A Study of the Combination of Cetuximab and Methotrexate in Recurrent or Metastatic Cancer of the Head and Neck

Summary

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Description

The addition of cetuximab to cisplatin and 5-FU in recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) showed an improvement of overall survival (OS), progression free survival (PFS) and response rate (RR). However, cisplatin and 5-FU are toxic cytostatics for the vulnerable...

The addition of cetuximab to cisplatin and 5-FU in recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) showed an improvement of overall survival (OS), progression free survival (PFS) and response rate (RR). However, cisplatin and 5-FU are toxic cytostatics for the vulnerable recurrent or metastatic SCCHN patient. As one of the primary goals in these patients is palliation, in some patients treatment with cisplatin, 5-FU and cetuximab is not feasible owing to a low performance score (PS of 2) or the patient refusal to receive chemotherapy, i.e. cisplatin and 5-FU, possibly influencing quality of life negatively. Methotrexate is a cytostatic which has shown to have modest activity in recurrent or metastatic SCCHN. The RR is between 14 and 20%, the median PFS is 3 months, and there is no improvement in OS, which is only 6 months. Toxicity of MTX is very low. Patients with a PS of 2 can be treated with MTX. Patients refusing treatment with cisplatin, 5-FU and cetuximab, frequently choose MTX as palliative treatment. No data are available on the combination of cetuximab and MTX. The investigators will perform a randomized phase II study to investigate if the addition of cetuximab to MTX is beneficial, i.e. an improvement in the PFS, for the patient. Because no data on this combination are available the investigators will start with a phase Ib study to investigate the feasibility of the schedule.

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