Ramucirumab Shows Survival Benefits with Pleural Mesothelioma
Adding the drug ramucirumab to gemcitabine chemotherapy worked especially well in a recent clinical trial involving second-line treatment for patients with pleural mesothelioma.
Ramucirumab, an immunotherapy drug also known by the brand name Cyramza, is a monoclonal antibody that works by targeting and restricting a protein that stimulates blood vessel growth within tumors.
Impressive results in the phase II clinical trial moved the drug combination closer to filling the long-standing void for a second-line mesothelioma treatment.
The Lancet Oncology recently published results of the study, which was conducted in 26 hospitals throughout Italy.
“This combination could be a novel, well-tolerated and active treatment option for patients who have progressed on first-line chemotherapy,” the authors wrote. “The overall survival gain was achieved without a marked increase in toxicity.”
Addition of Immunotherapy Boosts Survival
The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involved 161 pretreated patients. Eighty patients received the combination treatment, while 81 received gemcitabine and a placebo.
All participants had experienced disease progression after the inevitable failure of traditional first-line treatment of pemetrexed and cisplatin chemotherapy.
Results, which were measured from the time of second-line treatment randomization, included:
Gemcitabine/Ramucirumab vs. Gemcitabine/Placebo
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Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
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