After a 4-week run-in period ( gemcitabine 1000 mg m ( -2 ) once weekly plus erlotinib 100 mg per day ) , patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer who developed grade 0/1 rash were randomised to receive gemcitabine plus erlotinib dose escalation ( 150 mg , increasing by 50 mg every 2 weeks ( maximum 250 mg ) ; n = 71 ) or gemcitabine plus standard-dose erlotinib ( 100 mg per day ; n = 75 ) .