Cediranib Shows Promise for Differentiated Thyroid Cancer

TUESDAY, Sept. 19, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- The multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) of the vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) pathway, cediranib, shows promise for differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC), but the addition of lenalidomide to cediranib does not improve outcomes, according to a study published in the August issue of the Annals of Oncology.

Ari J. Rosenberg, M.D., from the University of Chicago, and colleagues examined the safety and efficacy of cediranib, a VEGFR-targeted TKI, with or without lenalidomide, in the treatment of iodine 131-refractory DTC in a multicenter, randomized phase 2 clinical trial. One hundred ten patients were enrolled and randomly assigned to cediranib alone or cediranib and lenalidomide; 108 started therapy and were assessed for efficacy. Eligible adults were refractory to further surgical or radioactive iodine therapy (as reviewed at a multispecialty tumor board conference), showed evidence of disease progression within the previous 12 months, and had no more than one prior line of systemic therapy.

The researchers found that median progression-free survival was 14.8 and 11.3 months in the cediranib and cediranib with lenalidomide arms, respectively. Corresponding two-year overall survival was 64.8 and 75.3 percent. Serious adverse event rates were 41 and 46 percent, respectively.

"Our study results highlight an unmet need with the current strategies of harnessing the body's immune system to treat thyroid cancer and the need to evaluate new combinations and new mechanisms, in particular new immunotherapeutic strategies that may be more effective than immunomodulatory strategies or immune checkpoint inhibitors alone," Rosenberg said in a statement.

The study was partially funded by AstraZeneca and Celgene, which also provided drugs for the study. Several authors disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical industry, including AstraZeneca.

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