New topical gel reduces painful rash caused by colon cancer treatment

New topical gel reduces painful rash caused by colon cancer treatment

Results

Researchers at the UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have shown that a novel topical BRAF inhibitor gel called LUT014 significantly reduces the severity of an acne-like rash, a common and painful side effect experienced by patients receiving EGR therapies for colorectal cancer. The results of the clinical trial confirm the safety and effectiveness of the treatment.

“The results provide the first real solution in two decades for treating this rash, which often affects patients receiving targeted therapies for colorectal cancer,” said study co-author Zev Wainberg, MD, professor of medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. “The ability to effectively treat it with a simple topical gel has the potential to significantly improve the quality of life for patients and treatment outcomes.”

background

Anti-EGFR therapies such as cetuximab and panitumumab are a cornerstone of treatment for many types of cancer, including colorectal cancer. However, they often cause an acnoriform rash, which often leads to impaired quality of life and may lead to dose reduction or discontinuation of treatment, limiting their potential benefits.

LUT014, being developed by Lutris Pharma, works by paradoxically reactivating MAPK, a key signaling pathway in the skin that anti-EGFR therapies shut down. By applying BRAF inhibitor gel directly to affected areas, the gel helps restore skin function, reduce inflammation and improve symptoms without affecting the anti-cancer effects of the treatment.

Method & Results

The double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized phase 2 study included 118 patients at 23 medical centers. Patients in the study had colorectal cancer and developed moderate to severe skin rashes while taking cetuximab or panitumumab, two common anti-EGFR treatments.

The participants were randomly divided into three groups. One group used a low-dose gel, another used a higher-dose gel, and the third used a placebo gel that had no active ingredient. In each case, the gel was applied once daily for 28 days.

The main goal was to see if the rash improved either through severity or through better quality of life related to skin problems. Researchers found that patients using LUT014 gel experienced significant improvements in rash severity and quality of life compared to patients who received a placebo, without interfering with their cancer treatment.

Almost 70% in the higher dose gel group using a higher dose gel improved their scores compared to half (48%) of those using the low dose gel and about one in three (33%) patients using the gel without active drug.

Effects

Researchers have shown that it is possible to alleviate skin toxicity without compromising the effectiveness of cancer treatment. This could help patients stay in their treatments longer, reducing the need for dose reductions or discontinuation, which in turn may improve overall treatment outcomes.

Until now, patients were simply told that the rash was an unavoidable side effect of these treatments, something they had to endure to fight their cancer. However, the data is overwhelmingly positive, and this approach not only improves patients' quality of life but also makes cancer treatment more manageable. “

Antoni Ribas, MD, PhD, professor of medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine and director of the Tumor Immunology Program, UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center and a co-author of the study

Authors

The first author of the abstract is Anisha Patel, MD, of MD Anderson. The senior author is Mario Lacouture, MD, of NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine. Other authors are Ofer Purim, MD, Nicole LeBoeuf, MD, MPH, Iman Imanirad, MD, Efrat Dotan, MD, John Khoury, MD, Veronica Rotemberg, MD, PhD, Richard Zuniga, MD, Abhishek Marballi, MD, Esther Tachover, MD, Anil Veluvolu, MD, Samuel Bailey, MD, David B. Greenberg, MD, Adil Akhtar, MD, NOA Shelach, PhD, MBA and Benjamin W. Corn, MD.

Ribas is also director of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy Center at UCLA and a member of the Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at UCLA.

meeting

The study results will be presented as an oral presentation in a clinical trials plenary session at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) on April 27 at 3:30 p.m. CT.

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