[Cutaneous reactions to molecular targeted therapies]

The use of molecular targeted therapies currently is on the rise in the treatment of severe diseases, particularly for malignant tumors. The targeted agents show a high specificity against one or more molecular target structures, hereby inhibiting or modifying signal transduction pathways connected to these targets, and thus strongly altering proliferation, activation and interaction of the targeted cells. These manipulations of highly specific signaling pathways are associated with again highly specific side effects, which often affect the skin. These cutaneous reactions present a new spectrum of adverse drug events to the dermatologist. We reviews the cutaneous reactions of molecular targeted agents used in the treatment of psoriasis (alefacept, efalizumab, etanercept, infliximab and adalimumab), as well as agents used in cancer therapy (imatinib, sorafenib, sunitinib, EGFR antagonists and CTLA-4-antagonists).