Long term results of EORTC trial of perioperative FOLFOX4 versus surgery alone

Phase III study in patients with resectable liver metastases from colorectal cancer
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Long term results of the randomized phase III EORTC intergroup trial 40983, recently reported in The Lancet Oncology, show that observed 4.1% difference in overall survival at five years for patients with initially resectable liver metastases from colorectal cancer is not significant for perioperative chemotherapy with FOLFOX4 compared with surgery alone. Earlier results of the same study had shown that perioperative chemotherapy with FOLFOX4 increases progression-free survival (PFS), which was the primary endpoint of the study, compared with surgery alone in these patients. Overall survival was a secondary endpoint, and the trial was not initially powered to compare overall survival in the two groups. In this new article, the authors presented overall survival data after long-term follow-up and concluded that no difference in overall survival was found with the addition of perioperative chemotherapy with FOLFOX4. In addition, they wrote that previously observed benefit in PFS means that perioperative chemotherapy with FOLFOX4 should remain the reference treatment in this population of patients. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Nordlinger B, Sorbye H, Glimelius B, et al. Perioperative FOLFOX4 chemotherapy and surgery versus surgery alone for resectable liver metastases from colorectal cancer (EORTC 40983): long-term results of a randomised, controlled, phase 3 trial. The Lancet Oncology 2013, 14(12): 1208-15. doi: 10.1016/S1470-2045(13)70447-9. Epub 2013 Oct 11.