New hope for Chinese with late-stage pancreatic cancer
Local medical experts have confirmed the positive effect of a domestically developed combined therapy for people with late-stage pancreatic cancer, and they announced the results of their research at the annual meeting of the European Society for Medical Oncology.
The research team led by Shanghai's Renji Hospital and General Hospital of Eastern Theater Command in Nanjing is the first clinical study specifically targeting Chinese with late-stage pancreatic cancer. The pancreatic drug used in the research was also developed in China, experts said on Wednesday.
Pancreatic cancer is one of the most fatal cancers in the world. There are nearly 500,000 new cases globally every year, about 120,000 of which are in China.
Since pancreatic cancer is difficult to detect in its early stages, most people are not diagnosed until the terminal stage when it is too late for surgery. Moreover, the choice of first-line chemotherapy medicine is very limited, and there are few second-line candidates for those who develop drug-resistance or do not respond to first-line medicine.
Dr Wang Liwei, director of Renji's department of oncology, led the national, multi-center research team with a new combination of medicines for people with late-stage pancreatic cancer and cancer that has spread.
The clinical study found people who received the new therapy survived longer than those who were given a placebo.
"The research yielded very positive results. Irinotecan liposome, China's first self-developed, second-line pancreatic cancer medicine, showed positive anti-cancer effects and safety during the study. The new therapy is expected to become a standard pancreatic cancer plan for the nation, bringing hope to Chinese people afflicted with the disease," Wang said.