Abraxane performs well in metastatic melanoma

Specialised Therapeutics Australia (STA) has revealed some positive results from a phase III trial of nanoparticle chemotherapy Abraxane in metastatic melanoma.

The results, which will be presented at the upcoming Society for Melanoma Research meeting, show that Abraxane improved progression-free survival compared to the comparison group.

Patients in the Abraxane group showed a median progression-free survival time of 4.8 months, as against 2.5 months for patients receiving dacarbazine chemotherapy.

Interim analysis of the trial's secondary endpoint also suggests Abraxane improved overall survival compared to the dacarbazine group.

The randomised, open-label trial involved 529 chemotherapy-naive patients. The Abraxane group received 150mg/m² weekly for three out of four weeks, while the control received 1000mg/m² of dacarbazine every three weeks.

Westmead Institute for Cancer Research director Professor Richard Kefford, the Australian investigator for the trial, said the results provide hope for a new treatment option for metastasised cancers, which rarely respond well to standard therapies.

“This study result is very encouraging, particularly viewed against a background of dismal treatment outcomes,” he said.

Abraxane combines paclitaxel with human protein albumin to deliver the drug without the need for a solvent.

The drug has already been listed on the PBS for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer, and granted orphan drug designation by the TGA for pancreatic cancer.

STA has also filed for approval for its use in non-small cell lung cancer, and is at the phase III trial stage in metastatic pancreatic cancer.