Potentiating Therapeutic Effects of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Inhibition in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

• Published in: Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 14; no. 6; p. 589
• Main Authors: You, Kyu Sic, Yi, Yong Weon, Cho, Jeonghee, Park, Jeong-Soo, Seong, Yeon-Sun
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 18.06.2021; MDPI
• Subjects: anti-EGFR therapy; anticancer; combination therapy; Drug resistance; EGFR inhibitor (EGFRi); EGFRi resistance; Epidermal growth factor; epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR); FDA approval; Kinases; Review; Cuba; Argentina; United States > US; China; Ukraine; India; triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC); EGFR inhibitor (EGFRi); epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR); anti-EGFR therapy; combination therapy; EGFRi resistance; anticancer
• ISSN: 1424-8247; 1424-8247
• DOI: 10.3390/ph14060589

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a subset of breast cancer with aggressive characteristics and few therapeutic options. The lack of an appropriate therapeutic target is a challenging issue in treating TNBC. Although a high level expression of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) has been associated with a poor prognosis among patients with TNBC, targeted anti-EGFR therapies have demonstrated limited efficacy for TNBC treatment in both clinical and preclinical settings. However, with the advantage of a number of clinically approved EGFR inhibitors (EGFRis), combination strategies have been explored as a promising approach to overcome the intrinsic resistance of TNBC to EGFRis. In this review, we analyzed the literature on the combination of EGFRis with other molecularly targeted therapeutics or conventional chemotherapeutics to understand the current knowledge and to provide potential therapeutic options for TNBC treatment.