Dr. Mitchell on a Subgroup Analysis of the VELOUR Trial

Edith Mitchell, MD, FACP, Clinical Professor, Director, Center to Eliminate Cancer Disparities Program Leader, Thomas Jefferson University, gives an overview of the North American subgroup analysis of the VELOUR trial.

The VELOUR trial evaluated ziv-aflibercept (ZALTRAP) versus placebo plus FOLFIRI in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer who are resistant to or progressed after an oxaliplatin-containing regimen. Mitchell says that the question of whether patients in different parts of the world responded to ziv-aflibercept equally -- regarding side effects and benefit -- was an important one to answer.

Bevacizumab has been approved in the U.S. as a first-line therapy option and is unavailable in this setting in other areas of the world. Mitchell says that this analysis was not so much comparing North America and the rest of the world as it was comparing available treatment options and the use of bevacizumab.

The analysis found that there were very few differences regarding toxicities and benefits in North America compared with other parts of the world.