Will resistance to Erlotinib develop?

Erlotinib (Erlotinib) may be resistant in some patients. Drug resistance means that a drug is effective for a period of time, but over time, tumor cells gradually lose sensitivity to the drug, causing the drug to no longer be effective. This is a common problem with many targeted therapies, including erlotinib.

The mechanisms of erlotinib resistance may include the following points:

1.EGFRMutation Variations: In some cases, tumor cells may develop new EGFR mutations, making cells that were originally sensitive to erlotinib become resistant. These mutations may render drugs ineffective at inhibiting abnormal signaling pathways.

2.Activation of parallel signaling pathways: In some cases, tumor cells may bypass the inhibitory effect of the EGFR pathway through other signaling pathways, thus weakening the efficacy of erlotinib.

3.Drug metabolism and clearance: Some patients may have insufficient drug concentration in the body due to differences in drug metabolism and clearance, thereby weakening the therapeutic effect.

4.Tumor heterogeneity: Cell heterogeneity exists within tumors, that is, different tumor cells may have different genetic and molecular characteristics, making some cells resistant to drugs.

In order to deal with the problem of drug resistance, researchers are conducting multiple studies aimed at finding new treatment strategies to overcome the phenomenon of drug resistance. One method is to combine different targeted drugs to inhibit multiple signaling pathways at the same time and reduce the risk of drug resistance. Another approach is to develop new targeted drugs that target different links in the resistance mechanism.

Erlotinib has been launched in China and has been included in medical insurance. Patients can purchase it domestically. The domestic price ranges from about 700 to 1,000. The specification is 150mg*7 tablets. Due to different medical insurance policies in different places, the price is also different. Please consult the local pharmacy or medical insurance bureau for details. Erlotinib abroad is mainly an Indian generic drug with a price of about900RMB, available in specifications: 100mg*30 tablets and 150mg*30 tablets, which is about four times the domestic specification, but the price is similar to that in China.