Al's Comment:
In the case presented, the patient had a GBM but was allergic to Temodar so they had to try something different. They tried erltinib and Optune, which has resulted in stable disease for at least 9 months after radiation. It is only 1 case but shows brilliant thinking on the part of this patient's team. They chose Optune, which is the obvious choice, but since the patient overexpressed EGFR, they also added erlotinib. More research needs to be done on such combinations of Optune and therapies personalized to the patient!
Posted on: 11/10/2018
Oxf Med Case Reports. 2018 Nov 5;2018(12):omy095. doi: 10.1093/omcr/omy095. eCollection 2018 Dec.
The role of erlotinib and the Optune device in a patient with an epidermal growth factor receptor viii amplified glioblastoma.
Doyle SP1, Gurbani SS1, Ross AS2, Rosen H 2, Barrett CD3, Olson JJ4, Shim H5, Shu HK5, Sengupta S2.
Author information:
1. Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA.
2. Departments of Neurology and Medical Oncology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
3. Department of Medical Oncology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
4. Department of Neurosurgery, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
5. Department of Radiation Oncology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Abstract
The standard treatment for patients diagnosed with glioblastoma is surgical resection of tumor followed by high dose radiation and chemotherapy with temozolomide. For patients who experience allergic reactions to temozolomide despite desensitization protocols, alternative therapies must be considered. In this report, we present such a patient who then received treatment with an epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitor, erlotinib, concurrent with a tumor-treating field device, Optune. Through this combination of a targeted molecular therapy and the Optune device, the patient has been able to achieve stable disease 9 months after completing radiation.
PMCID: PMC6217712
PMID: 30410775
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