Dr. Philip on FOLFIRINOX in Locally Advanced Pancreatic Cancer

Philip A. Philip, MD, PhD, FRCP, professor of Medicine, Wayne State University School of Medicine, clinical professor of Oncology at Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute, discusses the use of FOLFIRINOX in patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer.

Over the last decade, adjuvant chemotherapy has undergone a significant improvement, Philip says. The field has seen evolution from single-agent gemcitabine to gemcitabine plus capecitabine to FOLFRINOX. Most recently, the PRODIGE 24/CCTG PA.6 trial study demonstrated a significant improvement in survival for patients with resectable pancreatic cancer treated with modified FOLFIRINOX (mFOLFIRINOX) versus gemcitabine.

Investigators designed the trial with mFOLFIRINOX, which does not include bolus IV 5-fluorouracil and is therefore less likely to result in hematologic toxicities and severe diarrhea. With these modifications, the regimen is better tolerated by patients, says Philip.