Nimotuzumab treatment and outcome analysis in patients with leptomeningeal metastasis from nonsmall cell lung cancer.

Abstract

Leptomeningeal metastasis (LM) leades a devastating consequence in patients with nonsmall cell lung cancer(NSCLC). Treatment is very limited for patients with LM. We introduced to use nimotuzumab (also known as h-R3) combined with methotrexate for treating LM in NSCLC patients. In the present report, twenty patients with LM of NSCLC were included, and the clinicopathology information and outcomes after treatment were analyzed. All the twenty patients with LM were lung adenocarcinoma. Thirteen patients had poor Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status (≥ 3) before treatment, fifteen patients received combined administration of h-R3 and methotrexate, and another five patients received h-R3 treatment alone. The median survival time after the diagnosis of LM was 5 months (range, 2.4-7.6 months) for these twenty patients. The mean cerebrospinal fluid opening pressure was 270mmH2O before treatment and decreased significantly after treatment (140 mmH2O) (P < 0.001). Associated symptoms were relieved quickly after one or two cycles of intrathecal therapy. These findings indicated that nimotuzumab might be a potential drug for treatment of LM in NSCLC patients.