A prospective randomised phase III trial of adjuvant chemotherapy with 5-fluorouracil and leucovorin in patients with stage II colon cancer.

The purpose of this trial was to investigate the efficacy of adjuvant chemotherapy with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and leucovorin (LV) in stage II colon cancer. Patients with stage II colon cancer were randomised to either adjuvant chemotherapy with 5-FU/LV (100 mg m(-2) LV+450 mg m(-2) 5-FU weekly, weeks 1-6, in 8 weeks cycles x 7) or surveillance only. Five hundred patients were evaluable for analyses. After a median follow-up of 95.6 months, 55 of 252 patients (21.8%) have died in the 5-FU/LV arm and 58 of 248 patients (23.4%) in the surveillance arm. There was no statistically significant difference in overall survival (OS) between the two treatment arms (hazard ratios, HR 0.88, 95% CI 0.61-1.27, P=0.49). The relative risk for tumour relapse was higher for patients on the surveillance arm than for those on the 5-FU/LV arm; however, this difference was not statistically significant (HR 0.69, 95% CI 0.45-1.06, P=0.09). Consequently, disease-free survival (DFS) was not significantly different between the two trial arms. In conclusion, results of this trial demonstrate a trend to a lower risk for relapse in patients treated with adjuvant 5-FU/LV for stage II colon cancer. However, in this study with limited power to detect small differences between the study arms, adjuvant chemotherapy failed to significantly improve DFS and OS.

A phase II trial of pemetrexed in patients with metastatic renal cancer.

BACKGROUND: Metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is rising in incidence but remains difficult to treat. This clinical trial evaluated the effects of pemetrexed (multitargeted antifolate, ALIMTAR) for the treatment of metastatic RCC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients were required to have histological diagnosis of metastatic RCC with measurable disease and no prior chemotherapy. In addition, patients were required to have a World Health Organization (WHO) performance status of 0-2 and adequate bone marrow reserve. Patients received pemetrexed at a dose of 600 mg/m2 as a 10 min infusion every 3 weeks. Patients did not receive folic acid or vitamin B12 supplementation. RESULTS: Thirty-nine patients were enrolled and thirty two were evaluable for response. Three patients had a partial response for a response rate of 9% (95% CI 2-25%). The median time to progressive disease was 10.5 months. Of the nonresponders, twenty two had stable disease (median duration was 5.8 months; range 1.5-27.7) and seven had progressive disease (median time to progression was 5.4 months). Median time to progression for all qualified patients was 5.7 months. Common toxicities experienced were diarrhea and infection. Fatigue, stomatitis, and rash were also reported. The most common hematologic toxicity was grade 3/4 lymphopenia in 76% of patients. Leukopenia, granulocytopenia, and thrombocytopenia were also frequently reported. CONCLUSION: Single-agent pemetrexed has moderate activity in the treatment of metastatic RCC and should be investigated in combination with other potential active agents, as first-line treatment.

An EORTC-ECSG phase I study of LU 79553 administered every 21 or 42 days in patients with solid tumours.

A single-agent dose-escalating phase I and pharmacokinetic study on the naphthalamide agent, LU 79553, was performed to determine its safety profile, maximum tolerated dose (MTD) and recommended dose for phase II studies. LU 79553 was given intravenously (i.v.) every 3 weeks to patients with advanced solid cancers (an extended cohort of patients also received the drug every 6 weeks). 59 patients were enrolled into the study (50 patients in the 3-weekly schedule and 9 patients in the 6-weekly schedule). Dose levels studied ranged from 10 mg/m(2) to 160 mg/m(2). Neuro-muscular toxicity was identified as the dose-limiting toxicity (DLT). This muscular toxicity was observed after administrating total doses of 160-450 mg/m(2) (median 330 mg/m(2)). Non-DLTs consisted of diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting, fatigue and local venous phlebitis. The major haematological toxicities observed were anaemia and neutropenia (and were mainly observed at the two highest dose levels). The proposed dose for phase II studies using the 3-weekly regimen is 100 mg/m(2)/course (60 min infusion in 500 ml normal saline), but a close clinical follow-up of the patients for neuromuscular toxicity is mandatory. Prolongation of the treatment interval to 6 weeks, based upon the long half-life of the drug in the plasma and tissue, observed during this study, seemed not to be feasible in this heavily pretreated group of patients.

Preliminary results of a phase I study with MTA (LY231514) in combination with cisplatin in patients with solid tumors.

MTA (multitargeted antifolate, LY231514) is a novel antimetabolite resulting from structure/activity studies of the lometrexol-type antifolates. It has been shown to inhibit various enzymes of folate pathways and has broad antitumor activity in a variety of in vitro and in vivo tumor models. Clinical phase 1 studies have been performed using different administration schedules, and subsequently the every-21-days schedule has been selected for further development. We report the preliminary findings from a combination phase I study of MTA and cisplatin administered every 21 days. In the first cohort (34 patients), both agents were administered on day 1 with a starting dose of 300 mg/m2 MTA and 60 mg/m2 cisplatin. In a second cohort (10 patients), MTA (500 or 600 mg/m2) was administered on day 1 followed by cisplatin (75 mg/m2) on day 2. The maximum tolerated doses were reached at 600 mg/m2 MTA/100 mg/m2 cisplatin (cohort 1) and 600 mg/m2 MTA/75 mg/m2 cisplatin (cohort 2). In cohort 1, dose-limiting toxicities consisted of reversible myelosuppression with leukopenia and neutropenia. In addition, delayed fatigue also was of clinical significance. Pharmacokinetic analyses indicated that hydration administered before the administration of cisplatin did not influence the major pharmacokinetic parameters of MTA. Eleven objective remissions were observed, including one complete response in a patient with relapsed squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck and partial responses in four of seven patients with mesothelioma In contrast, the dose-limiting toxicities in patient cohort 2 consisted of neutropenic sepsis, diarrhea, and skin toxicity with two possibly treatment-related deaths on study. No objective remissions are presently observed in cohort 2. We conclude that the combination of MTA and cisplatin is feasible and clinically active when both agents are administered on day 1 and that it should be pursued for further clinical development.

Reproducibility of metabolic measurements in malignant tumors using FDG PET.

UNLABELLED: PET using 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) is increasingly applied to monitor the response of malignant tumors to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The aim of this study was to assess the reproducibility of serial FDG PET measurements to define objective criteria for the evaluation of treatment-induced changes. METHODS: Sixteen patients participating in phase I studies of novel antineoplastic compounds were examined twice by FDG PET within 10 d while they were receiving no therapy. Standardized uptake values (SUVs), FDG net influx constants (Ki), glucose normalized SUVs (SUV(gluc)) and influx constants (K(i,gluc)) were determined for 50 separate lesions. The precision of repeated measurements was determined on a lesion-by-lesion and a patient-by-patient basis. RESULTS: None of the parameters showed a significant increase or decrease at the two examinations. The differences of repeated measurements were approximately normally distributed for all parameters with an SD of the mean percentage difference of about 10%. The 95% normal ranges for spontaneous fluctuations of SUV, SUV(gluc), Ki and K(i,gluc) were determined to be +/-0.91, +/-1.14, +/-0.52 mL/100 g/min and +/-0.64 mL/100 g/min, respectively. Analysis on a lesion-by-lesion basis yielded similar results. CONCLUSION: FDG PET provides several highly reproducible quantitative parameters of tumor glucose metabolism. Changes of a parameter that are outside the 95% normal range determined in this study may be used to define a metabolic response to therapy.

Clinical and pharmacokinetic phase I study of multitargeted antifolate (LY231514) in combination with cisplatin.

PURPOSE: Multitargeted antifolate (MTA; LY231514) has broad preclinical antitumor activity and inhibits a variety of intracellular enzymes involved in the folate pathways. This study was designed to (1) determine the maximum-tolerated dose (MTD), dose-limiting toxicities (DLT), and pharmacokinetics of MTA combined with cisplatin; (2) determine a recommended dose for phase II studies; and (3) collect anecdotal information on the antitumor activity of MTA combined with cisplatin. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients with solid tumors received MTA intravenously over 10 minutes and cisplatin over 2 hours once every 21 days. In cohort 1, both agents were administered on day 1 starting with MTA 300 mg/m(2) and cisplatin 60 mg/m(2). In cohort 2, MTA (500 or 600 mg/m(2)) was administered on day 1, followed by cisplatin (75 mg/m(2)) on day 2. RESULTS: In cohort 1, 40 assessable patients received 159 courses of treatment. The MTD was MTA 600 mg/m(2)/cisplatin 100 mg/m(2). DLTs were reversible leukopenia/neutropenia and delayed fatigue. Hydration before cisplatin therapy did not influence MTA pharmacokinetics. Eleven objective remissions included one complete response in a patient with relapsed squamous cell head and neck carcinoma, and partial responses in four of ten patients with epithelial pleural mesothelioma. In cohort 2, 11 assessable patients received 23 courses of treatment. The MTD was MTA 600 mg/m(2) and cisplatin 75 mg/m(2). DLTs were neutropenic sepsis, diarrhea, and skin toxicity. Two patients died of treatment-related complications during the study. Two patients had objective remissions (one mesothelioma patient, one colon cancer patient). CONCLUSION: The combination of MTA and cisplatin is clinically active, and administering both agents on day 1 is superior to a split schedule. Further development of this combination for mesothelioma is warranted.

Positron emission tomography in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma: assessment of chemotherapy with fluorodeoxyglucose.

Positron emission tomography (PET) using F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) was performed in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL), which is known to be highly responsive to chemotherapy, but also yields variable treatment results to answer the following questions: (1) What is the extent and time course of changes in FDG utilization in response to chemotherapy? (2) Are the changes of FDG uptake at early time points of chemotherapy predictive for therapy outcome? (3) Which quantitative FDG parameter provides the most sensitive measures of initial tumor response? Dynamic PET scans were performed in 11 patients at baseline and 1 and 6 weeks after initiation of chemotherapy. Based on attenuation corrected images acquired 30 to 60 minutes postinjection, standardized uptake values (SUV) were determined. Arterial input functions were estimated from vascular F-18 activity and the metabolic rates for FDG (MRFDG) were calculated using Patlak analysis. Before chemotherapy, high FDG uptake was found in all lesions (SUV[max] 13.3 +/- 4.2). Seven days after initiation of chemotherapy, tumor FDG uptake decreased 60% (SUV[max]). A further decrease of 42% was seen at day 42 resulting in a total decrease of 79% from baseline to day 42. During a follow-up of 16.0 +/- 4.2 months, six of the 11 patients continued to show complete remission. Seven days after initiation of chemotherapy, this group of patients displayed significantly lower mean MRFDG than the group of patients with relapse. At day 42, all parameters of FDG uptake showed a significant difference for both patient groups. The relative change of MRFDG from baseline to day 42, as well as from day 7 to day 42, was significantly larger as compared with SUV parameters. Standard chemotherapy of patients with NHL causes rapid decrease of tumor FDG uptake as early as 7 days after treatment, which continues to decline during therapy, indicating the sensitivity of metabolic signals to chemotherapeutic interventions. FDG uptake at 42 days after therapy was superior in prediction of long-term outcome over day 7 parameters. Dynamic data acquisition combined with Patlak analysis of FDG kinetics may provide superior information in therapy monitoring.

Phase I clinical and pharmacokinetic trial of the podophyllotoxin derivative NK611 administered as intravenous short infusion.

BACKGROUND: NK611 is a novel podophyllotoxin derivative. Compared with etoposide, NK611 carries a dimethylamino group at the D-glucose moiety. The antitumor activity of NK611 showed to be equal or superior to etoposide in a variety of in vitro and in vivo tumor models. The aim of our present study was to determine the maximum tolerated dose and the dose-limiting toxicities of NK611 administered as intravenous infusion over 30 min every 28 days. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 45 patients (7 female, 38 male; median age 54 [range 37-73]) were enrolled. In a first stage, NK611 was administered without hematopoietic growth factor support; in a second stage, G-CSF was used for further dose escalation. Toxicities were assessed using WHO-criteria. RESULTS: Initially, the dose was escalated from 60 mg/m2 to 120 mg/m2. In a second patient cohort, doses were further escalated with G-CSF support with doses ranging from 140 mg/m2 to 250 mg/m2. Dose-limiting toxicities were granulocytopenia and thrombocytopenia. Non-hematologic toxicities consisted of alopecia, mild nausea, and infection. Four partial responses were observed: two at 200 mg/m2 (pleural mesothelioma, response duration 7 months, and non-small cell lung cancer, response duration 13 months), and two at 250 mg/m2 (hepatocellular carcinoma, response duration 7 months, and non-small cell lung cancer, response duration 2 months). Pharmacokinetic analyses were performed in all patients. Using an open 3-compartment model, the terminal half-life (t1/2gamma) was 14.7 +/- 3.7 h. The AUC at 250 mg/m2 was determined to be 330 +/- 147 microg/mlh, the plasma clearance of NK611 was 16.2 +/- 8.2 ml/min x m2 and the V(ss) was 16.8 +/- 3.3 l/m2. Protein binding of NK611 was 98.7%. CONCLUSION: the recommended dose for clinical Phase II studies is 120 mg/m2 without G-CSF support and 200 mg/m2 with G-CSF support.

Gemcitabine and etoposide in small cell lung cancer: phase I and II trials.

Gemcitabine and etoposide have both shown single-agent activity against multiple tumor types in clinical trials, including small cell lung cancer, but have not been previously used together. Forty-four patients with small cell and non-small cell lung cancer or other tumor types were enrolled in a phase I dose-finding trial using this drug combination. Gemcitabine 1,000 mg/m2 was given intravenously on days 1, 8, and 15 of a 28-day cycle, and etoposide (dose escalated from 20 to 80 mg/m2) was given on days 8, 9, and 10. Leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, and anemia were the major toxicities noted. Objective responses were observed in five of 44 patients. The maximum tolerated dose of etoposide was determined to be 80 mg/m2. On the basis of these results, a phase II trial of gemcitabine and etoposide in patients with small cell lung cancer has been initiated. Twelve patients have been enrolled in this ongoing trial, and toxicity to date has been manageable.