- Half of the patients with this type of colorectal cancer need a stoma after surgery
- Drug Durvalumb has been successful in trials, eliminating the need for surgery
A new immunotherapy drug could spare some colon cancer patients life-changing surgery, the results of a trial suggest.
In combination with radiotherapy and chemotherapy, durvalumab can destroy cancer in the lower part of the bowel, making surgery unnecessary.
Currently, about half of the patients with this form of colon cancer – rectal cancer – will undergo surgery to create a stoma, a pouch that collects waste products outside the body.
This can expose patients to risks of infection, skin irritation and other embarrassing issues.
But durvalumab has been shown to be so effective in some patients that surgery is not necessary.
In combination with radiotherapy and chemotherapy, durvalumab can destroy cancer in the lower part of the colon, eliminating the need for surgery
The trial, which recruited 42 patients across five UK hospitals, has yet to publish a full set of findings. But experts say the initial results are promising.
One patient benefiting from this is 75-year-old Paul Cusick, who was diagnosed with rectal cancer in January.
The police support officer participated in the trial, called PRIME-RT, and was treated with radiotherapy, chemotherapy and durvalumab, administered as a monthly infusion for 12 weeks.
Doctors tried to shrink the tumor before surgery, making it easier to remove, but scans in June showed no sign of cancer.
Professor Mark Saunders, consultant clinical oncologist at Christie Hospital in Manchester – where the trial is being conducted – said: ‘We’ve had a fair number of patients who don’t need surgery now, which is promising, but we need to monitor them a bit. .’
A US study of 14 patients last year found that the drug destroyed rectal tumors in all patients with a specific type of cancer.
The drug is already used for some types of lung cancer and has been shown to be effective in endometrial and stomach cancer.
Speaking of his treatment, Paul said: ‘I’ve been healthy all my life so getting the diagnosis was a real shock.
‘Of course I’m very happy that the cancer seems to be completely gone and I don’t have to have an operation.
“I didn’t really have any serious side effects, so the experience was really good.
“I’m now looking forward to getting back on track in Bolton later this year.”