(Pancreatic Cancer) Is Abraxane + Gemzar Effective?

On January 14, 2020, Philip A. Philip published in the medical journal The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology the "Efficacy and Safety Results of Nab-paclitaxel (Abraxane) + Gemcitabine (Gemzar) in Patients with Unresectable Locally Advanced Pancreatic Cancer, from the LAPACT Phase 2 Clinical Trial."

The LAPACT Phase 2 clinical trial was a multicenter, open-label clinical trial. Patients with unresectable locally advanced pancreatic cancer (N=106) received induction therapy in 28-day cycles, with Abraxane 125 mg/m² + Gemzar 1000 mg/m² on days 1, 8, and 15. As long as there was no disease progression or unexpected adverse events, the attending physician determined whether to continue treatment (Abraxane + Gemzar, chemoradiotherapy, or surgery). The primary endpoint was time to treatment failure, and secondary endpoints were disease control rate, progression-free survival, and overall survival.

Of the 107 patients who received induction therapy, 44 (41%) discontinued due to adverse events and could not advance to the continuation phase. Of the 62 patients who completed induction therapy, 47 (44%) continued treatment: 12 with Abraxane + Gemzar, 18 with chemoradiotherapy, and 17 with surgery.

The trial results showed a primary endpoint median time to treatment failure of 9.0 months. Secondary endpoint results were: median progression-free survival of 10.9 months, median overall survival of 18.8 months, disease control rate of 77.6%, and objective response rate of 33.6%.

In terms of safety, the most common Grade 3 or higher adverse events observed in the majority of patients were: neutropenia 33%, anemia 11%, and fatigue 10%. More serious adverse events included: pneumonia 5%, fever 5%, and febrile neutropenia 3%.

Based on the LAPACT clinical trial results, Philip A. Philip concluded: "In patients with unresectable locally advanced pancreatic cancer, Abraxane + Gemzar demonstrated good antitumor activity. The adverse event profile was consistent with that documented in other clinical trials, with no new adverse events occurring."

Source: Nab-paclitaxel plus gemcitabine in patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer (LAPACT): a multicentre, open-label phase 2 study (Lancet Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2020 Jan 14. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S2468-1253(19)30327-9)

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