RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Pemetrexed Versus Erlotinib in the Second-line Treatment of Patients with Advanced-stage Non-squamous NSCLC Harboring Wild-type EGFR Gene JF Anticancer Research JO Anticancer Res FD International Institute of Anticancer Research SP 447 OP 453 VO 36 IS 1 A1 FIALA, ONDREJ A1 PESEK, MILOS A1 FINEK, JINDRICH A1 SVATON, MARTIN A1 MINARIK, MAREK A1 BENESOVA, LUCIE A1 BORTLICEK, ZBYNEK A1 KUCERA, RADEK A1 TOPOLCAN, ONDREJ YR 2016 UL http://ar.iiarjournals.org/content/36/1/447.abstract AB Background: Pemetrexed and erlotinib represent different agents commonly used for the second-line treatment of patients with advanced-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Patients and Methods: We analyzed data of 137 patients with advanced-stage non-squamous NSCLC treated with pemetrexed or erlotinib in the second line. All patients harbored a wild-type epidermal growth factor receptor gene. Genetic testing was performed using a combination of denaturing capillary electrophoresis and direct Sanger sequencing. Results: overall response rate and disease control rate in patients treated with pemetrexed was 20.8% and 62.5% vs. 6.3% and 53.2% in patients treated with erlotinib (p=0.022; p=0.358). Median progression-free and overall survival in patients treated with pemetrexed was 1.6 and 11.3 months vs. 1.9 and 11.4 months in patients treated with erlotinib (p=0.470 and p=0.942, respectively). Erlotinib was associated with skin rash and diarrhea; pemetrexed was associated with hematological toxicity and fatigue. Conclusion: A similar efficacy and different, although well-tolerated, toxicity profile of both pemetrexed and erlotinib was shown.