Forthcoming receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors.

Receptor tyrosine kinases play a significant role in carcinogenesis and have been successfully targeted with monoclonal antibodies and small-molecule inhibitors. There have been recent developments in the understanding of receptor tyrosine kinase signal transduction which have enabled better drug development. The use of receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors in clinical practice has expanded the knowledge on cancer biology, in particular the understanding of resistant mutations and strategies to overcome such resistance. This has driven drug development from single kinase inhibitors to multi-kinase inhibitors and high-affinity kinase inhibitors. Finally, as the use of receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors grows in clinical practice, more is learned about appropriate patient selection for such therapies. This is an exciting time in cancer therapeutics, highlighted by the advent of effective targeted therapy with receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors.