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. 2011 Nov 10;2(11):367-76.
doi: 10.5306/wjco.v2.i11.367.

Epidermal growth factor receptor and K-Ras in non-small cell lung cancer-molecular pathways involved and targeted therapies

Ramon Andrade de Mello  1 , Dânia Sofia Marques, Rui Medeiros, António Mf Araújo
Affiliations

Epidermal growth factor receptor and K-Ras in non-small cell lung cancer-molecular pathways involved and targeted therapies

Ramon Andrade de Mello et al. World J Clin Oncol. .

Abstract

Lung cancer is currently the leading cause of cancer death in Western nations. Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) represents 80% of all lung cancers, and adenocarcinoma is the predominant histological type. Despite the intensive research carried out on this field and therapeutic advances, the overall prognosis of these patients remains unsatisfactory, with a 5-year overall survival rate of less than 15%. Nowadays, pharmacogenetics and pharmacogenomics represent the key to successful treatment. Recent studies suggest the existence of two distinct molecular pathways in the carcinogenesis of lung adenocarcinoma: one associated with smoking and activation of the K-Ras oncogene and the other not associated with smoking and activation of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). The K-ras mutation is mainly responsible for primary resistance to new molecules which inhibit tyrosine kinase EGFR (erlotinib and gefitinib) and most of the EGFR mutations are responsible for increased tumor sensitivity to these drugs. This article aims to conduct a systematic review of the literature regarding the molecular pathways involving the EGFR, K-Ras and EGFR targeted therapies in NSCLC tumor behavior.

Keywords: Epidermal growth factor receptor; K-Ras; Non-small-cell lung carcinoma; Pharmacogenomics; p21ras proto-oncogene proteins.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Molecular mechanisms through the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor pathway. This figure shows EGFR ligands binding with their receptor and triggering mechanisms toward downstream intracellular signaling throughout the PLCγ, PI3K, Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK, STATs pathways leading to proliferation, metastasis, autocrine feedback, and survival (Adapted from reference 7 with permission). EGFR: Epidermal growth factor receptor; Shc: Src homologous and collagen protein; PCL-γ: Phospholipase Cγ; PI3K: Phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase; STATs: Signal transducer and activator of transcriptions; PKC: Protein kinase C; Grb2: Growth factor receptor bound protein 2; SOS: Guanine nucleotide exchange factor sos; MAPK:mitogen-activated protein kinase
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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