Niraparib first-line maintenance therapy in patients with newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer: final overall survival results from the PRIMA/ENGOT-OV26/GOG-3012 trial.

BACKGROUND: The phase III PRIMA/ENGOT-OV26/GOG-3012 trial met its primary endpoint. Niraparib first-line maintenance significantly prolonged progression-free survival (PFS) among patients with newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer that responded to first-line platinum-based chemotherapy, regardless of homologous recombination deficiency (HRD) status. Final overall survival (OS) results are reported. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients were randomized 2:1 to niraparib or placebo, stratified by response to first-line treatment, receipt of neoadjuvant chemotherapy, and tumor HRD status. After reaching 60% target maturity, OS was evaluated via a stratified log-rank test using randomization stratification factors and summarized using Kaplan-Meier methodology. OS testing was hierarchical [overall population first, then the homologous recombination-deficient (HRd) population]. Other secondary outcomes and long-term safety were assessed; an updated, ad hoc analysis of investigator-assessed PFS was also conducted (cut-off date, 8 April 2024). RESULTS: The median follow-up was 73.9 months. In the overall population, the OS hazard ratio was 1.01 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.84-1.23; P = 0.8834] for niraparib (n = 487) versus placebo (n = 246). In the HRd (n = 373) and homologous recombination-proficient (n = 249) populations, the OS hazard ratios were 0.95 (95% CI 0.70-1.29) and 0.93 (95% CI 0.69-1.26), respectively. Subsequent poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitor therapy was received by 11.7% and 15.8% of niraparib patients and 37.8% and 48.4% of placebo patients in the overall and HRd populations, respectively. The 5-year PFS rate numerically favored niraparib in the overall (niraparib, 22%; placebo, 12%) and HRd populations (niraparib, 35%; placebo, 16%). Myelodysplastic syndromes/acute myeloid leukemia incidence was <2.5% (niraparib, 2.3%; placebo, 1.6%). No new safety signals were observed. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer at high risk of recurrence, there was no difference in OS between treatment arms. In the HRd population, patients alive at 5 years were two times as likely to be progression free with niraparib treatment than placebo. Long-term safety remained consistent with the established niraparib safety profile.

Rates of asymptomatic respiratory virus infection across age groups.

Respiratory viral infections are a leading cause of disease worldwide. A variety of respiratory viruses produce infections in humans with effects ranging from asymptomatic to life-treathening. Standard surveillance systems typically only target severe infections (ED outpatients, hospitalisations, deaths) and fail to track asymptomatic or mild infections. Here we performed a large-scale community study across multiple age groups to assess the pathogenicity of 18 respiratory viruses. We enrolled 214 individuals at multiple New York City locations and tested weekly for respiratory viral pathogens, irrespective of symptom status, from fall 2016 to spring 2018. We combined these test results with participant-provided daily records of cold and flu symptoms and used this information to characterise symptom severity by virus and age category. Asymptomatic infection rates exceeded 70% for most viruses, excepting influenza and human metapneumovirus, which produced significantly more severe outcomes. Symptoms were negatively associated with infection frequency, with children displaying the lowest score among age groups. Upper respiratory manifestations were most common for all viruses, whereas systemic effects were less typical. These findings indicate a high burden of asymptomatic respiratory virus infection exists in the general population.

Changes in the use of end points in clinical trials for elderly cancer patients over time.

BACKGROUND: Physicians need well-addressed clinical trials assessing benefits and harm of treatments to avoid under-treatment or over-treatment of elderly patients. The main objectives of this report were to present an overview of end points used in clinical trials dedicated to elderly patients; and to assess the evolution in chosen end points before and after the creation of the International Society of Geriatric Oncology in the early 2000s. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All phases I, II and III trials dedicated to the treatment of cancer among elderly patients published between 2001 and 2004 and between 2011 and 2014 were reviewed. All phase III clinical trials assessing cancer treatments among adults in the same periods were also reviewed to identify subgroup analyses of elderly patients among these trials. RESULTS: Among phase III trials dedicated to elderly patients, overall survival was a common primary end point. Interestingly, tumor centered end points were very common in the first time period and very uncommon in the second time period, whereas composite end points were very uncommon in the first time period but very common in the second time period. Concerningly, disease-specific survival was very infrequently reported in dedicated clinical trials of elderly patients despite their importance in evaluating competing risk of death from non-oncology causes. The use of patient-reported outcomes (PROs) as a primary end point remained very uncommon but the reporting of PROs as a secondary end point tended to increase in the second time period, from 19% to 33% (P = 0.10). Functional status was infrequently reported. CONCLUSION: During the past decade, the use of clinically meaningful end points such as PROs and functional status in elderly patients remained moderate. Yet, the use of PROs as a secondary end point tended to increase between the two time periods.

Inclusion of elderly patients in oncology clinical trials.

BACKGROUND: Physicians need clinical trials assessing benefits and harms of treatments to avoid under-treatment or over-treatment of elderly patients. The main objectives of this report were to examine how data regarding elderly oncology patients were presented in medical literature; and to assess the evolution of this presentation between two time periods. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All phases I, II and III trials dedicated to the treatment of cancer among elderly patients published between 2001 and 2004 and between 2011 and 2014 were reviewed. All phase III clinical trials assessing cancer treatments among adults in the same periods were also reviewed to evaluate potential subgroup analyses in elderly patients in these studies. Key characteristics of interest were extracted by two investigators before descriptive and comparative analyses were undertaken. RESULTS: A total of 1084 trials were included: 366 and 718 from the first and second time period, respectively. Twenty-seven and 193 of these trials were phase I and II trials dedicated to elderly or frail patients, respectively. A large proportion of phase III trials published between 2011 and 2014 reported at least one analysis dedicated to elderly patients (46.7%) versus 19.3% during the first time period. The use of subgroup analyses of elderly patients in phase III trials was the most frequent source of information. Subgroup analyses were more frequent among trials with industrial funding, trials published in high impact factor journal, intercontinental trials and trials with large sample size. The age threshold defining the elderly subgroup increased over time. CONCLUSION: Elderly patients have become a topic of interest during the past decade. However, data available are mostly extracted from subgroup analyses, which can only be regarded as preliminary evidence.

EPICC study: evaluation of pharmaceutical intervention in cancer care.

WHAT IS KNOWN AND OBJECTIVES: In cancer care, clinical pharmacists contribute to improving prevention and management of drug-related problems (DRPs). The 3-year EPICC study (Evaluation of Pharmaceutical Intervention in Cancer Care) aimed to collect and analyse pharmaceutical interventions (PIs) in oncology. METHODS: The free online version of the French Society of Clinical Pharmacy (SFPC) coding system, ACT-IP, was used, supplemented by a standardized dedicated cancer-care decision tree. RESULTS: A total of 29,589 medication orders (77,004 anticancer drug preparations) were analysed. Eight hundred and ninety-four PIs were recorded. ACT-IP identified 54·1% of DRPs as concerning over- or underdosage. The standardized dedicated cancer-care decision tree identified the three principal causes of dosage problems: 50·2% due to miscalculation, 20% to omission of dose adjustment and 12% to poor choice of antineoplastic regimen. About 13·8% of DRPs were adverse effects and 3·9% were drug-drug interactions. The decision tree showed that 22% of adverse events could be circumvented by a switch within the same drug family and 72% of drug-drug interactions would have led to increased neoplastic toxicity. DISCUSSION: Pharmaceutical analysis of prescription forms contributes to medication safety in cancer care, and the present dedicated decision tree highlights additional information about DRPs and PIs. The DRP rate (3% of prescriptions) was consistent with the literature. The pharmacist has a role to play in optimizing the management of patients with cancer in terms of dose adjustment, drug toxicity management, improvement of administration and drug-drug interactions. WHAT IS NEW AND CONCLUSION: This study, highlighting PIs in cancer care, is the first of this scale in terms of number of prescriptions analysed (nearly 30 000). Results demonstrated the specificity of DRPs and PIs for patients with cancer and the value of a dedicated coding system in cancer care.

SIMMEON-Prep study: SIMulation of Medication Errors in ONcology: prevention of antineoplastic preparation errors.

WHAT IS KNOWN AND OBJECTIVE: Medication errors (ME) in oncology are known to cause serious iatrogenic complications. However, MEs still occur at each step in the anticancer chemotherapy process, particularly when injections are prepared in the hospital pharmacy. This study assessed whether a ME simulation program would help prevent ME-associated iatrogenic complications. METHODS: The 5-month prospective study, consisting of three phases, was undertaken in the centralized pharmaceutical unit of a university hospital of Lyon, France. During the first simulation phase, 25 instruction sheets each containing one simulated error were inserted among various instruction sheets issued to blinded technicians. The second phase consisted of activity aimed at raising pharmacy technicians' awareness of risk of medication errors associated with antineoplastic drugs. The third phase consisted of re-enacting the error simulation process 3 months after the awareness campaign. The rate and severity of undetected medication errors were measured during the two simulation (first and third) phases. The potential seriousness of the ME was assessed using the NCC MERP(®) index. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The rate of undetected medication errors decreased from 12 in the first simulation phase (48%) to five in the second simulation phase (20%, P = 0.04). The number of potential deaths due to administration of a faulty preparation decreased from three to zero. Awareness of iatrogenic risk through error simulation allowed pharmacy technicians to improve their ability to identify errors. WHAT IS NEW AND CONCLUSION: This study is the first demonstration of the successful application of a simulation-based learning tool for reducing errors in the preparation of injectable anticancer drugs. Such a program should form part of the continuous quality improvement of risk management strategies for cancer patients.

Prediction of tumour response induced by chemotherapy using modelling of CA-125 kinetics in recurrent ovarian cancer patients.

BACKGROUND: The main objective of the present study was to establish the relationships between CA-125 kinetics and tumour size changes during treatment. METHODS: The data from the CALYPSO-randomised phase III trial, comparing two platinum-based regimens in recurrent ovarian cancer (ROC) patients, was randomly split into a 'learning data set' to estimate model parameters and a 'validation data set' to validate model performances. A kinetic-pharmacodynamic semi-mechanistic model was built to describe tumour size and CA-125 kinetics during chemotherapy. The ability of the model to predict tumour response induced by chemotherapy, based on CA-125 values, was assessed. RESULTS: Data from 535 ROC patients were used to model CA-125 kinetics and tumour size changes during the first 513 days after treatment initiation. Using the validated model, we could predict with accuracy the tumour size changes induced by chemotherapy based on the baseline imaging assessment and longitudinal CA-125 values (mean prediction error: 0.3%, mean absolute prediction error: 10.6%). CONCLUSIONS: Using a semi-mechanistic model, the dynamic relationships between tumour size changes and CA-125 kinetics induced by chemotherapy were established in ROC patients. A modelling approach allowed CA-125 to be assessed as a biomarker for tumour size dynamics, to predict treatment efficacy for research and clinical purposes.

A critical review of the analytical approaches for circulating tumor biomarker kinetics during treatment.

Changes in serum tumor biomarkers may indicate treatment efficacy. Traditional tumor markers may soon be replaced by novel serum biomarkers, such as circulating tumor cells (CTCs) or circulating tumor nucleic acids. Given their promising predictive values, studies of their kinetics are warranted. Many methodologies meant to assess kinetics of traditional marker kinetics during anticancer treatment have been reported. Here, we review the methodologies, the advantages and the limitations of the analytical approaches reported in the literature. Strategies based on a single time point were first used (baseline value, normalization, nadir, threshold at a time t), followed by approaches based on two or more time points [half-life (HL), percentage decrease, time-to-events…]. Heterogeneities in methodologies and lack of consideration of inter- and intra-individual variability may account for the inconsistencies and the poor utility in routine. More recently, strategies based on a population kinetics approach and mathematical modeling have been reported. The identification of equations describing individual kinetic profiles of biomarkers may be an alternative strategy despite its complexity and higher number of necessary measurements. Validation studies are required. Efforts should be made to standardize biomarker kinetic analysis methodologies to ensure the optimized development of novel serum biomarkers and avoid the pitfalls of traditional markers.

Elacestrant in ESR1-mutant, endocrine-responsive metastatic breast cancer: should health authorities consider post hoc data to inform priority access?

For patients with hormone receptor-positive/human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative (HR+/HER2-) metastatic breast cancer (mBC) progressed on first-line endocrine therapy plus a cyclin-dependent kinase 4 and 6 inhibitor (CDK4/6i), fulvestrant, a selective estrogen receptor degrader (SERD) administered intramuscularly, represented the only monotherapy option until the approval of elacestrant. This oral SERD has been approved for patients with ESR1-mutant HR+/HER2- mBC by the European Medicines Agency, the Food and Drug Administration, and the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, according to the results of the randomized phase III EMERALD trial, which demonstrated elacestrant superiority over standard endocrine monotherapy. Consequently, elacestrant has been incorporated in the European Society for Medical Oncology and American Society of Clinical Oncology guidelines. However, in Europe, the access to this recommended drug depends on the decision of the National Health Authorities of each state. In this communication, we describe the main results and implications of the EMERALD trial, in the context of the biomarker-driven algorithm for patients with HR+/HER2- mBC progressed on CDK4/6i, and conclude that a subgroup of patients with ESR1-mutant tumors and specific clinical features can really derive a clinically meaningful benefit from elacestrant, sparing access to more toxic combination approaches and preserving the quality of life.

Early prediction of treatment resistance in low-risk gestational trophoblastic neoplasia using population kinetic modelling of hCG measurements.

BACKGROUND: In low-risk gestational trophoblastic neoplasia (GTN) patients, a predictive marker for early identification of methotrexate (MTX) resistance would be useful. We previously demonstrated that kinetic modelling of human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) measurements could provide such a marker. Here we validate this approach in a large independent patient cohort. METHODS: Serum hCG measurements of 800 low-risk GTN patients treated with MTX were analysed. The cohort was divided into Model and Test data sets. hCG kinetics were described from initial treatment day to day 50 using: '(hCG(time))=hCG0*exp(-k*time)+hCGres', where hCGres is the modelled residual production, hCG0 is the baseline hCG level, and k is the rate constant. HCGres-predictive value was investigated against previously reported predictors of MTX resistance. RESULTS: Declining hCG measurements were well fitted by the model. The best discriminator of MTX resistance in the Model data set was hCGres, categorised by an optimal cut-off value of >20.44 IU l(-1): receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) area under the curve (AUC)=0.87; Se=0.91; Sp=0.83. The predictive value of hCGres was reproducible using the Test data set: ROC AUC=0.87; Se=0.88; Sp=0.86. Multivariate analyses revealed hCGres as a better predictor of MTX resistance (HR=1.01, P<0.0001) and MTX failure-free survival (HR=13.25, P<0.0001) than other reported predictive factors. CONCLUSION: hCGres, a modelled kinetic parameter calculated after fully dosed three MTX cycles, has a reproducible value for identifying patients with MTX resistance.

Development of a geriatric vulnerability score in elderly patients with advanced ovarian cancer treated with first-line carboplatin: a GINECO prospective trial.

BACKGROUND: Two previous GINECO elderly specific studies in advanced ovarian cancer (AOC) patients highlighted the prognostic value of geriatric covariates for overall survival (OS). PATIENTS AND METHODS: This open-label prospective trial was designed to identify the impact of geriatric covariates on OS in AOC patients ≥70 years treated with first-line carboplatin. RESULTS: Geriatric covariates of the 111 patients included median age 79 years (≥80 years: 41%); performance status (PS) ≥2: 47%; ≥3 major comorbidities: 24%; ≥4 comedications: 68%; activities of daily living (ADL) score <6: 55%; instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) score <25: 69%; Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) >14: 37%. The median OS was 17.4 months. Overall, 74% of patients completed the six planned chemotherapy cycles. Grade 3-4 haematological toxic effects were frequent (50%) but manageable. Grade 3-4 non-haematological toxicities included fatigue (15%), anorexia (12%), infections (9%) and thrombosis (2%). A survival score = exp(0.327*GVS) was developed, where the geriatric vulnerability score (GVS) is the sum of the following (each assigned a value of one): albuminaemia <35 g/l; ADL score <6; IADL score <25; lymphopaenia <1 G/l; and HADS >14. With a cut-off ≥3, GVS discriminated two groups with significantly different OS, treatment completion, severe adverse events and unplanned hospital admissions rates. CONCLUSIONS: The GVS is a valuable tool for identifying vulnerable patients when treating an elderly AOC population.

Leucovorin and Fluorouracil With or Without Oxaliplatin as First-Line Treatment in Advanced Colorectal Cancer.

PURPOSE: In a previous study of treatment for advanced colorectal cancer, the LV5FU2 regimen, comprising leucovorin (LV) plus bolus and infusional fluorouracil (5FU) every 2 weeks, was superior to the standard North Central Cancer Treatment Group/Mayo Clinic 5-day bolus 5FU/LV regimen. This phase III study investigated the effect of combining oxaliplatin with LV5FU2, with progression-free survival as the primary end point. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Four hundred twenty previously untreated patients with measurable disease were randomized to receive a 2-hour infusion of LV (200 mg/m2/d) followed by a 5FU bolus (400 mg/m2/d) and 22-hour infusion (600 mg/m2/d) for 2 consecutive days every 2 weeks, either alone or together with oxaliplatin 85 mg/m2 as a 2-hour infusion on day 1. RESULTS: Patients allocated to oxaliplatin plus LV5FU2 had significantly longer progression-free survival (median, 9.0 v 6.2 months; P = .0003) and better response rate (50.7% v 22.3%; P = .0001) when compared with the control arm. The improvement in overall survival did not reach significance (median, 16.2 v 14.7 months; P = .12). LV5FU2 plus oxaliplatin gave higher frequencies of National Cancer Institute common toxicity criteria grade 3/4 neutropenia (41.7% v 5.3% of patients), grade 3/4 diarrhea (11.9% v 5.3%), and grade 3 neurosensory toxicity (18.2% v 0%), but this did not result in impairment of quality of life (QoL). Survival without disease progression or deterioration in global health status was longer in patients allocated to oxaliplatin treatment (P = .004). CONCLUSION: The LV5FU2-oxaliplatin combination seems beneficial as first-line therapy in advanced colorectal cancer, demonstrating a prolonged progression-free survival with acceptable tolerability and maintenance of QoL.

Phase I dose-escalation study of aflibercept in combination with docetaxel and cisplatin in patients with advanced solid tumours.

BACKGROUND: This phase I cohort study investigated aflibercept (vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) trap) plus docetaxel and cisplatin in patients with advanced solid tumours. METHODS: Patients received intravenous aflibercept 4, 5, or 6 mg kg(-1) with docetaxel and cisplatin (75 mg m(-2) each) on day 1 of a 3-week cycle until progressive disease or unacceptable toxicity. Primary objectives were determining cycle 1 dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs) and the aflibercept recommended phase II trial dose (RP2D) for this combination. RESULTS: During the dose-escalation phase (n=16), there were two DLTs of febrile neutropenia (at 4 and 5 mg kg(-1)). Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor prophylaxis was subsequently recommended. The RP2D of aflibercept was established at 6 mg kg(-1) and administered to 14 additional patients. The most frequent grade 3/4 adverse events (AEs) were neutropenia (43.3%), stomatitis (20.0%), asthenia/fatigue (20.0%), and hypertension (16.7%). All-grade AEs associated with VEGF blockade included epistaxis (83.3%), dysphonia (70.0%), proteinuria (53.3%), and hypertension (50.0%). There were five partial responses (16.7%) and 18 cases of stable disease (60.0%) (lasting >3 months in 10 patients). There were no pharmacokinetic (PK) interactions between the three drugs. CONCLUSION: Aflibercept 6 mg kg(-1) with docetaxel and cisplatin 75 mg m(-2) every 3 weeks is the RP2D based on tolerability, antitumour activity, and PKs.

Phase I study of saracatinib (AZD0530) in combination with paclitaxel and/or carboplatin in patients with solid tumours.

BACKGROUND: As a prelude to combination studies aimed at resistance reversal, this dose-escalation/dose-expansion study investigated the selective Src kinase inhibitor saracatinib (AZD0530) in combination with carboplatin and/or paclitaxel. METHODS: Patients with advanced solid tumours received saracatinib once-daily oral tablets in combination with either carboplatin AUC 5 every 3 weeks (q3w), paclitaxel 175 mg m(-2) q3w, paclitaxel 80 mg m(-2) every 1 week (q1w), or carboplatin AUC 5 plus paclitaxel 175 mg m(-2) q3w. The primary endpoint was safety/tolerability. RESULTS: A total of 116 patients received saracatinib 125 (N=20), 175 (N=44), 225 (N=40), 250 (N=9), or 300 mg (N=3). There were no clear dose-related trends within each chemotherapy regimen group in number or severity of adverse events (AEs). However, combining all groups, the occurrence of grade ≥3 asthenic AEs (all causality) was dose-related (125 mg, 10%; 175 mg, 20%; ≥225 mg, 33%), and grade ≥3 neutropenia occurred more commonly at doses ≥225 mg. There was no evidence that saracatinib affected exposure to carboplatin or paclitaxel, or vice versa. Objective responses were seen in 5 out of 44 patients (11%) receiving carboplatin plus paclitaxel q3w, and 5 out of 24 (21%) receiving paclitaxel q1w. CONCLUSION: Saracatinib doses up to 175 mg with paclitaxel with/without carboplatin showed acceptable toxicity in most patients, and are suitable for further trials.

Cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) for persistent and recurrent advanced ovarian carcinoma: a multicenter, prospective study of 246 patients.

BACKGROUND: Epithelial ovarian carcinoma is the main cause of death from gynaecological cancers in the western world. The initial response rate to the frontline therapy is high. However, the prognosis of persistent and recurrent disease remains poor. During the two past decades, a new therapeutic approach to peritoneal carcinomatosis has been developed, combining maximal cytoreductive effort with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC). METHODS: A retrospective, multicentric study of 246 patients with recurrent or persistent ovarian cancer, treated by cytoreductive surgery and HIPEC in two French centers between 1991 and 2008, was performed. RESULTS: An optimal cytoreductive surgery was possible in 92.2 % of patients. Mortality and morbidity rates were 0.37 % and 11.6 %, respectively. The overall median survival was 48.9 months. There was no significant difference in overall survival in patients with persistent or recurrent disease. In multivariate analysis, performance status was a significant prognostic factor in patients with extensive peritoneal carcinomatosis (peritoneal cancer index >10). CONCLUSIONS: Salvage therapy combining optimal cytoreductive surgery and HIPEC is feasible and may achieve long-term survival in highly selected patients with recurrent ovarian carcinoma, including those with platinum resistant disease, with acceptable morbidity.

Predictive values of hCG clearance for risk of methotrexate resistance in low-risk gestational trophoblastic neoplasias.

BACKGROUND: Early identification of patients at high risk for chemoresistance among those treated with methotrexate (MTX) for low-risk gestational trophoblastic neoplasia (GTN) is needed. We modeled human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) decline during MTX therapy using a kinetic population approach to calculate individual hCG clearance (CL(hCG)) and assessed the predictive value of CL(hCG) for MTX resistance. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 154 patients with low-risk GTN treated with 8-day MTX regimen were retrospectively studied. NONMEM was used to model hCG decrease equations between day 0 and day 40 of chemotherapy. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis defined the best CL(hCG) threshold. Univariate/multivariate survival analyses determined the predictive value of CL(hCG) and compared it with published predictive factors. RESULTS: A monoexponential equation best modeled hCG decrease: hCG(t) = 3900 x e(-0.149 x t). Median CL(hCG) was 0.57 l/day (quartiles: 0.37-0.74). Only choriocarcinoma pathology [yes versus no: hazard ratio (HR) = 6.01; 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.2-16.6; P < 0.001] and unfavorable CL(hCG) quartile (< or =0.37 versus >0.37 l/day: HR = 6.75; 95% CI 2.7-16.8; P < 0.001) were significant independent predictive factors of MTX resistance risk. CONCLUSION: In the second largest cohort of low-risk GTN patients reported to date, choriocarcinoma pathology and CL(hCG) < or =0.37 l/day were major independent predictive factors for MTX resistance risk.

Role of combination therapy with aromatase and cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors in patients with metastatic breast cancer.

Aromatase inhibitors (AIs) are well established in the treatment of metastatic hormone-sensitive breast cancer in postmenopausal women. Cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 inhibitors have demonstrated efficacy in reducing cancer risk in animal and human studies. In several preclinical studies, combination AI plus COX-2 inhibitor therapy has shown a synergistic antitumor effect. This review describes the utility of AI plus COX-2 inhibitor therapy and discusses the completed and ongoing clinical trials investigating treatment with the AI exemestane and the COX-2 inhibitor celecoxib in the neo-adjuvant and metastatic breast cancer settings. In general, combination therapy had comparable or better efficacy compared with AI monotherapy using the end points of progression-free survival, overall response rate, clinical benefit rate, time to progression, and duration of clinical benefit. All therapies were well tolerated. There appeared to be a beneficial impact on serum lipid levels for patients receiving combination therapy in a neo-adjuvant trial despite the known cardiovascular toxicity risk associated with COX-2 inhibitors. In conclusion, AIs plus COX-2 inhibitors have shown promising efficacy and safety for the treatment of patients with metastatic breast cancer. Careful monitoring during future trials will be necessary to accurately assess the risk-benefit ratio of combination therapy.

Celecoxib and exemestane versus placebo and exemestane in postmenopausal metastatic breast cancer patients: a double-blind phase III GINECO study.

The aim of this study was to evaluate antitumor effects of cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors in breast carcinoma and their ability to act synergistically with aromatase inhibitors (AIs). Postmenopausal metastatic breast cancer patients without previous adjuvant AI treatment received exemestane 25 mg/days plus either celecoxib 400 mg twice daily or placebo. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS). This trial was prematurely terminated (N = 157 of 342 planned) after cardiovascular toxicity was reported in other celecoxib trials. Although no PFS difference was observed between the two arms (9.8 months for both, P = 0.72), a trend favoring celecoxib was observed in 60 tamoxifen-resistant patients (9.6 vs. 5.1 months; P = 0.14) and in 126 patients treated >or=3 months before study termination (12.2 vs. 9.8 months; P = 0.09). No severe adverse events were reported. Cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors seemingly contribute to reverse endocrine resistance in breast cancer patients, although further study is necessary to allow development of a new therapeutic strategy.

Impacts of using inbred animals in studies for detection of quantitative trait loci.

Effects of utilizing inbred and noninbred family structures in experiments for detection of quantitative trait loci (QTL) were compared in this simulation study. Simulations were based on a general pedigree design originating from 2 unrelated sires. A variance component approach of mapping QTL was applied to simulated data that reflected common family structures from dairy populations. Five different family structures were considered: FS0 without inbreeding, FS1 with an inbred sire from an aunt-nephew mating, FS2 with an inbred sire originating from a half-sib mating, FS3 and FS4 based on FS2 but containing an increased number of offspring of the inbred sire (FS3), and another extremely inbred sire with its final offspring (FS4). Sixty replicates each of the 5 family structures in 2 simulation scenarios each were analyzed to provide a praxis-like situation of QTL analysis. The largest proportion of QTL position estimates within the correct interval of 3 cM, best test statistic profiles and the smallest average bias were obtained from the pedigrees described by FS4 and FS2. The approach does not depend on the kind and number of genetic markers. Inbreeding is not a recommended practice for commercial dairy production because of possible inbreeding depression, but inbred animals and their offspring that already exist could be advantageous for QTL mapping, because of reduced genetic variance in inbred parents.