Dr. Rapoport on Rolapitant for the Prevention of CINV

Bernardo L. Rapoport, MD, chief medical oncologist, The Medical Oncology Center of Rosebank, Johannesburg, South Africa, discusses the utility of rolapitant for preventing chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV).

This phase III trial, of which the results were presented at the 2014 MASCC/ISOO International Symposium, analyzed 555 cisplatin-naïve subjects treated with highly emetogenic chemotherapy (≥60mg/m2 cisplatin). Patients were randomized to receive rolapitant, granisetron, and dexamethasone, or placebo, granisetron, and dexamethasone.

Rolapitant is different from other NK-1 inhibitors in that it does not interaction with any other drug and has a long half-life.

In this trial, rolapitant demonstrated superior efficacy in the primary endpoint of delayed CINV in this population.