NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The development of a skin rash in patients with pancreatic cancer or lung cancer treated with Tarceva is a strong indication that the drug is working, report researchers from OSI Pharmaceuticals, the drug's developer.

Dr. Bret Wacker and colleagues analyzed data from two clinical trials testing Tarceva in advanced lung cancer and advanced pancreatic cancer. These studies led to the approval of this drug for treating both types of cancer.

In both studies, overall survival was better in Tarceva-treated patients who developed a rash, the investigators report in the journal Clinical Cancer Research. In fact, the more severe the rash, the longer patients survived.

"Some patients are stopping treatment because of the rash, yet those are the ones most likely to benefit. This is a critical problem," Wacker said in a statement from the American Association for Cancer Research.

"Physicians and patients should view rash development as a positive event indicative of greater likelihood of clinical benefit," he and his colleagues conclude. "Developing strategies to manage rash while continuing (Tarceva) therapy is important," they add.

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