High incidence of disease recurrence in the brain and leptomeninges in patients with nonsmall cell lung carcinoma after response to gefitinib

Abstract

The CNS was a frequent site of disease recurrence in patients with NSCLC after an initial response to gefitinib, regardless of disease control in the lungs. Patients should be carefully monitored for neurologic symptoms. Intrinsic resistance of metastatic clones, incomplete CNS penetrance of the drug, and longer survival are possible explanations for this high incidence.