title: Improving disease control in advanced colorectal cancer: Panitumumab and cetuximab.
abstract: Colorectal cancer remains a major public health concern in Europe and North America. It is responsible for one million new cases and half a million deaths per year worldwide. During the past few years new effective treatments have evolved improving the outcome of patients with this disease. Several alternatives are currently available for advanced colorectal cancer patients including different chemotherapeutic regimens (fluoropyrimidines, irinotecan and oxaliplatin) and targeted therapies such as bevacizumab and cetuximab. Different combinations achieve a median survival of over 2 years. Intense efforts focus on identifying agents targeting growth factor receptors, signal transduction pathways or angiogenesis mediators. One of the last available drugs for the management of advanced colorectal cancer is panitumumab, a well-tolerated and effective anti-EGFR monoclonal antibody approved as a single agent in chemotherapy refractory patients. We discuss the current evidence supporting panitumumab for metastatic colorectal cancer treatment, potential predictive biomarkers and ongoing clinical trials with different combinations including panitumumab.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, Clínica Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain.
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rodríguez
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Viúdez
authors.forename: Mariano
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ponz-Sarvisé
authors.forename: Isabel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gil-Aldea
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chopitea
authors.forename: Jesús
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: García-Foncillas
authors.forename: Ignacio
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gil-Bazo
mesh_terms: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism; D000068818:Cetuximab; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D000077544:Panitumumab
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D015415:Biomarkers; D000077544:Panitumumab; D000068818:Cetuximab