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Iressa and Iressa-like Drugs--a Question--John, Anyone?


Elaine

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Rob posted an article today about why Iressa works for about 10 per cent of people--has something to do with having a particular gene mutation.

I am wondering this: There are two other Iressa like drugs in various stages of being FDA approved. Are there enough differences in these three drugs that they will or might be effective for some of the rest of the 90 per cent of patients who get no benefit from Iressa?

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Elaine, I don't know, but I do know that our onc is very excited about one that is waiting to be approved very soon that he wants my husband to use. I'm sorry I can't remember the name of it, but I think it started with a "T". He said he was hoping it would be approved this summer.

Peggy

P.S. I sent you a PM and an email. Did you get them?

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Guest bean_si (Not Active)

http://www.gene.com/gene/pipeline/trial ... update.jsp

Because we know it will take the FDA several months to review this data after it is submitted, Genentech and OSI are working with the FDA and patient advocates to implement an open-label Tarceva access trial for patients with recurrent or refractory non-small cell lung cancer for whom standard chemotherapy has failed. Patients in this access trial will receive Tarceva as a monotherapy. It is our hope that the trial will be available to patients in the U.S. by mid-summer of 2004. For more information, please call 888-662-6728.

We will strive to keep patients and physicians updated on the availability of Tarceva as we move forward. For information on Genentech's clinical trials, please call our Trial Information Support Line at 888-662-6728. For more information on lung cancer, call the Alliance for Lung Cancer Advocacy, Support and Education at 800-298-2436, the American Cancer Society at 800-ACS-2345, CancerCare at 212-712-8400 or the NCI Cancer Information Service at 800-4-CANCER. For information about ongoing lung cancer research, visit www.clinicaltrials.gov, or ask your physician about treatment options.

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The following are some of the drugs that target EGF (epidermal growth factor) or HER1.

Iressa (gefitinib, ZD1839)

Tarceva (erlotinib, OSI-774)

CI-1033

EKB-569

ABX-EFG

Erbitux (Cetuximab, C225)

Iressa and Tarceva are small-molecule EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors.

The theory (I may be wrong) is that cancer cells have Epidermal growth factor receptors on the outside of there cells that allow them to grow.

Tarceva and Iressa work on the inside of the cell. When a growth factor attaches to a growth factor receptor a chemical chain reaction takes place called (signal transduction) inside the cell. Iress and Tarceva interfere with this chain reaction.

http://www.osip.com/OSI/clinical.asp?id=66

Erbitux is a monoclonal anti-body that works out the outside of the cell to stop the EGF from binding to the receptor, so the chemical reaction (signal transduction) is blocked as Iressa or Tarceva but on the OUTSIDE of the cell.

http://www.newsday.com/business/local/n ... 3484.story

One interesting note is that the level of EGF expression does not correlate to how effectiveness of Iressa. That means that they do not seem to really know how these drugs work. A Dr I talked to once, said we don't know how a lot of the sucessful drugs work, they just do.

Since Iressa and Tarceva use different molecules it does in theory mean that one may work for one person and may not work for another.

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The following are some of the drugs that target EGF (epidermal growth factor) or HER1.

Iressa (gefitinib, ZD1839)

Tarceva (erlotinib, OSI-774)

CI-1033

EKB-569

ABX-EFG

Erbitux (Cetuximab, C225)

Iressa and Tarceva are small-molecule EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors.

The theory (I may be wrong) is that cancer cells have Epidermal growth factor receptors on the outside of there cells that allow them to grow.

Tarceva and Iressa work on the inside of the cell. When a growth factor attaches to a growth factor receptor a chemical chain reaction takes place called (signal transduction) inside the cell. Iress and Tarceva interfere with this chain reaction.

http://www.osip.com/OSI/clinical.asp?id=66

Erbitux is a monoclonal anti-body that works out the outside of the cell to stop the EGF from binding to the receptor, so the chemical reaction (signal transduction) is blocked as Iressa or Tarceva but on the OUTSIDE of the cell.

http://www.newsday.com/business/local/n ... 3484.story

One interesting note is that the level of EGF expression does not correlate to how effectiveness of Iressa. That means that they do not seem to really know how these drugs work. A Dr I talked to once, said we don't know how a lot of the sucessful drugs work, they just do.

Since Iressa and Tarceva use different molecules it does in theory mean that one may work for one person and may not work for another.

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