Gefitinib 250mg tablets
Requires a prescription from a doctor or prescriber
Gefitinib (originally coded ZD1839) is a drug used in the treatment of certain types of cancer.
Genetic variations that may affect drug response
3 known genetic variations may influence how your body responds to Gefitinib 250mg tablets.Gene involved: EGFR
These are known genetic variations. They don't mean the medicine won't work for you — speak to your doctor or a pharmacogenomics specialist for personalised advice. Source: DrugBank (CC BY-NC 4.0).
Official documents, adverse reaction reporting, and safety monitoring
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Official medicine documents
Safety monitoring data
Yellow Card reports
The MHRA Yellow Card scheme collects reports of suspected side effects from healthcare professionals and patients. View the Drug Analysis Profile (iDAP) for real-world adverse reaction data.
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Suspected adverse reactions reported for Gefitinib
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Interactive Drug Analysis Profiles for all medicines
Report a side effect
Submit a Yellow Card report to the MHRA
Data from the MHRA Yellow Card scheme. A reported reaction does not necessarily mean the medicine caused it. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
EudraVigilance
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) collects suspected adverse reaction reports from across the EU/EEA through the EudraVigilance system. Search for safety data on this medicine.
View EudraVigilance report
Suspected adverse reactions reported for Gefitinib
About EudraVigilance
Learn about EU pharmacovigilance and safety monitoring
EudraVigilance data is published by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). A suspected adverse reaction is not necessarily caused by the medicine.
10 branded products available
MHRA licensed products
View all licensed products for Gefitinib on the MHRA register
Iressa 250mg tablets
Gefitinib 250mg tablets
WHO defined daily dose (DDD)
250 mg
Not a recommended dose. The DDD is the assumed average maintenance dose per day for a drug used for its main indication in adults. It is a statistical measure used for research and comparison purposes only.
Source: WHO Collaborating Centre for Drug Statistics Methodology, distributed via the NHS dm+d supplementary BNF/ATC mapping files (NHSBSA). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Therapeutically similar medicines
Similarity is based on WHO Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classification and on a factual NHS dm+d therapeutic-grouping code prefix. Source data: NHS dm+d via TRUD (OGL v3.0), WHO ATC/DDD Index.
NHS prescribing volume and spending trends
Guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence
NICE clinical guidance(12)
Gefitinib for the first-line treatment of locally advanced or metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer (TA192)
Erlotinib and gefitinib for treating non-small-cell lung cancer that has progressed after prior chemotherapy (TA374)
Erlotinib for the first-line treatment of locally advanced or metastatic EGFR-TK mutation-positive non-small-cell lung cancer (TA258)
Afatinib for treating epidermal growth factor receptor mutation-positive locally advanced or metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer (TA310)
Dacomitinib for untreated EGFR mutation-positive non-small-cell lung cancer (TA595)
Osimertinib for untreated EGFR mutation-positive non-small-cell lung cancer (TA654)
Erlotinib monotherapy for maintenance treatment of non-small-cell lung cancer (TA227)
EGFR‑TK mutation testing in adults with locally advanced or metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer (HTG316)
Nintedanib for previously treated locally advanced, metastatic, or locally recurrent non‑small‑cell lung cancer (TA347)
Lorlatinib for previously treated ALK-positive advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (TA628)
Atezolizumab in combination for treating metastatic non-squamous non-small-cell lung cancer (TA584)
Osimertinib for treating EGFR T790M mutation-positive advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (TA653)
Source: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Check stock at pharmacies and supply information
Pharmacy stock checkers
Search for this medicine at major UK pharmacy chains. These links open the retailer's own website — results depend on their current online catalogue.
Supply & safety information
Official UK regulator monitoring and safety alerts
Pharmacy links redirect to the retailer's own search and do not represent real-time stock levels. Shortage and safety information sourced from MHRA drug safety updates (gov.uk, Crown Copyright under OGL v3.0).
Codes for healthcare professionals and prescribing systems
These codes are used by healthcare IT systems and prescribers to identify this medicine.
NHS UK identifiers
Browse tools
SNOMED CT and dm+d codes from NHS TRUD (Technology Reference data Update Distribution), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. BNF code shown is the factual mapping value distributed by NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) in the dm+d supplementary file under OGL v3.0; it is not affiliated with, nor licensed from, the publishers of the British National Formulary. ATC codes from the WHO Collaborating Centre for Drug Statistics Methodology (whocc.no).
Active and completed clinical studies from ClinicalTrials.gov
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health (NIH). Data accessed via ClinicalTrials.gov API v2. Trial information is provided for research purposes and does not constitute medical advice.
Academic studies and reviews for this medicine's active substance
Showing the 50 most relevant studies.
Reviews & meta-analyses: 5 · Randomised trials: 22 · 2003–2026
Showing the 50 most relevant studies, sorted by most relevant.
Yi‐Long Wu, Ying Cheng, Xiangdong Zhou, et al.
The Lancet Oncology, 2017
- Gefitinib
- Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung
- Lung Neoplasms
Keunchil Park, Eng-Huat Tan, Kenneth J. O’Byrne, et al.
The Lancet Oncology, 2016
- Gefitinib
- Afatinib
- Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung
Shun Lu, Xiaorong Dong, H. Jian, et al.
Journal of Clinical Oncology, 2022
Yi-long Wu, Ying Cheng, Jianying Zhou, et al.
The Lancet. Respiratory medicine, 2020
P. Ding, S. Lord, V. Gebski, et al.
Journal of Thoracic Oncology, 2017
Jiyun Yang, Qing Zhou, Hong-Hong Yan, et al.
British Journal of Cancer, 2017
Tetsuya Mitsudomi, Satoshi Morita, Yasushi Yatabe, et al.
The Lancet Oncology, 2009
- Docetaxel
- Gefitinib
- Antineoplastic Agents
Masahiro Fukuoka, Seiji Yano, Giuseppe Giaccone, et al.
Journal of Clinical Oncology, 2003
- Gefitinib
- Antineoplastic Agents
- Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung
M. Kris, R. Natale, R. Herbst, et al.
JAMA, 2003
- Gefitinib
- Antineoplastic Agents
- Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung
Edward S. Kim, V. Hirsh, T. Mok, et al.
Lancet, 2008
- Docetaxel
- Gefitinib
- Antineoplastic Agents
Sources: aggregated from Europe PMC (EMBL-EBI), OpenAlex, Crossref, PubMed and other open scholarly databases. Retracted articles are excluded. Study information is provided for research purposes and does not constitute medical advice.
Pharmacology and chemical data from DrugBank
Key facts
Drug status
Approved
Major interactions
None known
Half-life
48 hours
Mechanism
Gefitinib is an inhibitor of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosin…
Food interactions
2 warnings
Human targets
1 target
Data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
Pharmacokinetics at a glance
Absorption
60%
Half-life
48 hours
Protein binding
90%
Volume of distribution
1400 L
Metabolism
4. Thr
Elimination
86%
Clearance
595 mL/min
Pharmacokinetic data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
Known interactions with other medications. Always consult a healthcare professional.
Showing 50 of 793 interactions
Symptoms of overdose include diarrhea and skin rash.
How the body processes this drug — absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination
Proteins and enzymes this drug interacts with in the body
PMID:10805725 PMID:27153536 PMID:2790960 PMID:35538033
Known ligands include EGF, TGFA/TGF-alpha, AREG, epigen/EPGN, BTC/betacellulin, epiregulin/EREG and HBEGF/heparin-binding EGF .
PMID:12297049 PMID:15611079 PMID:17909029 PMID:20837704 PMID:27153536 PMID:2790960 PMID:7679104 PMID:8144591 PMID:9419975
Ligand binding triggers receptor homo- and/or heterodimerization and autophosphorylation on key cytoplasmic residues. The phosphorylated receptor recruits adapter proteins like GRB2 which in turn activates complex downstream signaling cascades. Activates at least 4 major downstream signaling cascades including the RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK, PI3 kinase-AKT, PLCgamma-PKC and STATs modules .
PMID:27153536
May also activate the NF-kappa-B signaling cascade .
PMID:11116146
Also directly phosphorylates other proteins like RGS16, activating its GTPase activity and probably coupling the EGF receptor signaling to the G protein-coupled receptor signaling .
PMID:11602604
Also phosphorylates MUC1 and increases its interaction with SRC and CTNNB1/beta-catenin .
PMID:11483589
Positively regulates cell migration via interaction with CCDC88A/GIV which retains EGFR at the cell membrane following ligand stimulation, promoting EGFR signaling which triggers cell migration .
PMID:20462955
Plays a role in enhancing learning and memory performance (By similarity).
Plays a role in mammalian pain signaling (long-lasting hypersensitivity) (By similarity)
Enzymes involved in drug metabolism — important for understanding drug interactions
Proteins that transport this drug across cell membranes
PMID:2897240 PMID:35970996 PMID:8898203 PMID:9038218 PMID:35507548
Catalyzes the flop of phospholipids from the cytoplasmic to the exoplasmic leaflet of the apical membrane. Participates mainly to the flop of phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine, beta-D-glucosylceramides and sphingomyelins .
PMID:8898203
Energy-dependent efflux pump responsible for decreased drug accumulation in multidrug-resistant cells PMID:2897240 PMID:35970996 PMID:9038218
PMID:11306452 PMID:12958161 PMID:19506252 PMID:20705604 PMID:28554189 PMID:30405239 PMID:31003562
Involved in porphyrin homeostasis, mediating the export of protoporphyrin IX (PPIX) from both mitochondria to cytosol and cytosol to extracellular space, it also functions in the cellular export of heme .
PMID:20705604 PMID:23189181
Also mediates the efflux of sphingosine-1-P from cells .
PMID:20110355
Acts as a urate exporter functioning in both renal and extrarenal urate excretion .
PMID:19506252 PMID:20368174 PMID:22132962 PMID:31003562 PMID:36749388
In kidney, it also functions as a physiological exporter of the uremic toxin indoxyl sulfate (By similarity). Also involved in the excretion of steroids like estrone 3-sulfate/E1S, 3beta-sulfooxy-androst-5-en-17-one/DHEAS, and other sulfate conjugates .
PMID:12682043 PMID:28554189 PMID:30405239
Mediates the secretion of the riboflavin and biotin vitamins into milk (By similarity). Extrudes pheophorbide a, a phototoxic porphyrin catabolite of chlorophyll, reducing its bioavailability (By similarity).
Plays an important role in the exclusion of xenobiotics from the brain (Probable). It confers to cells a resistance to multiple drugs and other xenobiotics including mitoxantrone, pheophorbide, camptothecin, methotrexate, azidothymidine, and the anthracyclines daunorubicin and doxorubicin, through the control of their efflux .
PMID:11306452 PMID:12477054 PMID:15670731 PMID:18056989 PMID:31254042
In placenta, it limits the penetration of drugs from the maternal plasma into the fetus (By similarity). May play a role in early stem cell self-renewal by blocking differentiation (By similarity).
In inflammatory macrophages, exports itaconate from the cytosol to the extracellular compartment and limits the activation of TFEB-dependent lysosome biogenesis involved in antibacterial innate immune response
Proteins that carry this drug through the body
PMID:19021548
Major calcium and magnesium transporter in plasma, binds approximately 45% of circulating calcium and magnesium in plasma (By similarity).
Potentially has more than two calcium-binding sites and might additionally bind calcium in a non-specific manner (By similarity). The shared binding site between zinc and calcium at residue Asp-273 suggests a crosstalk between zinc and calcium transport in the blood (By similarity). The rank order of affinity is zinc > calcium > magnesium (By similarity).
Binds to the bacterial siderophore enterobactin and inhibits enterobactin-mediated iron uptake of E.coli from ferric transferrin, and may thereby limit the utilization of iron and growth of enteric bacteria such as E.coli .
PMID:6234017
Does not prevent iron uptake by the bacterial siderophore aerobactin PMID:6234017
Appears to function in modulating the activity of the immune system during the acute-phase reaction
ATC L01EB01
Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
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Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
Linked compound data from DrugBank Open Data (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Gefitinib
Additional database identifiers
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
13090
ChemSpider
110217
BindingDB
5447
PDB
IRE
ZINC
ZINC000019632614
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:3236
GenAtlas
EGFR
GeneCards
EGFR
GenBank Gene Database
X00588
GenBank Protein Database
757924
Guide to Pharmacology
1797
UniProt Accession
EGFR_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2638
GenAtlas
CYP3A5
GeneCards
CYP3A5
GenBank Gene Database
J04813
GenBank Protein Database
181346
Guide to Pharmacology
1338
UniProt Accession
CP3A5_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2595
GeneCards
CYP1A1
GenBank Gene Database
K03191
GenBank Protein Database
181276
Guide to Pharmacology
1318
UniProt Accession
CP1A1_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2623
GenAtlas
CYP2C9
GeneCards
CYP2C9
GenBank Gene Database
AY341248
Guide to Pharmacology
1326
UniProt Accession
CP2C9_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2621
GeneCards
CYP2C19
GenBank Gene Database
M61854
GenBank Protein Database
181344
Guide to Pharmacology
1328
UniProt Accession
CP2CJ_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2637
GenAtlas
CYP3A4
GeneCards
CYP3A4
GenBank Gene Database
M18907
Guide to Pharmacology
1337
UniProt Accession
CP3A4_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:2625
GenAtlas
CYP2D6
GeneCards
CYP2D6
GenBank Gene Database
M20403
GenBank Protein Database
181350
Guide to Pharmacology
1329
UniProt Accession
CP2D6_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:399
GenAtlas
ALB
GeneCards
ALB
GenBank Gene Database
V00494
GenBank Protein Database
28590
UniProt Accession
ALBU_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:8498
GenAtlas
ORM1
GeneCards
ORM1
GenBank Gene Database
X02544
GenBank Protein Database
757907
UniProt Accession
A1AG1_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:40
GenAtlas
ABCB1
GeneCards
ABCB1
GenBank Gene Database
M14758
GenBank Protein Database
307180
Guide to Pharmacology
768
UniProt Accession
MDR1_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:74
GenAtlas
ABCG2
GeneCards
ABCG2
GenBank Gene Database
AF103796
GenBank Protein Database
4185796
Guide to Pharmacology
792
UniProt Accession
ABCG2_HUMAN
DrugBank citations
If you use DrugBank data in your research, please cite the following publications:
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Structured knowledge from the free knowledge base
ATC classifications (Wikidata)
Linked open data from Wikidata (Q417824), a free and open knowledge base operated by the Wikimedia Foundation. Data is available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Public Domain Dedication. WHO INN from the World Health Organization.