Oncologists are faced with the following two contradictory situations: Some of the patients receiving cancer treatment are slightly satisfied with this situation, thinking that while they are exposed to more side effects, they will benefit more. Some of them are worried about the ineffectiveness of the treatment, although they do not experience any side effects. As a matter of fact, the frequency and degree of side effects decreased due to the extensive work on reducing the side effect profile of the new generation chemotherapeutic drugs and the widening of the drug spectrum used for toxicity; Side effects were not as intense as before.
However, after 2005, with the introduction and application of targeted therapies, different side effects began to be seen. Studies have shown that the efficacy of treatment increases in combinations of treatment agent-side effects, especially erlotinib-skin rash, cetuximab-skin rash, sunitinib-hypertension. In addition, we have seen this increase in efficiency in capecitabine-hand foot syndrome pairing, which we can consider as tumor semi-selective with its 1000-fold increased activity in tumor cells.
The main thing we will talk about is the side-effect-treatment success in immunotherapies, which is the 5th generation treatment area after surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and targeted treatments in the cancer treatment crucible.
In an article published in the September 2017 issue of JAMA Oncology, patients receiving Nivolumab (Opdivo) therapy (immunotherapy) for lung carcinoma were examined. The response and response time to treatment in patients with immunotherapy-related side effects were higher than in patients without side effects. has been shown. There was an almost 2-fold difference between the treatment response time, 9.2 versus 4.8 months, and was significant.
The belief in “More Side Effects and Increased Treatment Response”, which we do not find very meaningful, seems to take its place as a proven argument after new generation treatment agents.
But our goal and desire will always be “Minimum Side Effect à Maximum Treatment Response”.
