How the survival of patients with stomach cancer can be extended

Stomach cancer is the fifth most common cancer worldwide. In terms of cancer-related causes of death, it is in a sad third place. This is due to late diagnosis and the rapid spread of tumour cells in the body. In an international clinical study, scientists with the leading participation of Leipzig University Medicine have investigated a substance that should prolong the survival of those affected and also establish a new clinically relevant biomarker. The results were published in the renowned scientific journal „The Lancet“.

„The results of the study are important for cancer research. They show that patients with gastric cancer treated with zolbetuximab live longer. The progression of the tumour disease is delayed. We expect that the trial will lead to the authorisation of this drug in Europe and therefore also in Germany. This is an important step forward for those affected by this serious and often fatal cancer," says Prof. Florian Lordick, Director of the Leipzig University Cancer Centre. The experienced oncologist helped design the recently published study at an international level and ensured that German patients were able to take part.

In the global study with patients from 20 countries, a total of 565 patients were treated with zolbetuximab or a placebo. The test substance was developed in Germany more than ten years ago and has since been thoroughly researched through all study phases until it is ready for clinical application in patients. In the current study, treatment with zolbetuximab and chemotherapy led to a significant 25 per cent reduction in the risk of disease progression and death compared to patients treated with chemotherapy alone. The study objective was thus achieved. The most common adverse events among participants were nausea, vomiting and decreased appetite. Overall, however, the combination of zolbetuximab and chemotherapy proved to be easy to use. The side effects were manageable.

In addition, the study establishes a new clinically relevant biomarker in gastric carcinoma called claudin18.2. This can be determined using a staining method in tumour biopsies, i.e. the removal of cells or tissue from an affected area. If 75 per cent of the tumour cells carry the membrane protein claudin18.2, the drug zolbetuximab can be particularly effective. It is given to patients with advanced gastric carcinoma in combination with chemotherapy as an intravenous infusion. It then docks via the bloodstream to the tumour cells that carry claudin18.2 and triggers an immune reaction there, which contributes to the death of the tumour cells.

„After the introduction of trastuzumab ten years ago, this is the second targeted antibody that can prolong the survival of patients with advanced gastric cancer and in whose clinical development I was able to play a major role“, says Prof Lordick.

Original publication in „The Lancet“: Zolbetuximab plus mFOLFOX6 in patients with CLDN18.2-positive, HER2-negative, untreated, locally advanced unresectable or metastatic gastric or gastrooesophageal junction adenocarcinoma (SPOTLIGHT): a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, phase 3 trial. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(23)00620-7

Additional information: Cancer research is a focal point of Leipzig University Medicine. In recent years, a total of eight professorships in the field of oncology have been appointed at the site. In 2022, Leipzig and Jena were awarded the contract for the Central German Cancer Center (Cancer Center Central Germany – CCCG), a merger of the two oncology centres in the region, by German Cancer Aid. The aim is to ensure the best possible cancer care for those affected in the respective region, also by transferring current, innovative findings from research into clinical practice.

Press release of the "Leipzig University Hospital" from 8 May 2023