Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in the world as well as in China. It is estimated that approximately 429 000 Chinese individuals may die from lung cancer in 2005, and the mortality rate for lung cancer will double in the next century.1 Currently, chemotherapy is the a main treatment of advanced and recurrent lung cancer. However, the recent development of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) such as gefitinib and erlotinib may change the therapeutic approaches for this disease.