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[Targeted therapies in digestive oncology]

M-L Amram1, D A Benamran, A D Roth

  • 1Service d'oncologie, Département de chirurgie HUG, 1211 Genève 14. Marie-Laure.Amram@hcuge.ch

Revue Medicale Suisse
|July 5, 2011
PubMed

Insights

Targeted therapies, including those modulating EGF and VEGF pathways, offer new treatment options for advanced cancers. These targeted drugs improve survival rates and are well-tolerated, with future potential for refractory tumors.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Pharmacology

Background:

  • Targeted therapies represent a novel class of anti-cancer drugs.
  • These therapies interfere with specific intracellular signaling pathways crucial for cancer cell development.
  • Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF) and Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) pathways are key targets of current selective therapies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the role and impact of targeted therapies in oncology.
  • To highlight the efficacy of targeting EGF and VEGF pathways in advanced cancers.
  • To discuss the future potential of targeted therapies in personalized cancer treatment.

Main Methods:

  • Review of current literature on targeted therapies.
  • Analysis of clinical outcomes associated with EGF and VEGF pathway modulation.
  • Discussion of drug administration, tolerability, and future applications.

Main Results:

  • Targeting EGF and VEGF pathways significantly improves overall survival and progression-free survival.
  • Effective in treating advanced or metastatic colorectal cancer, gastric cancer, gastrointestinal stromal tumors, and hepatocellular carcinoma.
  • Targeted therapies offer specific action sites, simple administration, and good tolerability.

Conclusions:

  • Targeted therapies, particularly those modulating EGF and VEGF, are effective in improving outcomes for various advanced cancers.
  • These therapies are well-tolerated and easy to administer.
  • Future applications may include personalized 'à la carte' treatments for refractory tumors.

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