Oncolytics Biotech Inc. (ONCY, ONC.TO) announced that it has met the primary overall statistical endpoint in its U.S. Phase 2 single arm clinical trial in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the lung or SCCLC using intravenous administration of Reolysin in combination with carboplatin and paclitaxel in patients with metastatic stage IIIB, or stage IV, or recurrent SCCLC who are chemotherapy naïve for their metastatic or recurrent cancer or REO 021.
The study is a two-stage design with a primary overall endpoint of objective tumor response rate. The company said that it saw a sufficient number of responses in the first stage of the study to proceed with enrollment in the second stage. A total of up to 36 patients were to be studied in the second stage.
According to the company, the primary endpoint was met if nine or more patients in both stages combined had a partial response (PR) or better, which yields a true response rate of 35% or more. This endpoint was met after 21 evaluable patients were treated on study, nine of which exhibited PRs, while a further nine showed stable disease or SD and three, progressive disease or PD, for a response rate of 42.8% and a disease control rate (complete response (CR) + PR + SD) of 85.7%.
The secondary objectives of the trial, for which data has yet to be released, are to assess progression-free survival and overall survival for the treatment regimen in the study population; to determine the proportion of patients receiving the above treatment who are alive and free of disease progression at six months; and to assess the safety and tolerability of the treatment regimen in the study population.
The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2013, approximately 228,190 new cases of lung cancer will be diagnosed. Between 85% and 90% of all lung cancers are classified as non-small cell lung cancer or NSCLC; squamous cell carcinomas or SCC account for 25-30% of all lung cancers.
For comments and feedback: editorial@rttnews.com