Abstract
Background. Gefitinib is an important drug for treating non-small cell lung cancer with EGFR gene mutations. However, many patients need dose reduction because of its toxicities. Presently, evidence of the effectiveness of low-dose administration is still scarce. Cases. We analyzed cases of 6 patients in our department who were administered gefitinib alternate day. The histology in all cases was adenocarcinoma of the lung and sensitive EGFR mutation exon19 deletion mutation or L858R point mutation was observed in all cases. The standard dose of gefitinib (250 mg) was administered to all patients as first line chemotherapy. However, dose reduction was needed because the patients developed rash, anorexia, and hepatitis. Alternate day administration for 5 patients and every 3 day administration for 1 patient was then started. The progression-free survival was 6-22 months, with the median being 10.5 months. In addition, alternate day treatment was still provided to 5 of the 6 patients. The therapeutic effects were observed in all cases. The disease control rate was 100%. Out of the 6 patients, complete response, partial response, and stable disease were observed in 1, 3, and 2 patients, respectively. Conclusion. This study suggests that alternate day administration of gefitinib for patients with sensitive EGFR gene mutation is beneficial when they have experienced severe adverse events.
