Post-Gastrointestinal Tumor Surgery Drug May Prevent Tumor Recurrence, Researchers Find

Gleevec, a Novartis drug for treatment of patients who have undergone surgery to remove gastrointestinial stromal tumors (GIST), may reduce the chance that the cancerous tumors will return, according to new research.

GIST are the most common form of soft-tissue cancer of the intestinal tract, accounting for about 4,000 new cases diagnosed in the United States each year. In most cases, GIST appear in the stomach or small intestine.

Gleevec, which in generic form is called imatinib, was approved in 2008 by the Food and Drug Administration for use in patients following GIST surgery and had already been approved for treating some types of adult leukemia. The drug appears to work by inhibiting a protein which is present in about 85 percent of GIST.

Study of Protein in Most GIST

Researchers from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City studied data from more than 700 people with a GIST measuring at least three centimeters who had tested positive for the protein targeted by Gleevec.

Patients in the study were given either 400 milligrams of Gleevec or a placebo daily for a year following surgery to remove GIST. When researchers followed up with the patients about 20 months later, eight percent of people in the Gleevec group and 20 percent of those in the placebo group had experienced tumor recurrence or had died.

After a year, recurrence-free survival was 98 percent for those taking Gleevec and 83 percent for people taking the placebo, according to the study.

Tumor Size Also a Factor

The size of the GIST also appeared to have an effect on the success of Gleevec treatment, the researchers said. The drug worked best on larger tumors, those 10 cm or larger, but was less effective on smaller tumors between 6 and 10 cm and least effective on tumors between 3 and 6 cm, the study reported.

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