Pulmonary pleomorphic carcinoma harboring epidermal growth factor receptor mutation: Response to afatinib

Pulmonary pleomorphic carcinoma (PPC) of the lung is a rare type of non-small cell lung cancer, exhibiting aggressive behavior and resistance to chemotherapy. We report a case of a 56-year-old female, diagnosed with PPC of the lung at clinical Stage IV in July 2017. She underwent first-line chemotherapy. The disease progressed after 6 cycles of chemotherapy, and we shift to afatinib due to presence of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation in exon 19. We then started second-line treatment in the form of molecular targeted therapy (afatinib), to which she had a partial response. Hence, we recommend the evaluation of driver gene alterations such as EGFR in the treatment of advanced PPC.