Korean Journal of Medicine  2008;74(2):198-202

A case of leptomeningeal metastasis from adenocarcinoma of the lung improved by treatment with Gefitinib.

Sung Ken YU 1 ; Won Jong PARK ; Chan Soh PARK ; Hyun Jung CHIN ; Kyeong Cheol SHIN ; Jin Hong CHUNG ; Kwan Ho LEE

Affiliations

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Keywords

Leptomeningeal metastasis; Non-small cell lung cancer; Gefitinib

Country

Republic of Korea

Language

Korean

Abstract

Leptomeningeal metastasis occurs in approximately 1% of patients with non-small cell lung cancer and this is an extremely serious complication. Without treatment, the median survival of patients is 4~6 weeks. The treatment options currently available are limited and achieve only modest results. Gefitinib was recently approved for the treatment of advanced/refractory non-small cell lung cancer. In addition, there have been case reports showing activity of gefitinib against brain metastasis in non-small cell lung cancer patients. However, there is limited data on the ability of gefitinib to cross the blood-brain barrier. We report the case of a patient with leptomeningeal metastasis from adenocarcinoma of the lung that had a dramatic response to gefitinib treatment.