New lung cancer drug tested

MORE than a hundred Spanish hospitals, among them four in the Balearics (Son Dureta, Son Llatzer, Can Misses and Clinica Rotger), have participated in the TARGET study which analyses the effectiveness and safety of the first medicinal drug authorised in Spain for the treatment of lung cancer which does not act like chemotherapy. It is called erlotinib, an orally administered medicinal drug designed to inhibit the receptor cells for the growth of human skin (HER1/EGFR), one of the main factors involved in cell growth in cases of lung cancer and other solid tumours. The receptor HER1, also known as EGFR, is a key component in the transmission of signals in the formation and growth of numerous types of cancer. The hospitals which have collaborated in TARGET included the treatment in all their centres for the treatment of lung cancer, from national centres of reference to local hospitals, according to the laboratory Roche. Lung cancer is the prime cause of death from cancer in Spain for both men and women.