Efficacy and safety of fruquintinib plus investigator's choice of chemotherapy as second-line therapy in metastatic colorectal cancer: A multicenter, single-arm phase 2 trial.

Abstract

3582 Background: Emerging evidence suggested that chemotherapy in combination with anti-angiogenic targeted agents can achieve higher response in multiple solid tumors. Fruquintinib is a highly selective small-molecule VEGFR inhibitor that has been approved for the third-line treatment in metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) patients in China. Here, we assessed the efficacy and safety of fruquintinib plus investigator's choice of chemotherapy as second-line therapy in pretreated advanced mCRC patients. Methods: In this prospective, open-label, multicenter, single-arm phase 2 trial (ChiCTR2200059280), patients with mCRC progressed after first-line prior systemic treatment were administered fruquintinib (5~3mg, D1-21, Q4w) and investigator's choice of chemotherapy (fluorouracil ± irinotecan ± oxaliplatin, Q3w) for up to 8 cycles. Patients without disease progression (PD) were followed by fruquintinib maintenance until PD or intolerable toxicity. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS). Secondary endpoints included objective response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR), duration of response (DOR), overall survival (OS), and safety. Results: As the data cutoff on February 10, 2023, 37 patients have been enrolled and treated, with 31 evaluable for efficacy. Median age was 63 years (range, 44-76) and 22 (59.5%) were male. The left colon cancer involved in 28 patients (75.7%). All patients were microsatellite-stable phenotype and 11 (29.7%) had mutations in KRAS gene. 16 (43.2%) patients received prior anti-VEGF therapy. 20 (54.1%) and 11 (29.7%) patients had liver and lung metastases respectively. At a median follow-up of 8.4 months, 28 patients are still on treatment. The ORR is 48.4%, with 15 partial response. The DCR is 90.3%. At data cutoff, median PFS has not yet reached. 23 patients (74.2%) remained progression free at 6 months. In terms of safety, the regimen was well tolerated, mainly grade 1/2 adverse events (AEs). Grade 3/4 AEs were neutropenia (21.6%), leukopenia (10.8%), thrombocytopenia (5.4%), proteinuria, diarrhea, hand-foot syndrome and hypertension accounted for 2.7% respectively. 5 pts received reduced doses of fruquintinib. No treatment-related deaths occurred. Conclusions: Fruquintinib combined with chemotherapy followed by fruquintinib maintenance shows promising efficacy and manageable safety profile for mCRC patients in second-line setting. Updated follow up data will be presented in the future. Clinical trial information: ChiCTR2200059280 .