title: Molecular targeted therapy to improve radiotherapeutic outcomes for non-small cell lung carcinoma.
abstract: Effective treatments for non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) remain elusive. The use of concurrent chemotherapy with radiotherapy (RT) has improved outcomes, but a significant proportion of NSCLC patients are too frail to be able to tolerate an intense course of concurrent chemoradiotherapy. The development of targeted therapies ignited new hope in enhancing radiotherapeutic outcomes. The use of targeted therapies against the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) has offered slight but significant benefits in concurrent use with RT for certain patients in certain situations. However, despite theoretical promise, the use of anti-angiogenics, such as bevacizumab and endostatin, has not proven clinically safe or useful in combination with RT. However, many new targeted agents against new targets are being experimented for combined use with RT. It is hoped that these agents may provide a significant breakthrough in the radiotherapeutic management of NSCLC. The current review provides a brief discussion about the targets, the targeted therapies, the rationale for the use of targeted therapies in combination with RT, and a brief review of the existing data on the subject.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Internal medicine, University of Missouri, Kansas City, MO, USA ; 2 Department of Radiation Oncology, Government Medical College, Haldwani, Nanital, India ; 3 Department of Pulmonary Medicine and Critical Care, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA ; 4 Department of Internal Medicine, University of Missouri, Kansas City, MO, USA ; 5 Department of Hematology and Oncology, Saint Luke's Hospital, Kansas City, MO, USA.
authors.forename: Bhaskar
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bhardwaj
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Internal medicine, University of Missouri, Kansas City, MO, USA ; 2 Department of Radiation Oncology, Government Medical College, Haldwani, Nanital, India ; 3 Department of Pulmonary Medicine and Critical Care, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA ; 4 Department of Internal Medicine, University of Missouri, Kansas City, MO, USA ; 5 Department of Hematology and Oncology, Saint Luke's Hospital, Kansas City, MO, USA.
authors.forename: Swaroop
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Revannasiddaiah
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Internal medicine, University of Missouri, Kansas City, MO, USA ; 2 Department of Radiation Oncology, Government Medical College, Haldwani, Nanital, India ; 3 Department of Pulmonary Medicine and Critical Care, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA ; 4 Department of Internal Medicine, University of Missouri, Kansas City, MO, USA ; 5 Department of Hematology and Oncology, Saint Luke's Hospital, Kansas City, MO, USA.
authors.forename: Himanshu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bhardwaj
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Internal medicine, University of Missouri, Kansas City, MO, USA ; 2 Department of Radiation Oncology, Government Medical College, Haldwani, Nanital, India ; 3 Department of Pulmonary Medicine and Critical Care, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA ; 4 Department of Internal Medicine, University of Missouri, Kansas City, MO, USA ; 5 Department of Hematology and Oncology, Saint Luke's Hospital, Kansas City, MO, USA.
authors.forename: Sree
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Balusu
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Internal medicine, University of Missouri, Kansas City, MO, USA ; 2 Department of Radiation Oncology, Government Medical College, Haldwani, Nanital, India ; 3 Department of Pulmonary Medicine and Critical Care, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA ; 4 Department of Internal Medicine, University of Missouri, Kansas City, MO, USA ; 5 Department of Hematology and Oncology, Saint Luke's Hospital, Kansas City, MO, USA.
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shwaiki
keywords: Targeted therapy; cetuximab with radiotherapy; erlotinib with radiotherapy; gefitinib with radiotherapy; monoclonal antibodies; radio-sensitizer; tyrosine kinase inhibitors