Radioligand therapy with lutetium-177 dotatate reduced the risk of progression or death by nearly 80 percent compared with high-dose octreotide in midgut neuroendocrine tumours, the first randomised proof that targeted radiation works in these cancers.
Phase 3 trial of 229 patients with advanced, progressive, somatostatin receptor-positive midgut neuroendocrine tumours randomised to four cycles of 177Lu-Dotatate plus octreotide LAR 30 mg or high-dose octreotide LAR 60 mg.
Progression-free survival at 20 months was 65.2 versus 10.8 percent (hazard ratio 0.21), response 18 versus 3 percent, and an interim analysis suggested improved overall survival; myelosuppression was modest.
Lutetium-177 dotatate is a standard treatment for progressive small bowel neuroendocrine tumours after somatostatin analogues, and NETTER-2 has since moved it into first-line use for higher-grade tumours.
Shares Small intestinal neuroendocrine tumours, New England Journal of Medicine.
Shares Small intestinal neuroendocrine tumours, New England Journal of Medicine.