Dr. Heinemann on Implications of SIRFLOX Study for mCRC

Volker Heinemann, MD, PhD, director of the Comprehensive Cancer Center at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, discusses the broad clinical implications of the SIRFLOX findings for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC).

The SIRFLOX trial demonstrated that the addition of selective internal radiation therapy with SIR-Spheres Y-90 resin microspheres to standard first-line chemotherapy significantly increased hepatic depth of response in patients with mCRC, Heinemann explains. He adds that, because of these results, if a major improvement in progression-free survival (PFS) in a vital organ such as the liver is observed, researchers can conclude that there is a high probability that this will translate to prolonged overall survival (OS).

Comparable data from the CLOCK study explored chemotherapy versus chemotherapy plus radio frequency ablation which, he adds, can be interpreted as treatment intensification with regard to liver metastases. Investigators were able to demonstrate that PFS could be markedly improved in the liver and that this was also associated with improved OS.