Modified fluorouracil, leucovorin, irinotecan, and oxaliplatin (mFOLFIRINOX) and nab-paclitaxel + gemcitabine are recommended as first-line treatments for metastatic pancreatic cancer. S-1, irinotecan, and oxaliplatin (S-IROX) demonstrated activity in a phase Ib trial in this population. Therefore, these three regimens were directly compared.
This randomized phase II/III trial was performed 45 centers in Japan. Eligible patients age 20-75 years with an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0 or 1 and pathologically confirmed metastatic or recurrent pancreatic cancer were randomly assigned (1:1:1) to receive mFOLFIRINOX (oxaliplatin 85 mg/m2 over 2 hours, irinotecan 150 mg/m2 over 90 minutes, l-leucovorin 200 mg/m2 over 2 hours, each once daily on day 1, and fluorouracil 2,400 mg/m2 over 46 hours on days 1-3, every 2 weeks), S-IROX (oxaliplatin 85 mg/m2 over 2 hours, irinotecan 150 mg/m2 over 90 minutes on day 1, and S-1 80 mg/m2/day administered orally twice daily on days 1-7, every 2 weeks), or nab-paclitaxel (125 mg/m2) + gemcitabine (1,000 mg/m2) on days 1, 8, and 15 every 4 weeks. The primary end point was overall survival (OS).
A total of 527 patients were enrolled, with 426 included in the planned interim analysis. The median OS was 14.0 months (hazard ratio [HR], 1.31 [95% CI, 0.97 to 1.77]) and 13.6 months (HR, 1.35 [95% CI, 1.00 to 1.82]) in the mFOLFIRINOX and S-IROX groups, respectively, as compared with 17.1 months in the nab-paclitaxel + gemcitabine group. The predictive probability of achieving superiority in the final analysis was
Neither mFOLFIRINOX nor S-IROX appeared to be superior compared with nab-paclitaxel + gemcitabine as the first-line treatment for metastatic or recurrent pancreatic cancer.
Japanese studies, which included S-1 with oxaliplatin and irinotecan—both 5-FU–based regimens—showed no superiority to gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel in first- or second-line therapy. The trial was terminated for futility. So, what is your regimen du jour?
I recall this trial well, in node-negative pancreatic cancer GemCap is a better option than gemcitabine alone in patients who can’t be treated with mFOLFIRINOX with improved five-year overall survival (OS) 59 vs 53%, hazard ratio (HR) 0.63.
Interesting study using local therapy in metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (MPDAC) patients with <=5 metastatic sites. I would really like to see overall survival data here as I think progression-free survival (PFS) is a tricky endpoint to use in a trial like this. Most likely the study arm will take a lot longer to demonstrate progression if all lesions are ablated, but most important to me is the quality of life, survival and overall exposure to cytotoxic therapy; the last of which is likely much better with local therapy being utilized.
CAR-T agent for refractory met-pancreas showing a median duration of response of 9.5 months. These treatments are far from widely available, but the proof of principle is nice to see in a disease that otherwise has not had responses to immunotherapy. Hopefully more agents to come.
Asian study of nimotuzumab (humanized EGFR-inhibitor) + gemcitabine (gem) vs. gem alone. The overall survival (OS) was 10.9 vs. 8.5 months in favor of the combination arm. While the OS difference is small, recall that the OS in the NALIRIFOX and FOLFIRINOX studies are similar. The safety profile of nimotuzumab + gemcitabine is superior to a triplet or double cytotoxic chemotherapy combination regimen. This drug is currently not available in the USA but is approved for nasopharyngeal carcinoma in China.