
Last year in the UK over 60,000 cancer patients enrolled on clinical trials aimed at improving cancer treatments and making them available to all.
This trial was looking at a drug called ASA404 in combination with the chemotherapy drug docetaxel for non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that was stage 3B or 4.
Doctors often use chemotherapy to treat NSCLC that is or has spread to another part of the body. If NSCLC continues to grow, or comes back after treatment, you may have more chemotherapy. Docetaxel is a drug that doctors may use.
Cancer cells need a blood supply to help them grow and survive. Growing cancer cells can encourage the growth of new blood vessels. This is called angiogenesis.
In this trial, researchers were looking at a drug called ASA404 which targets the cancer’s blood supply and might have helped to stop the cancer growing. They compared ASA404 with a dummy drug (a ). The aims of the trial were to
The trial recruited 920 people who had non small cell lung cancer that was stage 3B or stage 4. Everybody taking part had already had chemotherapy, but their cancer had continued to grow or had come back after treatment.
The researchers found that
The trial team concluded that in this study, ASA404 did not work any better than the dummy drug and the trial was stopped early. There will not be any further trials planned for this drug.
We have based this summary on information from the team who ran the trial. As far as we are aware, the information they sent us has not been reviewed independently () or published in a medical journal yet. The figures we quote above were provided by the trial team. We have not analysed the data ourselves.
Please note: In order to join a trial you will need to discuss it with your doctor, unless otherwise specified.
Dr Rohit Lal
Novartis
If you have questions about the trial please contact our cancer information nurses
Freephone 0808 800 4040
Last year in the UK over 60,000 cancer patients enrolled on clinical trials aimed at improving cancer treatments and making them available to all.