The investigators concluded that OGX-011 in combination with the chemotherapeutic agents was well tolerated at the doses studied and most toxicities were typical for gemcitabine/cisplatin.
The one-year survival rate for the nine patients that received at least one dose of OGX-011 in combination with chemotherapy was 67%.
All but one of the nine patients showed either a partial response defined by a greater than or equal to 30% tumor size reduction, or stable disease defined by less than 30% tumor size reduction. Patient evaluation is still ongoing, and the median time for survival has not yet been reached.
“While this study was designed principally to evaluate safety in a limited number of patients, we are encouraged by the median and one-year survival rates to date,” said Dr Janessa Laskin, study chair and a medical oncologist at BC Cancer Agency.