title: Sudden onset of interstitial lung disease induced by gefitinib in a lung cancer patient with multiple drug allergy.
abstract: Gefitinib is an oral selective inhibitor of the epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase which is effective for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer. A 75-year-old man with advanced adenocarcinoma of the lung was treated with gefitinib. He had a history of allergy to several antibiotics and Welder's lung. Two days after initiation, he developed acute interstitial lung disease (ILD) and died of respiratory failure due to progression of ILD. Critical assessment pointed to gefitinib as the likely cause of this complication. This is the first report of rapid gefitinib-induced ILD. This case should alert physicians to the potential for dangerous pulmonary side-effects of gefitinib therapy, especially in patients with drug allergy.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Respiratory Medicine, NHO Sanyo National Hospital, Respiratory Disease Center, Ube, Yamaguchi, Japan. aoe@sanyou-dr.jp
authors.forename: Keisuke
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Aoe
authors.forename: Akio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hiraki
authors.forename: Tomoyuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Murakami
authors.forename: Tadashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Maeda
authors.forename: Yoshiki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Umemori
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Katayama
authors.forename: Ryosuke
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Eda
authors.forename: Hiroyasu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Takeyama
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy*; D000368:Aged; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects*; D018450:Disease Progression; D004342:Drug Hypersensitivity / Q000150:complications*; D000077156:Gefitinib; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000473:pathology; D017563:Lung Diseases, Interstitial / Q000139:chemically induced*; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008297:Male; D011799:Quinazolines / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012131:Respiratory Insufficiency; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D011799:Quinazolines; D000077156:Gefitinib