The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) held its Annual Meeting from May 31 – June 4, 2023. During the meeting, attendees discussed a variety of oncological topics, trends, and research. One such study focused on the impact of first-line NALIRIFOX on people living with metastatic pancreatic cancer that was treatment-naive (had never been treated before). Currently, one of the standards-of-care for pancreatic cancer treatment is a combination treatment of gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel. However, pancreatic cancer still comes with a poor prognosis; only 12% of people are alive five years after diagnosis. Because of this, it is incredibly important to continue evaluating potential therapies.
In an article in Healio, Matthew Shinkle writes that the Phase 3 NAPOLI 3 trial compared NALIRIFOX (a combination of liposomal irinotecan, fluorouracil, leucovorin, and oxaliplatin) with gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel to identify whether any improvements could be made in quality-of-life, progression-free survival, safety, efficacy, and overall survival. 387 articipants with previously untreated pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma received 1000mg/m2 gemcitabine plus 125mg/m2 nab-paclitaxel. The additional 383 participants were given NALIRIFOX.
The study found that NALIRIFOX was safe, effective, and well-tolerated; some researchers even reported that NALIRIFOX could be better tolerated than current available therapies. NALIRIFOX improved overall survival and progression-free survival by a median of 2~ months. People who received this treatment also had longer response periods than their counterparts. Side effects did occur, including diarrhea, nausea, low blood potassium levels, low red blood cell counts, and low white blood cell counts.
While these results show some promise, doctors and researchers note that more research is needed to fully identify whether NALIRIFOX is better and more effective than other available therapies, and whether doctors would stray from what they know.
About Pancreatic Cancer
Your pancreas is an organ that sits behind your lower stomach. It plays a role in blood sugar management (by releasing hormones) and digestion (by releasing enzymes). If cancer begins in the hormone-producing cells, it is considered to be a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor. Pancreatic adenocarcinoma is the form of this cancer that forms in the pancreatic ducts. Pancreatic cancer tends to form in people who are older than 45. If you smoke cigarettes, are obese, or have a family history of this cancer, your risk is also higher.
In many cases, pancreatic cancer is asymptomatic in early stages, meaning that people don’t display any symptoms. Symptoms often appear once the cancer has progressed. These symptoms may include newly onset or worsening diabetes, a yellow color to the skin and eyes, unintentional wight loss, appetite loss, upper abdominal pain that radiates to the back, extreme tiredness, dark urine and pale stools, bowel obstructions, or blood clots. If you visit a doctor with these symptoms, your doctor may run tests like a laparoscopy, CT scans, MRIs, and biopsies to learn whether you have cancer and, if so, if it has spread.
