Vinflunine Shows Promise in Treating Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma

Researchers from Churchill Hospital in Oxford were encouraged by a phase II study of vinflunine as a first-line therapy for 67 patients suffering from malignant pleural mesothelioma. Vinflunine, a novel microtubule inhibitor, stalls cell growth by disrupting the process of tubulin assembly required to build cell walls.

The overall response rate was 13.8 percent while 60 percent of patients maintained their Karnofsky performance status.

T--he response rate was encouraging and led researchers to conclude that vinflunine is among the most active single agents involved in malignant pleural mesothelioma. The authors of the study called for further evaluation with cisplatin and the trial of the drug on patients after progression with cisplatin/pemetrexed.

The median progression-free survival period was 3.2 months while the median overall survival was 10.8 months. The one year survival rate for patients treated with vinflunine was 36.9 percent.

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