Initial Therapy of Advanced Anaplastic Thyroid Cancer via Targeting VEGFR-2: A Case Report

Preclinical studies have demonstrated that Apatinib, major targeting vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 (VEGFR-2), could inhibit the proliferation of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC) cells in vitro and in vivo. The efficacy and safety in ATC patients, however, remains unknown. Here, we report the case of a 93-year-old female with advanced ATC who initially treated with Apatinib. The tumor shrank notably 4 weeks after the initiation of therapy, which sustained for more than 30 weeks. The cervical CT illuminated a stable disease with a best response of 19.7% of the primary lesion and shrinkage of the metastatic lymph node. Adverse events, including hypertension, dental ulcer, hand-foot syndrome, fatigue, and anorexia, were observed and lightened with supportive treatment and dose reductions. The overall survival of the patient was 41 weeks. This is the first report describing the effectiveness of the VEGFR-2 inhibitor for the treatment of advanced ATC, warranting clinical trials to further ascertain its utility in this challenging setting.