Skip Navigation

Neuro-Oncology 2008 10(2):216-222; doi:10.1215/15228517-2007-060
This Article
Right arrow Full Text Freely available
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF) Freely available
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Puduvalli, V. K.
Right arrow Articles by Yung, W. K. A.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow Articles by Puduvalli, V. K.
Right arrow Articles by Yung, W. K. A.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

Society for Neuro-Oncology

Phase II trial of irinotecan and thalidomide in adults with recurrent glioblastoma multiforme

Vinay K. Puduvalli, Pierre Giglio, Morris D. Groves, Kenneth R. Hess, Mark R. Gilbert, Srikanth Mahankali, Edward F. Jackson, Victor A. Levin, Charles A. Conrad, Sigmund H. Hsu, Howard Colman, John F. de Groot, MeLesa G. Ritterhouse, Sandra E. Ictech and W. K. Alfred Yung

Departments of Neuro-Oncology (V.K.P., P.G., M.D.G., M.R.G., V.A.L., C.A.C., S.H.H., H.C., J.F.D., M.G.R., S.E.I., W.K.A.Y.), Biostatistics (K.R.H.), and Imaging Physics (S.M., E.F.J.), University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Vinay K. Puduvalli, Department of Neuro-Oncology, Unit 431, University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd., Houston, TX 77030, USA (vpuduval{at}mdanderson.org).


  Abstract

This phase II study aimed at determining the efficacy and safety of irinotecan combined with thalidomide in adults with recurrent glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) not taking enzyme-inducing anticonvulsants (EIACs). Adult patients (≥18 years) with recurrent GBM with up to three relapses following surgery and radiation therapy were eligible for this trial. The primary end point was rate of progression-free survival at 6 months (PFS-6); secondary end points were response rate, overall survival, and toxicity. Patients were treated in 6-week cycles with 125 mg/m2 irinotecan weekly for 4 weeks followed by 2 weeks off treatment and 100 mg of thalidomide daily increased as tolerated to 400 mg/day. Of 32 evaluable patients, 8 (25%) were alive and progression free at 6 months. The median PFS was 13 weeks. One patient experienced a complete response, one a partial response, and 19 stable disease. Median overall survival time from entry into the study was 36 weeks, and the 1-year survival rate was 34%. Adverse events (grade 3 or 4) included diarrhea, abdominal cramps, lymphopenia, neutropenia, and fatigue. Two of the four deaths that occurred were possibly due to treatment-related toxicity. The combination of irinotecan, a cytotoxic agent, and thalidomide, an antiangiogenic agent, shows promising activity against recurrent GBM in patients not receiving EIACs and warrants further study. The results also provide support for similar strategies using combination therapies with newer targeted antiangiogenic agents to generate effective therapies against malignant gliomas.

Keywords: angiogenesis, combination chemotherapy, glioblastoma multiforme, progression-free survival

Received March 26, 2007; Accepted July 24, 2007


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?




Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.