Dr. Shitara on Analyzing the Effects of Prior Therapy on TAS-102 in Gastric/GEJ Cancer

Kohei Shitara, MD, chief, Department of Gastrointestinal Oncology, National Cancer Center Hospital East, Kashiwa, Japan, discusses the rationale to analyze the effects of prior therapy on outcomes with TAS-102 (trifluridine/tipiracil; Lonsurf) in patients with metastatic gastric/gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) cancer.

During the 2021 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium, findings from an analysis of the phase 3 TAGS trial were presented in a virtual poster. The results showed that TAS-102, administered as third- or later-line treatment in patients with metastatic gastric/GEJ cancer, improved survival outcomes compared with placebo irrespective of prior therapy.

TAS-102 is an oral combination that was approved in February 2019 for the treatment of patients with metastatic gastric/GEJ cancer who have received at least 2 prior lines of chemotherapy based on data from the TAGS trial. The regimen is also approved in the European Union and Japan for use in this patient population, concludes Shitara.