Concurrent and sequential administration of chemotherapy and the Mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitor temsirolimus in human cancer cells and xenografts.

PURPOSE Optimal scheduling of cycle-active chemotherapy with (initially cytostatic) molecular-targeted agents is important to maximize clinical benefit. Concurrent scheduling might allow up-regulation of cell death pathways at the time of chemotherapy, whereas sequential treatments might maximize inhibition of repopulation and avoid putting tumor cells out of cycle when administering cycle-active chemotherapy. We compared the effects of concurrent and sequential administration of chemotherapy and the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) inhibitor temsirolimus (CCI-779) on tumor cells and xenografts. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Human prostate cancer PC-3 and LnCaP, and human breast cancer MDA-468 cells and xenografts were treated with chemotherapy (docetaxel and 5-fluorouracil, respectively) and temsirolimus, using concurrent and sequential treatment schedules. Cell killing and repopulation were evaluated by clonogenic assays. Cell cycle analysis was done using flow cytometry. Effects on xenografts were assessed by tumor growth delay. RESULTS The proliferation of all cell lines was inhibited by temsirolimus in a dose-dependent manner; PTEN negative PC-3 and mutant LnCaP cells were more sensitive than PTEN-negative MDA-468 cells. Temsirolimus inhibited cell cycle progression from G(1) to S phase in all cell lines. Combined treatment had greater effects than temsirolimus or chemotherapy alone: for PC-3 and LnCaP xenografts, concurrent treatment seemed superior to sequential scheduling, whereas MDA-468 cells and xenograft tumors did not show schedule dependence. CONCLUSIONS Combined treatment with temsirolimus and chemotherapy had a greater therapeutic effect than monotherapy; concurrent scheduling was more effective for PC-3 and LnCaP cells and xenografts that were sensitive to temsirolimus.