Study of Irinotecan and Raltitrexed for Advanced Cancer
Author Information
Author(s): Ford H E R, Cunningham D, Ross P J, Rao S, Aherne G W, Benepal T S, Price T, Massey A, Vernillet L
Primary Institution: Royal Marsden NHS Trust
Hypothesis
What are the dose-limiting toxicities and maximum tolerated dose of irinotecan and raltitrexed in patients with advanced gastrointestinal adenocarcinoma?
Conclusion
The combination of irinotecan and raltitrexed is active with manageable toxicity.
Supporting Evidence
- 33 patients with pretreated gastrointestinal adenocarcinoma participated in the study.
- Only one patient at lower dose levels experienced dose-limiting toxicity.
- At the maximum tolerated dose, 5 out of 12 patients experienced dose-limiting toxicity.
- Pharmacokinetic data showed no measurable drug interaction.
- 20% of patients had objective responses to the drug combination.
Takeaway
Doctors tested two cancer drugs together to see how much they could give without making patients too sick, and they found a safe amount that works.
Methodology
This was an open label dose-escalation study with 33 patients receiving sequential short infusions of irinotecan and raltitrexed every 3 weeks.
Participant Demographics
Patients had pretreated gastrointestinal adenocarcinoma, with 31 colorectal and 2 oesophagogastric cases.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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