Being aware of potentially fatal interstitial lung disease in patients with head and neck cancer treated with concurrent cetuximab and radiotherapy

AbstractCetuximab-induced interstitial lung disease (ILD), especially for tumors in the head and neck area, has rarely been reported. The present case may serve as an important reference to alert clinicians who use this chemotherapeutic agent. We report a case of acute ILD in a 66-year-old male with double cancers (oral floor cancer T4aN0M0 and supraglottic cancer T2N0M0), who received concurrent cetuximab and radiation therapy. He had severe dyspnea on day 51 along with worsened bilateral, progressive infiltration in chest X-ray, elevated C-reactive protein, Krebs von den Lungen 6 (KL-6), Surfactant Protein D (SP-D) and Surfactant Protein A (SP-A), and was diagnosed with ILD. He was treated with High-dose methylprednisone (1 mg/kg) soon after the diagnosis was made. He recovered remarkably and was discharged at day 100. For early detection of ILD, we suggest weekly chest X-rays for cetuximab-treated patients. In suspicious cases, High-resolution computed tomography scan and measurements of KL-6, SP-A, an...