CHICAGO -- Patients with pancreatic cancer that hadn't spread lived substantially longer on a four-drug combo than on a single standard cancer drug,
It's a rare advance for a tough-to-beat cancer, and experts say it could be practice-changing for a small group of patients whose pancreatic cancer is diagnosed early enough to be removed by surgery.
Results were reported Monday at a medical meeting in Chicago.
The study tested folfirinox against the standard treatment, Gemzar. Folfirinox combines four chemotherapy drugs.
Two-thirds of patients given folfirinox were alive after three years versus half of those given Gemzar.
Nearly 500 patients in France and Canada were enrolled.
