EGFR-TKI-based vs non-EGFR-TKI-based adjuvant therapy in resected non-small-cell lung cancer with EGFR mutations: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

• Main Authors: Wu JX, He Q, Ye F, Zhou QX, Chen HJ, Sun L, Wu H
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dove Medical Press 2018-10-01
• Series: OncoTargets and Therapy
• Subjects: adjuvant treatment; epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors; non-small cell lung cancer
• Online Access: https://www.dovepress.com/egfr-tki-based-vs-non-egfr-tki-based-adjuvant-therapy-in-resected-non--peer-reviewed-article-OTT

Jing-Xun Wu,1,* Qi He,1,* Feng Ye,1,* Qing-Xia Zhou,2 Hao-Jun Chen,3 Long Sun,3 Hua Wu3 1Department of Medical Oncology, Xiamen Cancer Hospital, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, Xiamen, China; 2Department of Medical Oncology, Wuzhong People’s Hospital, Wuzhong, China; 3Department of Nuclear Medicine and Minnan PET Center, Xiamen Cancer Hospital, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, Xiamen, China *These authors contributed equally to this work Purpose: The great efficacy of EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs) has been identified in patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who harbor EGFR mutations. However, it has not yet been established in postoperative adjuvant therapy. Patients and methods: To compare the prognosis and toxicity of EGFR-TKI-based adjuvant therapy and non-EGFR-TKI-based adjuvant therapy in resected NSCLC with sensitive EGFR mutations, we performed this meta-analysis of all eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Results: A comprehensive literature search of electronic databases (from inception to December 31, 2017) was performed. Additionally, abstracts presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology conferences and World Conference on Lung Cancer held between January 2000 and November 2017 were searched to identify relevant trials. Disease-free survival (DFS), overall survival (OS), and grade 3 or 4 toxicities were analyzed. Five RCTs were selected, and 560 participants were included. This meta-analysis demonstrated that EGFR-TKI-based adjuvant therapy was associated with better DFS compared with non-EGFR-TKI-based therapy (HR =0.52, 95% CI 0.34–0.78, P=0.002). Pooled estimate has showed the trend of superiority of EGFR-TKI-based therapy in the aspect of OS (HR =0.65, 95% CI 0.22–1.91, P=0.43); however, the difference was not significant. The incidence rate of grade 3–4 toxicities of EGFR-TKI-based regimens was significantly higher for rash (OR =10.17, 95% CI 2.37–43.63, P=0.002) but lower for vomiting (OR =0.08, 95% CI 0.01–0.61, P=0.02). Conclusion: EGFR-TKI-based therapy was associated with better DFS compared with non-EGFR-TKI-based adjuvant therapy in patients with NSCLC harboring EGFR mutations. A trend was found that EGFR-TKI-based regimen improved the OS, though the difference was not significant. Although more OS data are needed, EGFR-TKI-based treatment has the potential to be an alternative of adjuvant therapy for NSCLC with a sensitive EGFR mutation. Keywords: adjuvant treatment, EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors, non-small-cell lung cancer