Development of treatment options for Chinese patients with advanced squamous cell lung cancer: focus on afatinib

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in China, and approximately one third of these cancers are squamous cell carcinoma (SqCC) of the lung. Ethnic diversity and country-specific environmental factors can account for interindividual variations in response to and tolerability of anticancer therapies. Although several targeted therapies have recently been approved for patients with relapsed/refractory SqCC of the lung, only afatinib, an irreversible ErbB family blocker, has data of Chinese patients. In the Phase III LUX-Lung 8 trial, afatinib demonstrated a significant clinical benefit vs the reversible first-generation EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor erlotinib in both the overall population and the Chinese subset, with a manageable safety profile. Emerging biomarker data from LUX-Lung 8 suggest that patients with ErbB mutations, especially ErbB2, and those classified as “good” in the VeriStrat(®) proteomic test, may benefit from afatinib treatment in particular, regardless of ethnicity, and may get a long-term response. In conclusion, afatinib is a valid second-line option for Chinese patients with SqCC of the lung, and specific biomarkers may help guide in treatment decision-making. Ongoing studies will provide further guidance on afatinib’s place in the treatment algorithm, alongside the other novel targeted therapies.