To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: ASCO MEETING: Taxotere Increases Survival Rate For Lung Cancer URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/FE232.htm Doctor's Guide May 17, 1999
ATLANTA, GA -- May 17, 1999 -- Patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have undergone prior platinum-based chemotherapy have an increased rate of survival at one-year when treated with 75 mg/m2 of Rhone-Poulenc Rorer's Taxotere(R) (docetaxel) for Injection Concentrate than with the commonly-used lung cancer agents Navelbine(R) (vinorelbine tartrate) Injection or Ifex(R) (ifosfamide for injection), according to the results of a Phase III trial. The study was reported at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). The study, which was carried out at 23 American cancer centres, found that the one-year survival rate in patients treated with 75 mg/m2 of the chemotherapeutic agent docetaxel was 32 percent compared to 19 percent in patients treated with either vinorelbine or ifosfamide. "Patients with NSCLC who are resistant to platinum-based regimens are an extremely challenging population with few treatment options," said Frank Fossella, M.D., medical director, thoracic medical oncology at The University of Texas, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX., and principal investigator of the multicentre study. "In view of the poor survival rate often seen with these patients, our trial results provide optimism about the future management of this disease." The trial included 373 patients with advanced NSCLC who were resistant to platinum-based regimens and had an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of zero, one or two. All patients had received prior chemotherapy with platinum, one of the most commonly used drugs to treat lung cancer. Patients were randomised to treatment with either docetaxel, 75 mg/m2, or 100 mg/m2, every three weeks; or treatment with either vinorelbine, 30 mg/m2 weekly, or ifosfamide, 2 gm/m2 daily for three days every three weeks. The three treatment arms were similar with respect to age, sex, general physical condition, performance status, stage of cancer, type of cancer histology, prior chemotherapy, response to prior platinum-based chemotherapy, and prior treatment with platinum. The incidences of febrile neutropenia (low white blood cell counts with fever) were 12 percent and seven percent with docetaxel (at 100 mg/m2, and 75 mg/m2, respectively), compared to one percent with the comparator arm. However, other side effects such as infection, asthenia (weakness), fluid retention, diarrhea, stomatitis (inflammation of the inside of the mouth) and skin disorders were similar among all treatment groups. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in North America. Although the incidence of lung cancer in men has levelled off, the incidence in women continues to rise. Lung cancer now exceeds breast cancer as the leading cause of cancer-related death among U.S. women. In the U.S. alone, approximately 171,000 individuals are diagnosed with the disease and about 75 percent of these cases are NSCLC. At present, patients with metastatic NSCLC have relatively limited treatment options. Only 25 percent of patients have tumours that are operable. The majority of patients are treated with radiation therapy and/or chemotherapy. Related Links: Taxotere, Rhone-Poulenc Rorer Inc. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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.