The hypoxic tumor microenvironment and drug resistance against EGFR inhibitors: preclinical study in cetuximab-sensitive head and neck squamous cell carcinoma cell lines

Abstract

Our results suggest that both EGFR-inhibitors cetuximab and erlotinib maintain their growth inhibitory effect under hypoxia. These results suggest that resistance to anti-EGFR therapy in HNSCC is probably not the result of hypoxic regions within the tumor and other mechanisms are involved.