NICRC Patient Information

Additional Information:   Information from the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) on cancer clinical trials: Summer 2005              As you know, ECOG is committed to developing cancer clinical trials that lead to longer survival and improved quality of life for the millions of cancer patients who are cared for daily.  All of us work toward a common goal of controlling, effectively treating, and ultimately curing cancer.  That is why I am excited to let you know about three trials in particular that are bringing us an important step closer in fighting this disease. ECOG, working in conjunction with the NCI and Genetech, Inc., has produced promising results from three large Phase III trials.  E4599, E3200 and E2100 have all shown improved cancer survival for patients.   E4599, a clinical trial for patients with previously untreated advanced non-squamous, non-small cell lung cancer show that those patients who received bevacizumab (AvastinTM) in combination with standard chemotherapy lived longer than patients who received the same chemotherapy without bevacizumab.  Study chair Alan B. Sandler, MD, of the Vanderbilt University Medical Center presented results from E4599 at the recent ASCO Annual Meeting. E3200, enrolling patients with advanced colorectal cancer who had previously received treatment, showed that those who received bevacizumab (AvastinTM) in combination with an oxaliplatin (EloxatinTM) regimen known as FOLFOX4 lived longer than patients who received FOLFOX4 alone.  The ECOG Data Monitoring Committee recommended that the results of a recent interim E3200 analysis be made public because the study had met its primary endpoint of demonstrating improved overall survival.  “This trial highlights benefits of the public-private collaborations that NCI has spearheaded over the last several years,” said James H. Doroshow, MD, Director of NCI’s Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis and chairman of NCI’s Clinical Trials Working Group.  In announcing the E3200 results, Doroshow added, “Working with the biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, NCI was able to coordinate the drug development of these two new agents (bevacizumab and oxaliplatin) in combination and, through the dedication and commitment of the patients and physicians who participated in the study, provide an important advance for patients.” Preliminary results from E2100, a large, randomized trial for patients with previously untreated recurrent or metastatic breast cancer show that those patients who received bevacizumab (AvastinTM) in combination with standard chemotherapy experienced a longer period before their cancer progressed than patients who received the same chemotherapy without bevacizumab. These clinical trials were led by ECOG, sponsored by the National Cancer Institute, and conducted by a network of researchers including members of other cooperative groups and the NCI’s Cancer Trials Support Unit (CTSU).  Genentech, Inc., South San Francisco, CA, provided supplemental support for special requirements of all three trials, through grants to the ECOG Research & Education Foundation, Inc.                                          Robert L. Comis, MD