
Around 1 in 5 people diagnosed with cancer in the UK take part in a clinical trial.
This trial looked at a drug called codrituzumab which was previously known as GC33.
It was for people with a type of liver cancer called hepatocellular cancer (HCC) that had spread to other parts of the body (advanced cancer).
HCC is the most common type of liver cancer.
This trial started in 2012 and these results were published in 2016. Researchers wanted to find out whether codrituzumab helped people with advanced hepatocellular cancer and how safe it was.
Codrituzumab is a type of targeted drug called a monoclonal antibody. It seeks out cancer cells by looking for particular proteins.
Everyone who took part had either codrituzumab or a dummy drug ().
Side effects
The trial team looked at the most common side effects of codrituzumab. They were:
Conclusion
The trial team concluded that the side effects of codrituzumab are acceptable. But the trial team could not show, in a statistical way, that codrituzumab helps people with advanced hepatocellular cancer. They formulated different theories for this and might look at different doses of codrituzumab in the future.
We have based this summary on information from the research team. The information they sent us has been reviewed by independent specialists () and published in a medical journal. The figures we quote above were provided by the trial team who did the research. 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.
Paul Ross
Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre (ECMC)
Roche
If you have questions about the trial please contact our cancer information nurses
Freephone 0808 800 4040
Around 1 in 5 people diagnosed with cancer in the UK take part in a clinical trial.