Trifluridine/tipiracil is approved for the use in later or last-line setting in previously treated metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) patients who progressed on standard anti-tumor drugs including 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), irinotecan, oxaliplatin, anti-VEGF and anti-EGFR antibodies, or who are not considered candidates for those standard therapies. In this report, we describe a 67-year-old male patient with KRAS-mutated mCRC and metachronous liver and lung metastasis who failed prior 5-FU- and irinotecan-containing regimens, but then showed long-term disease control for 31 months on single-agent trifluridine/tipiracil given as second-line treatment. According to our experience, trifluridine/tipiracil is a feasible and effective treatment option in earlier but not necessarily last-line therapy in mCRC patients who are not considered candidates for doublet or triplet chemotherapy. Besides its efficacy, it is associated with maintained quality of life and a manageable toxicity profile. Considering increasing age of mCRC patients and their wish for maintaining an independent lifestyle, further research on the use of trifluridine/tipiracil in earlier lines of systemic mCRC therapy is warranted.
Keywords: Long-term survival; Metastatic colorectal cancer; Trifluridine/tipiracil.
© 2023 The Author(s). Published by S. Karger AG, Basel.