CLINICAL TRIAL: UNRESECTABLE HEPATOCELLULAR CA WITH OGF: A PHASE I STUDY

Pennsylvania State Univ Hershey Med Ctr, Hershey PA

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. Hepatocellular cancer, one of the world's most deadly tumors, is associated with chronic liver injury and cirrhosis. With the increasing occurrence of viral hepatitis, the incidence of this cancer in the United States continues to rise. Surgical resection offers the only hope for cure;but sadly, few patients are candidates for surgery due to their liver disease. Liver transplant can be an effective treatment, but due to a scarcity of organs, most patients do not qualify for this therapy either. Patients who are not candidates for these procedures have very few therapeutic options as chemotherapy and radiation have little efficacy. New therapies are desperately needed. Opioid Growth Factor inhibits the growth of a number of cancer lines in vitro by a receptor-mediated mechanism. In pancreatic cancer this phenomenon has been well defined not only in vitro but in animal models. Based upon these findings, a phase I trial has been conducted demonstrating that OGF can be administered safely to patients with pancreatic cancer. We hypothesize that administration of OGF will inhibit the course of cancer progression in human subjects with unresectable hepatocellular cancer and cirrhosis. As a first step in testing this hypothesis, we propose a phase I trial to study the toxicity and pharmacokinetics of this therapy in patients suffering from inoperable hepatocellular cancer and cirrhosis.