Sanofi-Aventis releases positive trial results for new gastric cancer drug

Sanofi-Aventis, the French pharmaceutical company, has announced positive results for S-1, a new oral anticancer therapy studied in gastric cancer patients.

The drug, a novel oral fluorouracil compound, was developed in conjunction with Taiho and is designed to inhibit dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase activity, while correcting gastrointestinal side effects.

The clinical trial, which involved 1,059 patients with early-stage gastric cancer, found that the S-1-treated group of patients demonstrated “superior efficacy”, according to an interim analysis.

Patients taking S-1 as an adjuvant therapy were compared with patients who had surgery alone over a course of 12 months, with the study endpoints including safety, overall survival time and recurrence-free survival time.

The drug, which is in phase III development in Europe and the US, is already in use in Japan for gastric, colorectal, head and neck, metastatic breast, pancreatic and non-small cell lung cancers.

Sanofi-Aventis purchased the worldwide rights for S-1 in countries outside of Japan to the drug in a deal potentially worth $360 million (195 million pounds).

Ben Yeoh, an analyst at Dresdner Kleinwort, told Reuters: “It is relatively low risk for Sanofi because the drug is already in phase III trials and is being marketed in Japan.”