Lung cancer remains the most common cancer and cause of cancer-related mortality in the United States. In 2008, there was an estimated 215,000 new cases of lung cancer diagnosed and roughly 162,000 deaths from lung cancer (NCI 2009). The majority (85%) of patients with a diagnosis of lung cancer will have non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).~The combination of paclitaxel and carboplatin has become the most commonly prescribed chemotherapy regimen for the treatment of advanced NSCLC in the United States. Laboratory studies of combinations of REOLYSIN with a variety of chemotherapeutic agents has shown that the combination of REOLYSIN and paclitaxel was invariably synergistic, even in cells with drug resistance or limited sensitivity to the reovirus. Moreover, reovirus activity was dramatically increased in the presence of the taxane.~The Phase 2 study is designed to characterize the efficacy and safety of REOLYSIN given intravenously in combination with paclitaxel and carboplatin every 3 weeks in patients with squamous cell carinoma of the lung.~Response is a primary endpoint of this trial.~The safety of the treatment combination will be assessed by the evaluation of the type, frequency and severity of adverse events, changes in clinical laboratory tests, immunogenicity and physical examination.~Patients may continue to receive chemotherapy combined with REOLYSIN for up to 8 cycles and may continue indefinitely on REOLYSIN monotherapy under this protocol, provided they have not experienced either progressive disease or unacceptable drug-related toxicity that does not respond to either supportive care or dose reduction.
The purpose of this Phase 2 study is to investigate whether intravenous administration of REOLYSIN therapeutic reovirus in combination with paclitaxel and carboplatin is effective and safe in the treatment of squamous cell carinoma of the lung.