We are delighted to announce that the first Australian participant has been enrolled in the global brain cancer VIGOR trial.
Globally sponsored by the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC), the VIGOR trial is active in 12 countries worldwide.
In Australia, the trial is sponsored by the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute in collaboration with COGNO and aims to recruit 70 patients across 10 sites in Victoria, New South Wales, Tasmania, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia.
The trial will investigate whether maintenance treatment with vorasidenib, an IDH-targeted therapy, can delay disease progression and extend survival while preserving quality of life, and neurological and cognitive function in people with IDH-mutant grade 2 or 3 astrocytoma.
These cancers are difficult to treat, and treatment avenues are currently limited.
When the IDH gene carries abnormal mutations, the resulting faulty IDH protein releases a harmful chemical (metabolite) that causes cancer cells to multiply. IDH-targeted therapies block the protein from releasing the metabolite, which in turn slows down tumour growth.
Clinical trials have shown that this treatment can delay tumour growth in patients with grade 2 gliomas. VIGOR is now investigating whether it can also offer a significant benefit in more advanced cancer.
More than 2,000 Australians are diagnosed with brain cancer each year, with gliomas being the most common primary brain tumour in adults.
