The medicine Retevmo selpercatinib is recommended by healthcare professionals to treat patients with advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer, thyroid cancer, and solid tumors with a RET gene fusion. The FDA approved this drug in 2020, usually in 40 mg and 80 mg capsule form for oral administration.
Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC): Introduction
Non-small cell lung cancer happens when abnormal cells form and multiply in your lung tissues. NSCLC is 1 of 2 main types of lung cancer. The other is small-cell lung cancer. There are 3 main types of NSCLC:
- Adenocarcinoma
- squamous cell
- Large cell carcinoma
Note: NSCLC is the most common type of lung cancer, summing up about 85% of all lung cancer cases.
Symptoms of NSCLC
The most common warning signs for NSCLC are; shortness of breath and a cough that doesn’t go away. Other NSCLC symptoms might be:
- Chest pain or discomfort.
- A cough that doesn’t go away or gets worse over time.
- Trouble breathing.
- Wheezing.
- Coughing up blood.
- Loss of hunger.
- Weight loss for no known reason.
- Tiredness.
- Hoarseness.
- Difficulty swallowing.
- Swelling in the face or the veins in the neck.
- At times, lung cancer doesn’t cause any symptoms and is discovered during routine X-rays or screenings.
Diagnosis of NSCLC
The healthcare professional performs a physical examination and asks about the signs and health history. If they suspect NSCLC, they’ll recommend certain tests to diagnose and stage the disease. These tests may include:
- Laboratory tests: blood or urine analyses.
- Chest X-rays
- CT scans
- Biopsy
- Sputum cytology
- Bronchoscopy
- Thoracoscopy
- Thoracentesis
Recommended dosage: Retevmo
The recommended Retevmo dosage based on body weight is:
- Less than 50 kg: 120 mg
- 50 kg or greater: 160 mg
Take Retevmo orally twice daily until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. Swallow the capsules whole. Do not crush or chew the capsules.
Reference: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/6203-non-small-cell-lung-cancerhttps://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2022/213246s008lbl.pdf
