Rationale for investigation of epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors in definitive treatment of locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer and head and neck cancer

Designing targeted therapies has become an important field in cancer therapeutics. The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is a molecular target that has gained immense attention as preclinical and clinical studies have supported its potential role for therapy of a variety of cancers, including non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and head and neck (HN) cancer. Several compounds that specifically inhibit EGFR have been developed, including ZD1839, C225, and OSI-774. Interestingly, studies suggesting a potential role for EGFR inhibitors as an adjunct to the current combined-modality approach for therapy of NSCLC and HN cancer have been performed in the preclinical and clinical setting. Therefore, determining the potential of EGFR inhibitors to improve the efficacy of standard combined-modality regimens (chemotherapy/radiation therapy ± surgery) for NSCLC and HN cancer patients is of the utmost importance. An overview of the rationale and the ongoing/proposed studies aimed at determining the role for EGFR inhibitors in combination with radiation therapy for NSCLC and HN cancer patients will be presented.