Biochemistry & Pharmacology: Open Access
Open Access

Abstract

Novel Targeted Therapy for Advanced Gastric Cancer

Hui-yan Luo and Rui-hua Xu

Despite its decreasing incidence in western countries, the care of gastric cancer remains a concern. As gastric cancer is often diagnosed at an advanced stage, the prognosis of patients with advanced disease remains dismal. Recent trials in advanced gastric cancer have been focused on targeted therapies. Agents targeting EGFR1 and HER2 have been widely tested. The addition of trastuzumab to cisplatin/fluoropyrimidine-based combination chemotherapy significantly improved survival in patients with HER2 positive advanced gastric cancer, which is now the new standard of care by recent ToGA trial. Other agents targeting VEGF, the PI3K–Akt–mTOR pathway, and other biological pathways have also been investigated in clinical trials, but showed little impact on the survival of patients. This review will focus on the recent progress in targeted agents for the treatment of AGC and summarize the current clinical evidence and ongoing trials supporting the use of targeted agents in the treatment of patients with AGC.