Intra-pemetrexed Alone or Combined With Concurrent Radiotherapy for Leptomeningeal Metastasis

Summary

Intrathecal chemotherapy is one of the mainstay treatment options for leptomeningeal metastases. Owing to the limited number of agents available for intrathecal chemotherapy, it is crucial to find a novel agent with efficacy and safety. In our phase 1 study, intrathecal pemetrexed showed controllable toxicities and potential promising efficacy for refractory leptomeningeal metastases from non-small-cell lung cancer patients. In our further study, intrathecal pemetrexed combined with involved-field radiation therapy was administered as the first-line intrathecal chemotherapy for leptomeningeal metastases from solid tumors. In this study, intrathecal pemetrexed combined with involved-field radiation therapy showed feasibility and controllable adverse events. It has been proved that pemetrexed as a novel intrathecal drug exhibited promising antitumor effects in cerebrospinal fluid. Moreover, the concomitant therapeutic modality is an optimal treatment option for leptomeningeal metastases from solid tumors. Central nervous system radiotherapy is a part of the specific treatment of leptomeningeal metastases. Radiotherapy has been proved to improve neurologic function and control of parenchymal brain metastases in leptomeningeal metastases treatment. Additionally, radiotherapy is revealed to improve the efficacy and attenuate toxicity of intrathecal chemotherapy as a result of normal cerebrospinal fluid reestablishing. However, it is still controversial whether radiotherapy can improve the overall survival. We conduct this study to further demonstrate the efficacy and safety of intrathecal pemetrexed administration for patients with leptomeningeal metastases from solid tumors by multicenter study. Furthermore, the study of effective treatment modality is of great significance. The safety and antitumor activity of intrathecal pemetrexed combined with involved-field radiation therapy and intrathecal pemetrexed alone were also compared to confirm an optimized therapeutic regimen.

Timeline

Start

2022-08-19

Primary completion

2023-10

Completion

2024-07

Publications

• Background Pan Z, Yang G, He H, Cui J, Li W, Yuan T, Chen K, Jiang T, Gao P, Sun Y, Cong X, Li Z, Wang Y, Pang X, Song Y, Zhao G. Intrathecal pemetrexed combined with involved-field radiotherapy as a first-line intra-CSF therapy for leptomeningeal metastases from solid tumors: a phase I/II study. Ther Adv Med Oncol. 2020 Jul 17;12:1758835920937953. doi: 10.1177/1758835920937953. eCollection 2020.
• Background Pan Z, Yang G, He H, Gao P, Jiang T, Chen Y, Zhao G. Identification of Cerebrospinal Fluid MicroRNAs Associated With Leptomeningeal Metastasis From Lung Adenocarcinoma. Front Oncol. 2020 Apr 3;10:387. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2020.00387. eCollection 2020.
• Background Pan Z, Yang G, Cui J, Li W, Li Y, Gao P, Jiang T, Sun Y, Dong L, Song Y, Zhao G. A Pilot Phase 1 Study of Intrathecal Pemetrexed for Refractory Leptomeningeal Metastases From Non-small-cell Lung Cancer. Front Oncol. 2019 Aug 30;9:838. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2019.00838. eCollection 2019.

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