The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 277 No 7423 p474
21 October 2006

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Data reinforce sunitinib’s role in imatinib-resistant GIST

Sunitinib is of benefit for patients with advanced gastrointestinal stromal tumours for whom treatment with imatinib mesylate has failed, according to researchers (Lancet 2006;368:1329).

They recruited 312 patients who were randomised to receive either oral sunitinib (once daily at a 50mg starting dose) or placebo in six-week cycles (four weeks on and two weeks off treatment).

Patients treated with sunitinib had a longer median time to tumour progression (27.3 weeks) than those given placebo (6.4 weeks) and a longer duration of progression-free survival (24.1 weeks compared with 6.0 weeks) and overall survival than the placebo group.

Sunitinib, which was launched as Sutent in the UK in August, is licensed for the treatment of unresectable or metastatic gastrointestinal stromal tumour after failure of imatinib, due to resistance or intolerance, and for the treatment of advanced or metastatic renal cell carcinoma after failure of interferon alfa or interleukin-2 therapy (PJ, 5 August, p153 and p157).