A Safety and Efficacy Study of Carboplatin, Paclitaxel, Bevacizumab and CA4P in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Overview

The purpose of this study is to determine the safety, tolerability and efficacy of combretastatin A4 phosphate (CA4P), also known as fosbretabulin, in combination with bevacizumab (Avastin), carboplatin and paclitaxel in patients with chemotherapy naïve non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This is a randomized parallel arm study. All participants will receive carboplatin, paclitaxel and bevacizumab, and half will additionally receive CA4P. Patients who complete the first 6 cycles of therapy and have not experienced disease progression will receive maintenance therapy with bevacizumab alone or with bevacizumab plus CA4P. The rationale for this study is the potential additive or synergistic actions of vascular disrupting agents like CA4P with anti-angiogenic agents like bevacizumab.

Lung cancer has become the leading cause of cancer death in both men and women in the US and Europe, accounting for 29% of all cancer deaths. Non-Small Cell Lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for approximately 80% of all lung cancer cases. Currently, no curative treatment is available for advanced stages of the disease (stages III and IV), which comprise the majority of cases. Treatment with the combination of carboplatin and paclitaxel has been shown to be effective and well tolerated in advanced stage NSCLC. Targeted therapies, such as bevacizumab, often act synergistically with chemotherapy. Bevacizumab inhibits vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), necessary for endothelial cell proliferation and new blood vessel formation. CA4P targets existing abnormal vasculature of tumors, impeding tumor blood flow and leading to extensive tumor cell death as a consequence of oxygen and nutrient deprivation. This study will compare the effect of CA4P when combined with chemotherapy and bevacizumab on progression free survival (PFS) to PFS after chemotherapy and bevacizumab alone.