Adding Erbitux to First Line Chemotherapy Helps Advanced Colorectal Cancer Patients with Wild Type KRAS

Does adding Erbitux to chemotherapy help people whose colorectal cancer has spread beyond the colon or rectum to distant body sites?

The answer is yes, according to a pooled analysis of two large randomized clinical trials comparing chemotherapy alone to chemotherapy plus Erbitux® (cetuximab).  However, benefits depend on whether or not patient tumors have mutations of two genes, KRAS and BRAF.

Previous studies have shown that only patients with normal or wild type KRAS get any benefit from EGFR inhibitors Erbitux or Vectibix™ (panitumumab) so a combined analysis of the CRYSTAL and OPUS studies looked only a outcomes in KRAS wild type tumors.  In addition, the research team studied the effect of mutations to BRAF.

They found that adding Erbitux to initial chemotherapy improved overall survival time, time until cancers got worse (progression-free survival), the percent of tumors that shrank with treatment (overall response rate) for tumors with wild-type KRAS.  The best outcomes were in patients who had both wild-type KRAS and wild-type BRAF. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on June 15th, 2010
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Tags: BRAF mutations, cetuximab, colorectal cancer prognosis, Erbitux, KRAS mutations, metastatic colorectal cancer

No Benefit Adding Cetuximab to Chemo for Stage III Colon Cancer

Adding Erbitux® (cetuximab) to standard chemotherapy for stage III colon cancer didn’t improve patient outcomes and added more side effects.

All of the patients in the NO147 trial had cancer that had spread to their lymph nodes and had surgery before beginning chemotherapy. They had normal or wild-type KRAS genes in their tumors.They were randomly assigned to FOLFOX chemotherapy for 6 months or FOLFOX plus Erbitux. 

The trial was closed before the planned number of patients were enrolled because an analysis showed that there was no benefit to the additional Erbitux and continuing the trial would not help patients. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on June 10th, 2010
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Tags: cetuximab, clinical trials, Erbitux, stage III colon cancer

Erbitux Plus Chemo Can Make Liver Mets Surgery Possible

Chemotherapy and Erbitux® (cetuximab) reduced liver tumors from colorectal cancer enough for patients to have them removed surgically.

Although their cancer was initially too extensive to be surgically removed (resected) chemotherapy combined with Erbitux allowed about a third of patients to have surgery that completely removed all visible signs of liver tumors.  Tumor shrinkage occured in about two out of three patients, despite which chemotherapy was used.

Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on December 14th, 2009
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Tags: cetuximab, Erbitux, liver metastases

Stage III Cetuximab Trial Closed

It doesn’t help patients to add Erbitux to FOLFOX chemotherapy after surgery for stage III colon cancer a data monitoring committee for a clinical trial testing the new treatment has decided.

Because the analysis showed that patients were not benefiting from adding Erbitux to FOLFOX chemotherapy, the trial has been closed according to a news release from the National Cancer Institute. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on December 3rd, 2009
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Tags: cetuximab, clinical trials, Erbitux

Colorectal Cancer News in Brief: November 1

Sgt. Joshua T. Rose and Iron (Photo by Tina Susman)

Briefly: Pancreatic cancer occurs in about on in five Lynch syndrome families, increasing risk for the cancer substantially.

Colorectal cancer patients whose tumors don’t have EGFR on immunohistochemical testing can still benefit from Erbitux treatment.

Patients learn more and like medical consultations better when doctors sit side-by-side with them to view tests.

Gastroenterologists deployed in Iraq are using their skills to help military working dogs. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on November 2nd, 2009
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Tags: EGFR, Erbitux, Lynch syndrome, military dogs