Safety and efficacy of nimotuzumab combined with chemoradiotherapy in Chinese patients with locally advanced cervical cancer

OBJECTIVE To evaluate efficacy and safety of nimotuzumab combined with chemotherapy and radiotherapy in women with locally advanced cervical cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS Women with locally advanced cervical cancer (stage IIB, III, or IVA) who experienced relapse after first-line chemoradiotherapy and one or more lines of palliative chemotherapy were enrolled. All patients received nimotuzumab weekly at 200 mg/m2 as single agent for 4 weeks (induction phase), then concurrent with 6 cycles (21-day per cycle) of gemcitabine (800 mg/m2) or cisplatin (50 mg/m2) for 18 weeks (concurrent phase) and then once every 2 weeks (maintenance phase). Overall response rate (ORR) was assessed after 4 weeks of induction therapy and then every 3 months according to response evaluation criteria in solid tumors version 1.1 (primary end point). Secondary end points include progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and drug toxicity. Descriptive statistics was used for ORR, and Kaplan-Meier curves were generated for OS and PFS. RESULTS A total of 80 women with locally advanced cervical cancer were enrolled and evaluated for safety and efficacy. Our results demonstrated that none of the patients had a complete response (0%), 11 patients had a partial response (14%), and 10 patients had progressive disease (13%), giving a tumor response rate of 14%. A total of 59 patients had stable disease (74%), giving a disease control rate of 88% (70/80). Median PFS was 8.21 months (95% confidence interval [CI]: 5.09-12.45). Median OS was 11.96 months (95% CI: 8.11-23.95). The most common adverse events were mucositis, myelosuppression, and gastrointestinal disturbance. CONCLUSION Our study results suggested that nimotuzumab in combination with chemotherapy and radiotherapy is well tolerated, and could be a better treatment alternative in patients with locally advanced cervical cancer.