Study: Raltitrexed Far More Toxic Than Chemotherapy for Advanced Colorectal Cancer Patients

The antimetabolite drug raltitrexed appears to be less desirable than two fluorouracil-based chemotherapy regimens for treating patients with advanced colorectal cancer, according to a report in The Lancet.

British researchers reported that in a study of 905 patients, median survival time was 302 days for patients on the Lokich chemotherapy regimen and 294 days for patients on the de Gramont chemotherapy regimen, but only 266 days for patients receiving raltitrexed.

The researchers also reported that there were 18 treatment-related deaths among patients taking raltitrexed as a result of combined gastrointestinal and haematological toxicity, compared to two deaths on the Lokich regimen and one on de Gramont regimen

Further, they said patients' assessment of quality of life during treatment showed that raltitrexed was inferior to the fluorouracil-based regimens, especially in terms of providing symptomatic relief and enabling the patient to function.

"Although raltitrexed-related toxicity has been reported in all previous trials, this trial has highlighted the problem because of the low toxicity of the comparators," the researchers noted.

Other sources: The Lancet