Cutaneous side effects of new antitumor drugs: clinical features and management

Many new antitumor drugs have been approved in recent years. Their side-effect profiles are distinct from those of older drugs, and their adverse effects are sometimes highly specific, particularly with respect to the skin.

This article is based on articles retrieved by a selective search in Medline and the database of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), as well as on the authors' personal experience.

Cutaneous adverse effects are among the more common adverse effects of new antitumor drugs: they occur in up to 34% of patients receiving multikinase inhibitors, up to 90% of those receiving selective tyrosine kinase inhibitors (such as EGFR or mutant BRAF inhibitors), and up to 68% of those receiving immunotherapeutic agents (such as CTLA4 inhibitors). These adverse effects can be correlated with therapeutic benefit, but they can also be treatment-limiting because of their severity or visibility.

The recognition and proper management of cutaneous adverse effects is an important part of treatment with new antitumor drugs.