BACKGROUND: This randomised controlled phase 2 study compared pemetrexed and erlotinib in combination with either agent alone in terms of efficacy and safety as second-line treatment in a clinically selected population of never-smokers with non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). METHODS:Patients who had failed only one prior chemotherapy regimen and had Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) Performance Status (PS) ≤2 were randomised to either: pemetrexed 500 mg/m(2) on day 1 plus erlotinib 150 mg daily on days 2-14; erlotinib 150 mg daily; or pemetrexed 500 mg/m(2) on day 1 of a 21-day cycle until discontinuation criteria were met. The primary endpoint, progression-free survival (PFS), was analysed using a multivariate Cox model. Firstly, a global comparison across the three arms was performed. If the global null hypothesis was rejected at a two-sided 0.2 significance level, pairwise comparisons of pemetrexed-erlotinib versus erlotinib or pemetrexed were then conducted using the same model. Statistical significance was claimed only if both global and pairwise null hypotheses were rejected at a two-sided 0.05 significance level. FINDINGS: A total of 240 patients (male, 35%; East Asian, 55%; ECOG PS 0-1, 93%) were included. A statistically significant difference in PFS was found across the three arms (global p=0.003), with pemetrexed-erlotinib significantly better than either single agent: HR=0.57, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.40-0.81, p=0.002 versus erlotinib; HR=0.58, 95% CI: 0.39-0.85, p=0.005 versus pemetrexed. Median PFS (95% CI) was 7.4 (4.4, 12.9) months in pemetrexed-erlotinib, 3.8 (2.7, 6.3) months in erlotinib and 4.4 (3.0, 6.0) months in pemetrexed. Safety analyses showed a higher incidence of drug-related grade 3/4 toxicity in pemetrexed-erlotinib (60.0%) than in pemetrexed (28.9%) or erlotinib (12.0%); the majority being neutropenia, anaemia, rash and diarrhoea. INTERPRETATION:Pemetrexed-erlotinib significantly improved PFS compared to either drug alone in this clinically selected population. The combination had more toxicity, but was clinically manageable.
RCT Entities:
BACKGROUND: This randomised controlled phase 2 study compared pemetrexed and erlotinib in combination with either agent alone in terms of efficacy and safety as second-line treatment in a clinically selected population of never-smokers with non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). METHODS:Patients who had failed only one prior chemotherapy regimen and had Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) Performance Status (PS) ≤2 were randomised to either: pemetrexed 500 mg/m(2) on day 1 plus erlotinib 150 mg daily on days 2-14; erlotinib 150 mg daily; or pemetrexed 500 mg/m(2) on day 1 of a 21-day cycle until discontinuation criteria were met. The primary endpoint, progression-free survival (PFS), was analysed using a multivariate Cox model. Firstly, a global comparison across the three arms was performed. If the global null hypothesis was rejected at a two-sided 0.2 significance level, pairwise comparisons of pemetrexed-erlotinib versus erlotinib or pemetrexed were then conducted using the same model. Statistical significance was claimed only if both global and pairwise null hypotheses were rejected at a two-sided 0.05 significance level. FINDINGS: A total of 240 patients (male, 35%; East Asian, 55%; ECOG PS 0-1, 93%) were included. A statistically significant difference in PFS was found across the three arms (global p=0.003), with pemetrexed-erlotinib significantly better than either single agent: HR=0.57, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.40-0.81, p=0.002 versus erlotinib; HR=0.58, 95% CI: 0.39-0.85, p=0.005 versus pemetrexed. Median PFS (95% CI) was 7.4 (4.4, 12.9) months in pemetrexed-erlotinib, 3.8 (2.7, 6.3) months in erlotinib and 4.4 (3.0, 6.0) months in pemetrexed. Safety analyses showed a higher incidence of drug-related grade 3/4 toxicity in pemetrexed-erlotinib (60.0%) than in pemetrexed (28.9%) or erlotinib (12.0%); the majority being neutropenia, anaemia, rash and diarrhoea. INTERPRETATION:Pemetrexed-erlotinib significantly improved PFS compared to either drug alone in this clinically selected population. The combination had more toxicity, but was clinically manageable.
Authors: Tianhong Li; Bilal Piperdi; William V Walsh; Mimi Kim; Laurel A Beckett; Rasim Gucalp; Missak Haigentz; Venu G Bathini; Huiyu Wen; Kaili Zhou; Patricia B Pasquinelli; Srikanth Gajavelli; Meera Sreedhara; Xianhong Xie; Primo N Lara; David R Gandara; Roman Perez-Soler Journal: Clin Lung Cancer Date: 2016-10-28 Impact factor: 4.785
Authors: V R Belum; K Marulanda; C Ensslin; L Gorcey; T Parikh; S Wu; K J Busam; P A Gerber; M E Lacouture Journal: Ann Oncol Date: 2015-09-19 Impact factor: 32.976