Update on taxanes in the first-line treatment of advanced non-small-cell lung cancer

Based on demonstrated favourable risk-benefit profiles, taxanes remain a key component in the first-line standard of care for advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and NSCLC subtypes. In 2012, a novel taxane, nab-paclitaxel (Abraxane: Celgene Corporation, Summit, NJ, U.S.A.), was approved, in combination with carboplatin, for the first-line treatment of locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC. The approval was granted because of demonstrated improved antitumour activity and tolerability compared with solvent-based paclitaxel-carboplatin in a phase III trial. This review focuses on the evolution of first-line taxane therapy for advanced NSCLC and the new options and advances in taxane therapy that might address unmet needs in advanced NSCLC.