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Review

The new concepts on overcoming drug resistance in lung cancer

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Pages 735-744 | Published online: 06 Jun 2014
 

Abstract

Lung cancer is one of the most deadly diseases worldwide. The current first-line therapies include chemotherapy using epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors and radiotherapies. With the current progress in identifying new molecular targets, acquired drug resistance stands as an obstacle for good prognosis. About half the patients receiving epidermal growth factor receptor-tyrosine kinase inhibitor treatments develop resistance. Although extensive studies have been applied to elucidate the underlying mechanisms, evidence is far from enough to establish a well-defined picture to correct resistance. In the review, we will discuss four different currently developed strategies that have the potential to overcome drug resistance in lung cancer therapies and facilitate prolonged anticancer effects of the first-line therapies.

Disclosure

This research is supported by a grant from Tianjin Health Bureau (No. 2011KZ116, No. 2010KZ106), Tianjin Natural Science Foundation (No. 10JCYBJC23700) and the National Natural Science Foundation (No. 81370183). The authors declare no conflicts of interest.