BioCentury
ARTICLE | Distillery Therapeutics

Therapeutics: Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR); insulin-like growth factor-2 (IGF-2); insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) receptor (IGF1R; CD221)

February 19, 2015 8:00 AM UTC

In vitro and mouse studies suggest inhibiting IGF-2 signaling could improve the response of IGF-2-overexpressing colon cancers to EGFR inhibitors. In mice bearing patient-derived xenograft colon tumors, high IGF-2 expression was associated with resistance to the EGFR inhibitor Erbitux cetuximab. In mouse xenografts of patient-derived colon cancer that over-expressed IGF-2, Erbitux plus the IGF1R inhibitor BMS-754807 had a more potent antitumor effect than either treatment alone. Next steps include testing an anti-EGFR antibody and a small molecule IGFR1 inhibitor in patients with colon cancers that express high levels of IGF-2.

Eli Lilly and Co., Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. and Merck KGaA market Erbitux cetuximab to treat colorectal cancer and other cancers...