Tetracycline in Preventing Skin Rash in Patients Who Are Receiving Drugs Such as Gefitinib and Cetuximab for Cancer

Summary

RATIONALE: Tetracycline may be effective in preventing skin rash that is caused by treatment with drugs such as gefitinib or cetuximab. PURPOSE: This randomized clinical trial is studying tetracycline to see how well it works compared to placebo in preventing skin rash in patients who are receiving drugs such as gefitinib or cetuximab for cancer.

Timeline

Start

2004-12

Primary completion

2005-08

Completion

2009-07

Outcome

Missed primary endpoint

paper Physicians reported that 16 patients treated with tetracycline (70%) and 22 patients treated with placebo (76%) developed a rash (P = .61). PMID 18543329 ↗

paper In the current study, tetracycline was not found to prevent EGFR inhibitor-induced rashes and therefore cannot be clinically recommended for this purpose. PMID 18543329 ↗

Publications

• Background Atherton PJ, Burger KN, Loprinzi CL, Neben Wittich MA, Miller RC, Jatoi A, Sloan JA. Using the Skindex-16 and Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events to assess rash symptoms: results of a pooled-analysis (N0993). Support Care Cancer. 2012 Aug;20(8):1729-35. doi: 10.1007/s00520-011-1266-x. Epub 2011 Sep 16.
• Results Jatoi A, Dakhil SR, Sloan JA, Kugler JW, Rowland KM Jr, Schaefer PL, Novotny PJ, Wender DB, Gross HM, Loprinzi CL; North Central Cancer Treatment Group. Prophylactic tetracycline does not diminish the severity of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitor-induced rash: results from the North Central Cancer Treatment Group (Supplementary N03CB). Support Care Cancer. 2011 Oct;19(10):1601-7. doi: 10.1007/s00520-010-0988-5. Epub 2010 Sep 6.
• Results Jatoi A, Rowland K, Sloan JA, Gross HM, Fishkin PA, Kahanic SP, Novotny PJ, Schaefer PL, Johnson DB, Tschetter LK, Loprinzi CL. Tetracycline to prevent epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitor-induced skin rashes: results of a placebo-controlled trial from the North Central Cancer Treatment Group (N03CB). Cancer. 2008 Aug 15;113(4):847-53. doi: 10.1002/cncr.23621.
• Results Jatoi A, Rowland K, Sloan JA, et al.: Does tetracycline prevent/palliate epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitor-induced rash? A phase III trial from the North Central Cancer Treatment Group (N03CB). [Abstract] J Clin Oncol 25 (Suppl 18): A-LBA9006, 494s, 2007.

Drugs

Evaluation	Drug	Modality	Dose	Route
Subject	Tetracycline	Unknown	500 mg	Oral

Indications