FOLFIRI plus bevacizumab as second-line therapy in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer after first-line bevacizumab plus oxaliplatin-based therapy: the randomized phase III EAGLE study

Ann Oncol. 2015 Jul;26(7):1427-33. doi: 10.1093/annonc/mdv197. Epub 2015 Apr 23.

Abstract

Background: A targeted agent combined with chemotherapy is the standard treatment in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). The present phase III study was conducted to compare two doses of bevacizumab combined with irinotecan, 5-fluorouracil/leucovorin (FOLFIRI) in the second-line setting after first-line therapy with bevacizumab plus oxaliplatin-based therapy.

Patients and methods: Patients were randomly assigned to receive FOLFIRI plus bevacizumab 5 or 10 mg/kg in 2-week cycles until disease progression. The primary end point was progression-free survival (PFS), and secondary end points included overall survival (OS), time to treatment failure (TTF), and safety.

Results: Three hundred and eighty-seven patients were randomized between September 2009 and January 2012 from 100 institutions in Japan. Baseline patient characteristics were well balanced between the two groups. Efficacy was evaluated in 369 patients (5 mg/kg, n = 181 and 10 mg/kg, n = 188). Safety was evaluated in 365 patients (5 mg/kg, n = 180 and 10 mg/kg, n = 185). The median PFS was 6.1 versus 6.4 months (hazard ratio, 0.95; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.75-1.21; P = 0.676), and median TTF was 5.2 versus 5.2 months (hazard ratio, 1.01; 95% CI 0.81-1.25; P = 0.967), respectively, for the bevacizumab 5 and 10 mg/kg groups. Follow-up of OS is currently ongoing. Adverse events, including hypertension and hemorrhage, occurred at similar rates in both groups.

Conclusion: Bevacizumab 10 mg/kg plus FOLFIRI as the second-line treatment did not prolong PFS compared with bevacizumab 5 mg/kg plus FOLFIRI in patients with mCRC. If bevacizumab is continued after first-line therapy in mCRC, a dose of 5 mg/kg is appropriate for use as second-line treatment.

Clinical trial identifier: UMIN000002557.

Keywords: bevacizumab; chemotherapy; dose; metastatic colorectal cancer; randomized controlled trial; second-line therapy.

Publication types

  • Clinical Trial, Phase III
  • Multicenter Study
  • Randomized Controlled Trial
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / therapeutic use*
  • Bevacizumab / administration & dosage
  • Camptothecin / administration & dosage
  • Camptothecin / analogs & derivatives
  • Colorectal Neoplasms / drug therapy*
  • Colorectal Neoplasms / mortality
  • Colorectal Neoplasms / pathology
  • Female
  • Fluorouracil / administration & dosage
  • Follow-Up Studies
  • Humans
  • Irinotecan
  • Leucovorin / administration & dosage
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Neoplasm Metastasis
  • Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / drug therapy*
  • Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / mortality
  • Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / pathology
  • Neoplasm Staging
  • Organoplatinum Compounds / administration & dosage
  • Oxaliplatin
  • Prognosis
  • Salvage Therapy*
  • Survival Rate

Substances

  • Organoplatinum Compounds
  • Oxaliplatin
  • Bevacizumab
  • Irinotecan
  • Leucovorin
  • Fluorouracil
  • Camptothecin

Associated data

  • JPRN/UMIN000002557