BioMed Central Ltd,Springer Nature B.V,BMC
• Subject: Adverse events / Afatinib / Biomedical and Life Sciences / Biomedicine / Cancer Research / Clinical trials / Cohort analysis / Diagnosis / Disease control / Drug dosages / Drug therapy / EGFR / Electronic health records / Epidermal growth factor / Epidermal growth factor receptors / Experimental therapeutics and drug development / Gene mutations / Genetic aspects / Growth factors / Health aspects / Health Promotion and Disease Prevention / Liver / Lung cancer / Lung cancer, Non-small cell / Medical prognosis / Medical records / Medicine/Public Health / Metastases / Metastasis / Multivariate analysis / Mutation / Non-small cell lung carcinoma / Oncology / Patients / Performance status / Research Article / Small cell lung carcinoma / Surgical Oncology / TKI / Tumors