title: Targeted therapy in older patients with solid tumors.
abstract: The introduction of targeted therapy has ushered in the era of personalized medicine in cancer therapy. The increased understanding of tumor heterogeneity has led to the determination of specific targets that can be exploited in treatment. This review highlights approved drugs in different therapeutic classes, including tyrosine kinase inhibitors, mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitors, drugs targeted to the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2, BRAF-mutation targeted drugs, anti-epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors, and anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy. There have not been elderly patient-specific trials of these therapies. Most of the data are extrapolated from larger trials in which older patients generally were a fraction of the participants. Therapeutic recommendations are made on the basis of this analysis with the recognition that the older clinical trial participants may not be representative of patients seen in daily practice. Patient selection and geriatric evaluation are critical for appropriate drug selection, dosing, and monitoring. With care, these therapies are a major step forward in the safe and effective treatment of older patients with cancer.
authors: Ciara M. Kelly and Derek G. Power, Mercy University Hospital, Cork, Ireland; and Stuart M. Lichtman, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Commack, NY.
authors: Ciara M
authors: CM
authors: Kelly
authors: Ciara M. Kelly and Derek G. Power, Mercy University Hospital, Cork, Ireland; and Stuart M. Lichtman, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Commack, NY.
authors: Derek G
authors: DG
authors: Power
authors: Ciara M. Kelly and Derek G. Power, Mercy University Hospital, Cork, Ireland; and Stuart M. Lichtman, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Commack, NY. lichtmas@mskcc.org.
authors: Stuart M
authors: SM
authors: Lichtman
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D006801:Humans; D058990:Molecular Targeted Therapy; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000201:enzymology; D057285:Precision Medicine; D047428:Protein Kinase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D048493:Proto-Oncogene Proteins B-raf / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics; D058570:TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors
chemical_list: D047428:Protein Kinase Inhibitors; C546842:MTOR protein, human; C482119:BRAF protein, human; D048493:Proto-Oncogene Proteins B-raf; D058570:TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases