Phase I/II trial of gefitinib and oxaliplatin in patients with advanced colorectal cancer

Colorectal cancers frequently overexpress the epidermal growth factor receptor. Gefitinib (Iressa), an inhibitor of the epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase, is synergistic with oxaliplatin in preclinical colon cancer models. The authors conducted a phase I/II trial of gefitinib plus oxaliplatin in patients with previously treated metastatic colorectal cancer. In the phase I portion, 14 patients received oxaliplatin 130 mg/m(2) intravenously every 21 days and gefitinib orally daily at I of 2 dose levels: 250 mg/day (8 patients), and 500 mg/day (6 patients). There were no objective responses. Three patients (38%) in the 250-mg cohort experienced disease stabilization for a median of 12 weeks, and I patient in the 500-mg cohort had stable disease for 18 weeks. Nausea/vomiting and rash were dose limiting. The randomized phase 11 part of the trial, in which patients were to receive oxaliplatin with or without gefitinib, was canceled due to the inactivity of single-agent gefitinib observed in the phase I portion, and emergent phase III data regarding the minimal activity of single-agent oxaliplatin. The authors conclude that the combination of gefitinib plus oxaliplatin is inactive in advanced colorectal cancer.