New Targeted Treatment Shows Promise in Extending Survival for Advanced Gastric Cancer Patients
A recent study conducted by Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian has revealed promising results for a new targeted treatment that can potentially extend the survival rate of patients with advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction cancer. The treatment, called zolbetuximab, was found to be effective when combined with standard chemotherapy and administered to patients who overexpressed a specific biomarker.
The international phase 3 clinical trial, known as the GLOW study, involved 507 patients from 18 countries who had not previously received treatment for their HER2-negative locally advanced or metastatic gastric cancer. The participants were randomly assigned to different groups, with one group receiving zolbetuximab in combination with capecitabine plus oxaliplatin chemotherapy, and the other group receiving a placebo plus the same chemotherapy. The study found that the group receiving zolbetuximab had significantly increased progression-free survival compared to the placebo group.
The addition of zolbetuximab reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 31 percent and resulted in a median progression-free survival of 8.21 months, compared to 6.8 months in the placebo group. Furthermore, zolbetuximab also showed a positive impact on overall survival, with a 23 percent reduction in the risk of death. The median overall survival for the zolbetuximab group was 14.4 months, compared to 12.2 months for the placebo group.
The study also noted that treatment-related adverse events were similar between the two groups, with nausea, vomiting, and decreased appetite being the most commonly reported side effects. Importantly, zolbetuximab did not add any significant toxicity to the treatment.
The results from the GLOW study, along with the parallel SPOTLIGHT study that evaluated zolbetuximab with an alternative chemotherapy regimen, have prompted the United States Food and Drug Administration to grant priority review to the manufacturer’s biologic license application. If approved, zolbetuximab will become the first targeted therapy in the United States for previously untreated advanced gastric or esophageal junction cancer patients who are HER2-negative and overexpress the claudin-18 isoform 2 protein.
Gastric cancer is the fifth most diagnosed cancer worldwide, and its incidence has been on the rise in recent years. Unfortunately, most patients with gastric or gastroesophageal junction cancer are diagnosed at an advanced stage, which significantly reduces their chances of survival. Currently, there are limited targeted treatment options available for these patients.
The development of zolbetuximab offers hope for patients with HER2-negative and claudin-18 isoform 2 overexpressing gastric cancers who do not fit into the existing treatment categories. By targeting and killing cancer cells directly, zolbetuximab not only extends survival but also activates the immune system to respond to the disease.
Should zolbetuximab receive approval from the FDA, it would address a significant unmet need in gastric cancer treatment, providing patients with a new option to extend their survival rate. The findings from the GLOW study highlight the potential of targeted therapies in improving outcomes for patients with advanced gastric and gastroesophageal junction cancers, offering greater hope for a better future in cancer treatment.
