NCI Releases Report on Cancer Incidence in Middle East NCI has released a new monograph on cancer incidence in Cyprus, Egypt, Israel, and Jordan, as part of the Joint Cancer Registration Project of the Middle East Cancer Consortium. The monograph is available at http://mecc.cancer.gov, under "Cancer Registry Project." Look for more information on the monograph in an upcoming issue of the NCI Cancer Bulletin.

Name of the Trial
Phase II Study of Sorafenib in Patients with Recurrent or Progressive Stage IV Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer (NCI-05-C-0049). See the protocol summary at http://cancer.gov/clinicaltrials/NCI-05-C-0049. This trial was originally featured in the October 18, 2005, issue of the NCI Cancer Bulletin.

Principal Investigator
Dr. Martin Gutierrez, NCI CCR

Why This Trial Is Important
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States, and it has often spread (metastasized) by the time it is diagnosed. For patients with metastatic lung cancer, the prognosis is poor. Consequently, new and more effective treatments for metastatic lung cancer are needed.

In this clinical trial, researchers are testing a new drug called sorafenib to see if it can cause tumors to shrink or disappear in patients with metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that has recurred or progressed after previous treatment with chemotherapy. Sorafenib inhibits a protein called Raf kinase, which helps promote cell proliferation. Blocking Raf kinase activity may halt the spread of cancer cells.

Sorafenib also inhibits two other proteins named vascular endothelial growth factor receptors 2 and 3 (VEGFR2 and VEGFR3), which help tumors form new blood vessels (a process called angiogenesis). By blocking VEGFR2 and VEGFR3 activity, sorafenib may help cut off the blood supply to tumors and cause them to die.

"Sorafenib is a molecularly targeted oral medication with both antiproliferative and antiangiogenic properties," said Dr. Gutierrez. "It has shown some promising results against NSCLC in an earlier phase I study, and it appears to be well tolerated. Most of the toxicity that we have seen has been mild and easy to control."

Who Can Join This Trial
Researchers seek to enroll up to 40 patients aged 18 or over with recurrent or progressive stage IV NSCLC. See the list of eligibility criteria at http://cancer.gov/clinicaltrials/NCI-05-C-0049.

Study Site and Contact Information
This study is taking place at the NIH Clinical Center in Bethesda, Md. For more information, call the NCI Clinical Studies Support Center (CSSC) at 1-888-NCI-1937. The call is toll free and confidential.

An archive of "Featured Clinical Trial" columns is available at http://cancer.gov/clinicaltrials/ft-all-featured-trials.