New Drug Bortezomib Extends Lung Cancer Survival by 22 Percent
According to the final results from a national phase II trial of the Southwest Oncology Group study, led by UC Davis Cancer Center researchers, the new molecularly targeted agent bortezomib when added to a standard chemotherapy regimen of gemcitabine and carboplatin prolongs survival in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer.
Bortezomib, developed by Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is sold under the trade name Velcade. This drug is a small-molecule proteasome inhibitor originally approved as a treatment for multiple myeloma.
“These survival results are among the best ever reported in patients with NSCLC,” Davies said. “We look forward to further study of bortezomib in combination with chemotherapy as treatment for NSCLC in a larger, phase III trial.” In the study, 114 newly diagnosed stage IV and selected stage IIIB patients received gemcitabine and carboplatin in combination with bortezomib. The median overall survival was 11 months; one-year survival was 46 percent, with a median five-month progression-free survival.
Key findings in the study include: •66 percent of patients benefited from the therapy, experiencing tumor shrinkage or disease stabilization •The treatment was well tolerated; the most common side effects were neutropenia, a very low white-blood cell count; thrombocytopenia, a very low platelet count; and fatigue.
Read more at UCDMC Newsroom.
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