— Early sign of Alzheimer's reversed in lab — One of the earliest known impairments caused by Alzheimer's disease - loss of sense of smell - can be restored by removing a plaque-forming protein in a mouse model of the disease,…
— Parental controls on embryonic development? — When a sperm fertilises an egg, each contributes a set of chromosomes to the resulting embryo, which at these very early stages is called a zygote. Early on, zygotic genes are inert,…
— Newly discovered heart stem cells make muscle and bone — Researchers have identified a new and relatively abundant pool of stem cells in the heart. The findings in the December issue of Cell Stem Cell, a Cell Press publication, show that…
— BUSM researchers develop blood test to detect membranous nephropathy — Research conducted by a pair of physicians at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Centre (BMC) has led to the development of a test that can help diagnose…
— New hip implants no better than traditional implants — New hip implants appear to have no advantage over traditional implants, suggests a review of the evidence published on bmj.com today…
— Action needed to improve men's health in Europe — Policies aimed specifically at men are urgently needed to improve the health of Europe's men, say experts on bmj.com today…
— Probiotics reduce infections for patients in intensive care — Traumatic brain injury is associated with a profound suppression of the patient's ability to fight infection. At the same time the patient also often suffers hyper-inflammation, due…
— High blood sugar levels in older women linked to colorectal cancer — Elevated blood sugar levels are associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer, according to a study led by researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University.…
— Engineered botulism toxins could have broader role in medicine — The most poisonous substance on Earth - already used medically in small doses to treat certain nerve disorders and facial wrinkles - could be re-engineered for an expanded role in helping…
GOLFIG increased progression-free survival in colorectal cancer patients
Oncologists can use colorectal cancer patients' own immune system to boost the effects of chemotherapy and increase progression-free survival, according to Phase III study results presented at the AACR 102nd Annual Meeting 2011, held here April 2-6.
Patients with advanced colorectal cancer are typically treated with combination chemotherapy with fluorouracil or the derivative product, capecitabine with or without levofolinic acid with irinotecan (FOLFIRI) or oxaliplatin (FOLFOX) given alone, or with the monoclonal antibodies bevacizumab, cetuximab or panitumumab.
'These combinations have been successful in inducing tumour regression, retarding disease progression and increasing overall survival. However, the average progression-free survival and overall survival are still no more than eight to 10 months and 20 to 22 months, respectively,' said Pierpaolo Correale, M.D., Ph.D., an oncologist at the Siena University School of Medicine in Italy.
This study was started in 2005, before monoclonal antibodies were routinely used. Correale and colleagues added gemcitabine to FOLFOX followed by granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor and low-dose aldesleukine (GOLFIG) to boost the immune system in an effort to fight cancer.
The researchers randomised 130 patients to receive GOLFIG or FOLFOX for a maximum of 12 cycles and then receive maintenance treatment until disease progression. The study was designed to follow the patients in both arms until death, but was ended early due to significantly better results seen with the GOLFIG regimen.
So far, the patients who received GOLFIG had a progression-free survival of 16.5 months compared with the 7.5 months recorded in those patients who received FOLFOX.
'Based on our experience and results to date, we believe that the GOLFIG regimen is superior to FOLFOX chemotherapy in terms of efficacy and comparable in terms of toxicity and cost,' said Correale. 'We were very surprised to find such a significant difference in terms of overall survival with this low number of patients.'
The challenge for the future will be to compare GOLFIG regimen with regimens containing monoclonal antibodies, he said.
Or subscribe for our Newsletter, a free e-mail publication. It is published practically every day.
Products may revolutionise how men monitor their reproductive status
'Whose turn to pay?' can be deal-breaker for cohabiting couples
OSU to study air pollutant's impact on Chinese, U.S. health
Cardiac patients trial home-based rehabilitation