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Effect of cetuximab treatment in squamous cell carcinomas

  • Published:
Tumor Biology

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of the monoclonal antibody cetuximab in a panel of cultured squamous cell carcinoma cell lines. This antibody, targeting the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), is emerging as a promising agent for treatment of several cancers. As this antibody comes into clinical use, the identification of predictive markers of therapeutic benefit remains a pressing issue. Cells were first characterized according to EGFR expression, cell doubling time, and BRAF and K-ras mutations. The effects of cetuximab on cell-cycle distribution, proliferation, as well as cell growth rate were then evaluated. Cetuximab decreased cell proliferation in three out of four cell lines in a time-dependent manner, and all cell lines were found to exhibit wild type K-ras and BRAF genes. A possible correlation between EGFR expression and cetuximab effect on growth inhibition rate was observed, whereas reduction of cell doubling time seemed to be more dependent on initial growth rate. In addition, other factors may further influence the long-term treatment response of cetuximab. Moreover, the time-dependent manner of cetuximab response demonstrates the importance of long-term measurements for this substance.

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Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank Dr. Magnus Sundström for performing the K-ras and BRAF mutation analyses, and Dr. Vladimir Tolmachev, Dr. Jörgen Carlsson, and Dr. Guus van Dongen for fruitful discussions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Unit of Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery, Department of Surgical Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden

    Marika Nestor

  2. Unit of Biomedical Radiation Sciences, Department of Oncology, Radiology and Clinical Immunology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden

    Marika Nestor

  3. Unit of Biomedical Radiation Sciences, Rudbeck Laboratory, Uppsala University, 751 85, Uppsala, Sweden

    Marika Nestor

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  1. Marika Nestor
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Correspondence to Marika Nestor.

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Nestor, M. Effect of cetuximab treatment in squamous cell carcinomas. Tumor Biol. 31, 141–147 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13277-010-0018-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13277-010-0018-8

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