Open Access

Addition of bevacizumab to systemic therapy for locally advanced and metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma

  • Authors:
    • Hui‑Jie Zhang
    • Gao‑Le Yuan
    • Qi‑Lian Liang
    • Xiao‑Xia Peng
    • Shao‑Ang Cheng
    • Liang Jiang
  • View Affiliations

  • Published online on: March 16, 2018     https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2018.8284
  • Pages: 7799-7805
  • Copyright: © Zhang et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

Radiotherapy is a vital treatment option for patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Concurrent cisplatin‑based radiochemotherapy with or without adjuvant chemotherapy had acquired good clinical effects with good local control rates. However, a number of patients present with metastasis following systemic regimens or initial diagnosis of locally advanced NPC, which cause difficulty for subsequent therapy. Therefore, there is an urgent requirement to discover novel targeted therapies. The present report describes one case of a patient with NPC and multiple metastases. The patient was treated with systemic therapy in combination with bevacizumab, palliative radiotherapy and chemotherapy following treatment with cetuximab and concurrent chemoradiotherapy in 2015. Following the addition of bevacizumab, metastases were reduced or disappeared after >2 months, and the duration of progression‑free survival was 7 months. Bevacizumab is a monoclonal antibody that targets VEGF, and it is associated with angiogenesis, which causes the growth, invasion and progression of tumors. In previous studies, bevacizumab has been approved for the treatment of several types of malignant cancer and it has been able to effectively improve prognosis. In the present review, the effect of adding bevacizumab to systemic therapy for the treatment of NPC was analyzed, with a particular focus on advanced and metastatic diseases. A growing number of phase I/II clinical trials involving bevacizumab for NPC have been conducted with clinical outcomes showing improved rates of overall survival and progression‑free survival as well as improvements in the quality of life of patients. However, severe or deadly toxicities can also result from combination treatment with bevacizumab. In the future, bevacizumab may become a common addition to systemic therapy for the treatment of locally advanced and metastatic NPC.
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May-2018
Volume 15 Issue 5

Print ISSN: 1792-1074
Online ISSN:1792-1082

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Copy and paste a formatted citation
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Spandidos Publications style
Zhang HJ, Yuan GL, Liang QL, Peng XX, Cheng SA and Jiang L: Addition of bevacizumab to systemic therapy for locally advanced and metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Oncol Lett 15: 7799-7805, 2018
APA
Zhang, H., Yuan, G., Liang, Q., Peng, X., Cheng, S., & Jiang, L. (2018). Addition of bevacizumab to systemic therapy for locally advanced and metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Oncology Letters, 15, 7799-7805. https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2018.8284
MLA
Zhang, H., Yuan, G., Liang, Q., Peng, X., Cheng, S., Jiang, L."Addition of bevacizumab to systemic therapy for locally advanced and metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma". Oncology Letters 15.5 (2018): 7799-7805.
Chicago
Zhang, H., Yuan, G., Liang, Q., Peng, X., Cheng, S., Jiang, L."Addition of bevacizumab to systemic therapy for locally advanced and metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma". Oncology Letters 15, no. 5 (2018): 7799-7805. https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2018.8284