Crizotinib for c-MET-amplified advanced NSCLC: a single-center experience

Lung cancer is the most common cause of cancer-related death in the world. Changes in the treatment of metastatic lung cancer in recent years have made targetable mutations gain importance. MET alteration is one of these driver mutations and crizotinib is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor used in therapy.

In our study, data of patients with c-MET amplification who received crizotinib treatment between July 2017 and November 2020 in the Medical Oncology Clinic of Bakırköy Dr. Sadi Konuk Training and Research Hospital were retrospectively analyzed. c-MET scanning was performed by the fluorescent in situ hybridization method by using Cytotest MET/CCP7 probe kit by evaluating 100 tumor cells and the threshold value for positivity was accepted as above 20%.

Eight of 28 patients who received crizotinib treatment had c-MET amplification. Seven of these patients were male and one was female. Progression-free survival and overall survival in these eight patients were 9.4 and 10.9 months, respectively, and objective response rate was 50%. Grade 4 nausea was observed in only one patient; there was no grade 4-5 toxicity and no patient discontinued the drug due to toxicity.

Crizotinib is an effective treatment option other than cytotoxic chemotherapy in the limited number of patients with MET amplification in the stage 4 lung adenocarcinoma subgroup. It is important to investigate this amplification, which can be detected especially in smoking patients in the appropriate patient group, and to use appropriate tyrosine kinase inhibitors in treatment.