Lancet Publishes First Trial To Show Overall Survival Benefit Of Halaven® (eribulin) in People With Soft Tissue Sarcoma Sub-Types - Seite 2

Though soft tissue sarcomas are relatively rare, they carry a poor prognosis, with many people unresponsive to treatment.^[5] In Europe, approximately 29,000 people are diagnosed with soft tissue sarcomas each year.^[6] Approximately 11,930 cases of soft tissue sarcomas will have been diagnosed in the United States this year.^[7] In Japan, approximately 2,000 cases of soft tissue sarcomas are diagnosed each year.^[8],[9]  

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Notes to Editors  

Halaven^® (eribulin)  

Eribulin is the first in the halichondrin class of microtubule dynamics inhibitors with a novel mechanism of action. Structurally eribulin is a simplified and synthetically produced version of halichondrin B, a natural product isolated from the marine sponge Halichondria okadai. Eribulin is believed to work by inhibiting the growth phase of microtubule dynamics which prevents cell division.

Eribulin is currently indicated for the treatment of women with locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer who have progressed after at least one chemotherapeutic regimen for advanced disease. Prior therapy should have included an anthracycline and a taxane in either the adjuvant or metastatic setting, unless patients were not suitable for these treatments.^[10]

About Soft Tissue Sarcomas 

Soft tissue sarcoma is a collective term for a diverse group of malignant tumours.

Unlike other cancers such as non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), soft tissue sarcomas are mostly diagnosed with localised disease, and many are amenable to complete surgical removal, yet relapse rates can be as high as 50 percent.^[11]Outcomes for patients with advanced disease are poor, with median survival around one year or less. Due to the rarity of these tumours, evidence for prognostic factors is weak and not well understood.^[5]