A phase 2 trial of regorafenib as a single agent in patients with chemotherapy-refractory, advanced, and metastatic biliary tract adenocarcinoma

Weijing Sun, Anuj Patel, Daniel Normolle, Krishna Patel, James Ohr, James J. Lee, Nathan Bahary, Edward Chu, Natalie Streeter, Summer Drummond

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

94 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background: Biliary tract cancers are rare, aggressive neoplasms. Most patients present with advanced/unresectable or metastatic disease at diagnosis, and no second-line regimen has demonstrated clinical benefit. This was a phase 2 study evaluating the efficacy and safety of regorafenib in patients who had advanced/unresectable or metastatic disease after receiving standard therapy. Methods: In this single arm-study, patients with advanced/unresectable or metastatic biliary tract cancer who failed at least 1 line of systemic chemotherapy received regorafenib once daily on a schedule of 21-days on/7-days off in a 28-day cycle. Patients initially received a standard 160 mg dose. After toxicity assessments in the first 3 patients, the dose was reduced to 120 mg for subsequent patients, as preplanned. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS). Secondary objectives included overall survival (OS), the objective response rate, and the disease control rate. Results: Forty-three patients received at least 1 dose of regorafenib, and 34 patients who received at least 1 cycle of treatment were evaluable for tumor response. The median PFS was 15.6 weeks (90% confidence interval, 12.9-24.7 weeks), and the median OS was 31.8 weeks (90% confidence interval, 13.3-74.3 weeks), with survival rates 40% at 12 months and 32% at 18 months. A partial response was achieved in 5 patients (11%), and 19 had stable disease (44%), for a disease control rate of 56%. The toxicity profile was as expected, with grade 3 and 4 adverse events reported in 40% of patients. The most common toxicities were hypophosphatemia (40%), hyperbilirubinemia (26%), hypertension (23%), and hand-foot skin reaction (7%). Conclusions: The current results suggest promising efficacy of regorafenib in patients with chemotherapy-refractory, advanced/metastatic biliary tract cancer, warranting further studies to confirm its clinical efficacy. There is a clear unmet need for effective therapies in patients who have advanced and metastatic biliary tract cancer.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)902-909
Number of pages8
JournalCancer
Volume125
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 15 2019
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • biliary tract cancer (BTC)
  • chemotherapy refractory
  • cholangiocarcinoma
  • gallbladder cancer
  • regorafenib

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Oncology
  • Cancer Research

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