A trial of bortezomib with epirubicin, carboplatin and capecitabine chemotherapy for cancer where the food pipe meets the stomach

This trial looked at the drug bortezomib with chemotherapy for cancer that started where the food pipe (oesophagus) meets the stomach (the gastro oesophageal junction) and had spread to another part of the body.

Doctors often treat cancer of the gastro oesophageal junction with chemotherapy and surgery. One type of chemotherapy for this cancer is a combination of drugs called ‘EcarboX’. This is epirubicin, carboplatin and capecitabine (Xeloda). In this trial, doctors wanted to see if adding another drug called bortezomib made EcarboX work better.

Bortezomib is a type of biological therapy called a proteasome inhibitor. It is a cancer growth blocker. It stops signals that cancer cells use to divide and grow. Trials had shown that bortezomib also makes cancer cells more sensitive to some types of chemotherapy.

The aims of this trial were to

• Find the best dose of bortezomib to give with EcarboX chemotherapy

• Find out how well bortezomib with EcarboX worked for cancer of the gastro oesophageal junction

• Learn more about the side effects