Pancreatic cancer is only operable in between 15 and 20% of cases For these patients, giving chemo both before and after the surgery may optimize outcomes In a small study, 59% of patients who underwent this approach lived at least two years after their surgery MONDAY, June 24, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Giving people with pancreatic cancer chemotherapy both before after a tumor-removing surgery brought better outcomes than if they got the drugs only after the surgery, new research shows. Researchers at the Yale Cancer Center (YCC) and Yale School of Medicine focused on pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), which accounts for 90% of pancreatic cancers. Because it is often detected only at advanced stages, pancreatic cancer is one of the most lethal tumor types.
As the Yale team noted, only 15 to 20% of pancreatic cancers are caught when tumors are still operable. For those patients, chemotherapy has traditionally been given after the surgery to help kill off stray cancer cells. That chemo is nicknamed FOLFIRINOX -- a combination treatment consisting of , , , and .
It's been a first-line treatment for patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer since 2011. A team led by Yale's wondered if giving patients with operable advanced pancreatic cancer FOLFIRINOX ahead of their surgery, as well as afterwards, would boost outcomes. The goal was to have at least 50% of patients live for 12 months without their cancer progressing.
The study enrolled 46 patients, 37 of who were able to co.
