RATIONALE: Chemoprevention is the use of certain drugs to keep cancer from forming. Erlotinib may keep esophageal cancer from forming in patients with Barrett esophagus by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth. PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well erlotinib works in treating patients with Barrett esophagus.
OBJECTIVES: Primary * To determine if erlotinib hydrochloride can be used as a chemopreventive agent that can cause histologic regression of Barrett esophagus in patients at high risk of developing esophageal cancer associated with high-grade dysplasia. Secondary * To assess whether erlotinib hydrochloride can cause molecular alterations in EGFR, phospho-EGFR, cyclin D1, cdc2, p16, p53, PCNA, COX-2, and ploidy in Barrett esophagus with high-grade dysplasia. * To establish surrogate markers of chemoprevention in Barrett esophagus with high-grade dysplasia. * To validate the histologic scoring of Barrett dysplasia developed by our group. * To evaluate toxicities associated with the use of erlotinib hydrochloride in patients with Barrett esophagus associated with high-grade dysplasia. OUTLINE: Patients receive oral erlotinib hydrochloride once daily for 3 months. Patients showing no evidence of progression to cancer by esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) with biopsy receive an additional 3 months of treatment. All patients then undergo repeat EGD, biopsy, and determination of molecular markers (i.e., EGFR, phospho-EGFR, cyclin D1, cdc2, p16, p53, PCNA, COX-2, and ploidy). After completion of study treatment, patients are followed for 30 days.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
25
Veterans Affairs Medical Center - Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri, United States
RECRUITINGHistologic regression of Barrett esophagus with high-grade dysplasia by chemoprevention with erlotinib hydrochloride
Molecular alterations in EGFR, phospho-EGFR, cyclin D1, cdc2, p16, p53, PCNA, COX-2, and ploidy
Validation of histologic scoring of Barrett dysplasia
Toxicity
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