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Metformin in Combination With Chemoradiotherapy in Locally Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: The OCOG-ALMERA Randomized Clinical Trial

T. Tsakiridis, G. Pond, Jim R. Wright, P. Ellis, N. Ahmed, B. Abdulkarim, W. Roa, A. Robinson et al.

JAMA Oncology, 2021

96 participants · 96 citations

Abstract

Importance

Unresected locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer (LA-NSCLC) shows poor survival outcomes even after aggressive concurrent chemoradiotherapy. Whether metformin, a diabetes agent that inhibits the mitochondria oxidative phosphorylation chain, could improve radiotherapy and chemotherapy response in LA-NSCLC remains to be studied.

Objective

To examine whether metformin, given concurrently with chemoradiotherapy and as consolidation treatment, could improve outcomes in patients with LA-NSCLC.

Design, Setting, and Participants

The Ontario Clinical Oncology Group Advanced Lung Cancer Treatment With Metformin and Chemoradiotherapy (OCOG-ALMERA) study was a multicenter phase 2 randomized clinical trial. Patients were stratified for stage IIIA vs IIIB LA-NSCLC and use of consolidation chemotherapy. The trial was designed to enroll 96 patients with unresected LA-NSCLC who did not have diabetes. The trial was conducted from September 24, 2014, to March 8, 2019.

Interventions

Patients were randomized to platinum-based chemotherapy, concurrent with chest radiotherapy (60-63 Gy), with or without consolidation chemotherapy or the same treatment plus metformin, 2000 mg/d, during chemoradiotherapy and afterward for up to 12 months.

Main Outcomes and Measures

The primary outcome was the proportion of patients who experienced a failure event (ie, locoregional disease progression, distant metastases, death, and discontinuation of trial treatment or planned evaluations for any…

How strong is the evidence?

Evidence Hub reads this as a randomized trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 2 of 5 (High · randomized trial). Randomized trials of a reasonable size are the strongest single-study design. Reported size: 96 participants or records.

How the five levels of evidence work. The level is assigned automatically from the abstract and can be wrong, so check the paper.

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