PERSONALIZED THERAPY OF INFLAMMATION-ASSOCIATED CANCER USING METHODS OF ASSESSING THE SUSCEPTIBILITY OF A SUBJECT TO THE TREATMENT WITH EGFR INHIBITORS/ANTAGONISTS

摘要

The present invention relates to in vitro methods of assessing the susceptibility or responsiveness of a subject to the treatment with an epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitor/antagonist, wherein the subject has been diagnosed as suffering from inflammation-associated cancer or is suspected of suffering from inflammation-associated cancer, such as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) or colorectal cancer. These methods comprise a step of determining the level of expression of EGFR in myeloid cells in a sample obtained from the subject, wherein an expression of EGFR in the myeloid cells is indicative of the subject being susceptible or responsive to the treatment with an EGFR inhibitor/antagonist. The invention also relates to an EGFR inhibitor/antagonist for use in the treatment or amelioration of inflammation-associated cancer, such as HCC or colorectal cancer, in a subject that has been identified in the aforementioned methods as being susceptible or responsive to such treatment. The invention furthermore provides in vitro methods of prognosing the survival time, the progression-free survival time or the disease course of a subject that has been diagnosed as suffering from inflammation-associated cancer or is suspected of suffering from inflammation-associated cancer, which methods also rely on determining the expression of EGFR in myeloid cells in a sample obtained from the subject. In addition thereto, the invention relates to in vitro diagnostic methods of assessing the proneness of a subject to develop inflammation-associated cancer, such as colorectal cancer, in which the expression of EGFR in myeloid cells in a sample from the subject is determined. The invention further provides an EGFR inhibitor/antagonist for use in the prevention of inflammation-associated cancer in a subject that has been identified in the aforementioned diagnostic methods as being prone to develop inflammation-associated cancer.