To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: Gemcitabine Plus Axitinib Increases Survival Compared With Gemcitabine Alone in Patients With Advanced Pancreatic Cancer URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/2229FA.htm Doctor's Guide May 30, 2008
LONDON -- May 30, 2008 -- A study, recently published in The Lancet, finds that gemcitabine plus axitinib increases overall survival compared with gemcitabine alone in the treatment of pancreatic cancer. Researchers aimed to assess the safety and efficacy of gemcitabine plus axitinib versus gemcitabine alone. Between January and August 2006, 103 patients with unresectable, locally advanced, or metastatic pancreatic cancer were randomly assigned in a 2 to 1 ratio to receive gemcitabine plus axitinib or gemcitabine alone. The primary endpoint was overall survival. Results showed an increased median overall survival of 6.9 months with gemcitabine plus axitinib compared with 5.6 months for gemcitabine alone. Interestingly, the greatest benefits on survival were seen in patients with an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0 to1 and in patients with locally advanced disease at baseline. Gemcitabine plus axitinib showed a similar safety profile to gemcitabine alone. These results highlight the importance of good performance status in gemcitabine-based combination treatment of advanced pancreatic cancer. However, in view of the small number of patients in the present study with an ECOG performance status of 2, these data cannot be overinterpreted and should be treated as preliminary, rather than confirmatory. The small, nonstatistically significant gain in overall survival needs to be assessed in a randomised phase 3 trial. SOURCE: The Lancet --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 1999 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of P\S\L content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of P\S\L. P\S\L shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this content or any other content on its sites, newsletters or other publications, nor for any decisions or actions taken in reliance on such content. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This news story was printed from *Doctor's Guide to the Internet* located at http://www.docguide.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to News Story Page This site is maintained by webmaster@pslgroup.com Please contact us with any comments, problems or bugs. All contents Copyright (c) 1998 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved.