Pancreatic Cancer Clinical Trial

Official Announcement of New Study

 

Life Extension® has entered into a clinical trial agreement with City of Hope to conduct a complementary medicine clinical study to evaluate the use of natural compounds and metformin along with a current standard in chemotherapy drugs in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer.

While patients frequently take supplements during their cancer treatment, there are limited data available on both efficacy and tolerability. This study will combine a carefully selected number of natural compounds including curcumin and green tea extract (epigallocatechin-3-gallate) to be combined with metformin and standard first-line chemotherapy.

The median survival time for a metastatic pancreatic cancer patient treated with chemotherapy alone is only about 8.5 months, and five-year survival is approximately 1%. Pancreatic cancer is the fourth-leading cause of cancer deaths, with over 40,000 Americans expected to die this year from this disease. More effective treatments and new approaches are desperately needed for a highly complex disease such as pancreatic cancer, and testing a selected complex regimen of natural compounds and pharmaceuticals is one such new approach whose evaluation in a clinical trial is long overdue.

The clinical study conducted at City of Hope is expected to enroll 21 patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer. Primary objectives of the study include evaluating for compliance and toxicity, although survival will be evaluated in the hope of observing a meaningful improvement over the currently observed outcomes. The program is classified as an investigator-initiated study under the direction of Vincent Chung, MD, associate clinical professor, Department of Medical Oncology & Therapeutics Research with funding from Life Extension. For details of the clinical trial, log on to www.ClinicalTrials.gov. You can then enter on this Home Page under “Search for Studies” the identifier code: NCT02336087

 

About City of Hope

City of Hope is a leading research and treatment center for cancer, diabetes, and other life-threatening diseases. Designated as a comprehensive cancer center, the highest recognition bestowed by the National Cancer Institute, City of Hope is also a founding member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, with research and treatment protocols that advance care throughout the nation. City of Hope’s main hospital is located in Duarte, California, just northeast of Los Angeles. It is ranked as one of “America’s Best Hospitals” in cancer by U.S. News & World Report. Founded in 1913, City of Hope is a pioneer in the fields of bone marrow transplantation and genetics.

About Life Extension

Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Life Extension Foundation, established in 1977, is the world’s largest anti-aging medicine organization and currently funds laboratory and human studies aimed at improving long-term survival in difficult-to-treat cancers and other age-related disorders. The mission of Life Extension is to help humans live a healthier and longer life. Life Extension is dedicated to uncovering therapies and technologies that could lead to improved outcomes for the diseases of aging. Life Extension communicates with their client base with monthly issues of the Life Extension Magazine. For more information, visit www.lifeextensionfoundation.org or call 1-800-544-4440 or email info@lifeextension.com. Follow Life Extension on Facebook and Twitter.