Phase II trial of LY 186641 in advanced renal cancer

LY 186641 is a diarylsulfonylurea with a broad spectrum antitumor activity against both murine and human solid tumors. We report here the results of a phase II trial of LY 186641 in advanced renal cell adenocarcinoma. The drug was administered orally, once daily for 2 weeks, every 21 days at a 700 mg/m2/d dose. Sixteen patients were enrolled in this phase II trial; 12 males, 4 females, with a median age of 58 years. All patients had progressive measurable metastatic disease. The primary tumor was surgically removed in all but one patient. Three patients were previously treated by biologic response modifiers (BRMs). A total of 72 courses were administered. The most common side effects were methemoglobulinemia (MetHgb) and anemia which occurred in 13 and 10 patients respectively. The MetHgb did not exceed 15%, and only 3 patients required blood transfusion for grade 3 (2 patients) and grade 4 (1 patient) anemia. Reversible hepatotoxicity was observed in 3 patients. There were one pathological complete response, seven stable disease and 8 progressive disease.