Minerva chirurgica
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
[Octreotide in the treatment of advanced pancreatic tumor. Preliminary study].
Data from experimental studies suggest that octreotide, the long acting somatostatin analogue, improves survival of animals with pancreatic cancer. To assess the antitumour effect of octreotide, a randomized trial was performed comparing octreotide with supportive care in advanced pancreatic cancer patients. All patients, aged 59-75 years, were not liable to radical surgical treatment and were not submitted to other treatments (chemo and/or radiotherapy). ⋯ In conclusion octreotide therapy seems to confer a survival benefit and a better quality of life in advanced pancreatic tumour. Additional studies are needed to confirm these results and to clarify other questions about dose and somatostatin receptors in this kind of tumour.