Comparing Effectiveness of Chemotherapy Before and After Surgery

University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability DNA Lab; Flickr

Is chemotherapy before and after surgery more effective at slowing or stopping the spread of pancreatic cancer than chemotherapy only after surgery?

The standard treatment combination of fluorouracil, irinotecan, leucovorin, and oxaliplatin works together in different ways to stop pancreatic cancer. In this phase III trial researchers are looking at whether pre- and post-surgical chemotherapy with these drugs works better than just post-surgical chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer that qualifies for surgery.

Two Protocols

In the experimental arm of the trial, patients will receive eight 14-day cycles of chemotherapy over 16 weeks before surgery, and eight weeks of chemotherapy after recovering from surgery. The other group of patients will have surgery first, followed by 12 14-day cycles of chemotherapy. Researchers want to know which protocol is more likely to increase survival.

Participating in the Trial

All patients must have removable tumors, with no artery involvement and no metastasis. Participants must not have had prior treatment for pancreatic cancer.

We encourage you to consult your physicians for clinical trials that may be right for you. The website ClinicalTrials.gov provides more details about this trial as well as many others. You can visit the EmergingMed Trial Finder for a listing of all active pancreatic cancer clinical trials.

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