
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 study looked at veltuzumab and epratuzumab with chemotherapy for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) that has not responded to treatment, or has come back. This study was supported by Cancer Research UK.
The main treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia is chemotherapy. Your leukaemia is in if tests after treatment show that you have no leukaemia cells in your blood and
.
Your leukaemia is if tests show that you still have high numbers of leukaemia cells in your blood and bone marrow after treatment. A
is when it comes back after treatment. Doctors would like to improve treatment for ALL that has relapsed or is refractory.
This study looked at two treatments called veltuzumab and epratuzumab. They are both types of targeted cancer drugs called monoclonal antibodies. Monoclonal antibodies are a type of immunotherapy. They can seek out cancer cells by looking for particular proteins on the cell’s surface.
Veltuzumab seeks out a protein called CD20, and epratuzumab looks for the CD22 protein. When these antibodies attach to the protein, they kill the cell.
Veltuzumab and epratuzumab had already been studied in clinical trials, but not in people with ALL.
The main aim of this study was to see if adding veltuzumab and epratuzumab to chemotherapy for relapsed ALL is safe.
The research team looked at the side effects of people in group C. They found that 7 out of 21 people (33%) had side effects caused by the treatment that could be classed as serious. The side effects were varied, and included a blood clot, liver changes and infection or fever. Another 7 people taking part had problems that were not related to the trial treatment.
Please note: In order to join a trial you will need to discuss it with your doctor, unless otherwise specified.
Dr Matthew Smith
Cancer Research UK
Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre (ECMC)
Immunomedics Inc
NIHR Clinical Research Network: Cancer
Queen Mary University of London
This is Cancer Research UK trial number CRUK/08/040.
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.