Genasense Increases Antitumor Activity of Iressa in Preclinical Models

Genta has announced that preclinical data have shown Genasense, the company's lead anticancer drug, may enhance the antitumor activity of gefitinib (Iressa; AstraZeneca) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Gefitinib has been recently approved for clinical treatment of patients with advanced NSCLC. It is an inhibitor of epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase (EGFR-TK).

Recent studies have suggested that clinical response to gefitinib is highly dependent upon the presence of specific mutations in the EGFR gene, which are found in only a small subset of patients with NSCLC. The present study was undertaken to evaluate whether Genasense (oblimersen sodium injection) could enhance the anticancer response to gefitinib, and also to evaluate whether Genasense could overcome the limitations to gefitinib activity that may be dependent upon EGFR mutations.