XELOX Beats 5-FU with Fewer Recurrences

A combination of Xeloda and Eloxatin (XELOX) was better than standard 5-FU and leucovorin chemotherapy in reducing recurrences of stage III colon cancer after surgery.  Significantly more patients receiving XELOX were alive without cancer three years after treatment began.

Roche announced results of a Phase III clinical trial that compared XELOX chemotherapy to bolus 5-FU and leucovorin.  The trial, nicknamed XELOXA (NO16968), enrolled almost 1,900 patients in 29 countries.

Its primary goal was to see if combining the oral drug Xeloda® (capecitabine) with Eloxatin® (oxaliplatin) could improve disease-free survival for stage III colon cancer patients. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on July 23rd, 2009
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | 2 Comments »
Tags: 5-FU, capecitabine, clinical trial results, Eloxatin, oxaliplatin, Xeloda

Comparing 5-FU or Capecitabine Combined with Oxaliplatin

Infusional 5-FU or oral Xeloda® (capecitabine) are two different drugs that can be combined with Eloxatin® (oxaliplatin) to treat colorectal cancer that has spread.  Six different randomized clinical trials have compared the two approaches.

Researchers analyzed a pool of all six trials to find out if one approach is better than the other. While they found that there are different side effects, the time until cancer gets worse (progression-free survival) and overall survival time are the same.

The percentage of patients who got infusional 5-FU  and had their tumors shrink (response rate) was greater than those who had shrinkage with capecitabine .  However, this did not translate into better progression-free interval or longer survival time. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on December 9th, 2008
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | No Comments »
Tags: 5-FU, capecitabine, Xeloda

KRAS Status Doesn’t Impact Treatment with 5-FU Alone

While researchers have found that colorectal cancer tumors that have mutated KRAS genes don’t respond to treatment with EFGR inhibitors Erbitux®(cetuximab) and Vectibix™(panitumumab), is the same thing true for other drugs?

5-FU (fluorouracil) is the backbone of most colorectal cancer treatment, given alone or in combination with other drugs.  What does KRAS status mean when 5-FU is the only treatment? Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on August 2nd, 2008
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | No Comments »
Tags: 5-FU, KRAS, survival benefit

Switching from 5FU to Xeloda Can Cause Significant Side Effects

An immediate switch from 5-FU treatment to Xeloda® (capecitabine) for stage III colon cancer caused so much toxicity that a trial designed to test patient preferences for treatment had to be stopped.

Patients in the Patient Preference in Adjuvant Therapy (PACT) trial who switched after 6 weeks from weekly 5-FU with leucovorin to oral capecitabine experienced excessive side effects. The trial was designed to determine which approach to treatment patients liked best. Continue reading…

Posted by Kate Murphy on July 23rd, 2008
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | 12 Comments »
Tags: 5-FU, side effects, Xeloda