Targeted therapies for patients with germ cell tumors.

Background: Patients with advanced germ cell tumors can be cured with cisplatin-based chemotherapy but the outcome remains unsatisfactory for patients with relapsed disease. Targeted therapies have changed the standard of care for many advanced solid tumors.
Objective: To identify clinically available drugs that have the potential as targeted therapies in germ cell tumors.
Methods: A literature search was carried out for expression and mutation status of receptor tyrosine kinases in germ cell tumors, also a literature and clinical trial database search for completed and ongoing clinical trials with targeted therapies in germ cell tumors.
Results/conclusions: c-KIT is mutated in some seminomas and bilateral germ cell tumors. Several case reports and small clinical trials with trastuzumab, thalidomide and imatinib were identified and clinical trials with sunitinib and bevacizumab are ongoing. We expect an increased use of targeted therapies in advanced germ cell tumors in the next few years.