Clinical response of acneiform eruptions caused by cetuximab to administration of oral tetracycline and topical ketoconazole.

Background: Cutaneous adverse events associated with the use of epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors, such as cetuximab are relatively common. Although there are reports about possible treatments for acne or acneiform lesions induced by cetuximab, there are only few reports of prospective studies.

Objective: The aim of the study was to analyze the efficacy of varius treatment modalities and their combinations in patients with acneiform eruptions caused by cetuximab.

Patients and methods: We studied 14 patients treated with an epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors, including 7 patients cetuximab, who developed acneiform eruptions in the course of therapy. All patients were diagnosed as grade II according to the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) v4.0. A corticosteroid ointment, tacrolimus ointment, and ketoconazole ointment were used in a randomized manner. Oral therapy included administration of antihistaminic drugs, tetracycline, a cyclooxygenase inhibitor, or a macrolide. We measured the numer of days required to achieve improvement from grade II to grade I during cetuximab treatment.

Results: Our results showed that tetracycline treatment may shorten the period needed to achieve improvement. Ketoconazole cream and a combination of oral tetracycline and topical ketoconazole also significantly shortened this period.

Conclusion: The results of our short case study may indicate that a combitation therapy of oral tetracyclin and topical ketokonazole is most effective in the therapy of patients with acneiform eruptions caused by cetuximab.