Erlotinib is a necessary anticancer treatment for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients yet it causes severe side effects such as skin rash. In this study, researchers compared the untargeted compound profiles before and after erlotinib administration to observe changes in blood metabolites in NSCLC patients. The levels of 1005 substances changed after taking erlotinib. The levels of 306 and 699 metabolites were found to have increased and decreased, respectively. We found 5539 substances with peak area differences based on the presence of skin rash. Carbohydrate, amino acid, and vitamin metabolic pathways were altered in response to the onset of erlotinib-induced skin rash. Finally, this study proposed using plasma metabolites to identify biomarker(s) induced by erlotinib, as well as target molecule(s), for the treatment of dermatological toxic effects.
Keywords: NSCLC; erlotinib; herbal medicine; lung cancer; skin rash.