Neo-adjuvant FOLF(IRIN)OX for Resectable Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma (PANACHE01)

Resectable Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma Neo-Adjuvant FOLF(IRIN)OX-based CHEmotherapy - A Multicenter, Randomised Phase II Trial (PANACHE01-PRODIGE48 Study)

In patients with resectable pancreatic duct adenocarcinoma (PDAC), curative surgery followed by adjuvant chemotherapy is currently the standard of care. However, the long-term results are still poor, with median disease-free and overall survival of 14 months and 23 months. The corresponding 5-year overall survival rate is 20%.

Chemotherapy before surgery (neoadjuvant chemotherapy) allows identification of patients with rapidly progressive metastatic disease at time of preoperative restaging (surgery is then avoided in these patients), and may increase the rate of free margin resection (R0) and reduce the risk of local recurrence.

Even though single-agent gemcitabine and 5-FU have been validated in adjuvant and metastatic settings, the objective response was low (at around 10%), whereas combination chemotherapy exceeds a response rate of 30% in advanced disease. In metastatic PDAC, palliative FOLFIRINOX chemotherapy has been demonstrated to be effective (in terms of response rates and progression-free survival) and well tolerated. Interestingly, the response rate is increased by using more than two chemotherapeutic agents in advanced pancreatic cancer, justifying the use of an alternative neoadjuvant FOLFOX-based chemotherapy arm.

PANACHE-01 is an open, non-comparative, randomised, multicentre Phase II study designed to assess the safety and efficacy of two modes of neo-adjuvant chemotherapy (FOLFIRINOX & FOLFOX) relative to the current reference treatment (surgery and then adjuvant chemotherapy) for resectable PDAC.

Patients with immediately resectable PDAC (definition based on the NCCN's (American National Comprehensive Cancer Network 2014) latest guidelines) will be randomised to either pancreatectomy and adjuvant chemotherapy or 4 cycles of neoadjuvant chemotherapy with either FOLFOX or FOLFIRINOX. The patients in the neoadjuvant chemotherapy arms will receive postoperative chemotherapy for 4 months (8 cycles).

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Resectable Pancreatic Duct Adenocarcinoma
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: FOLFOX neoadjuvant chemotherapy; Procedure: curative surgery for resectable pancreatic duct adenocarcinoma; Drug: adjuvant chemotherapy; Drug: FOLFIRINOX neoadjuvant chemotherapy; Drug: Standard adjuvant chemotherapy

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 153
• Phase: Phase 2

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• France
  • Rouen, France
    • Rouen University Hospital

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 85 years (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Histology-proven, adenocarcinoma of the pancreas.
• Resectable adenocarcinoma (according to the NCCN classification 2014): absence of distant organ or distal lymph node metastases, absence of evidence of superior mesenteric vein (SMV) and portal vein distortion, tumour thrombus, or venous encasement, the existence of clear fat planes around the celiac axis, hepatic artery and superior mesenteric artery (SMA). Resectability is evaluated on arterial-phase and portal-phase IV contrast-enhanced multislice CT-scan of the pancreas (slice thickness: 2.5 mm), as evaluated in a multidisciplinary staff meeting including at least one radiologist and one expert surgeon.
• No prior chemotherapy.
• Age 18 years or over.
• Ability to understand and willingness to consent to formal requirements for study participation
• Provision of written informed consent prior to any study-specific screening procedures.

Exclusion Criteria:

• PDAC defined as "borderline", locally advanced, non-resectable or metastatic.
• Prior cancer therapy for PDAC
• Surgical or anaesthesiological contra-indications: non-controlled congestive heart failure - non-treated angina - recent myocardial infarction (in the previous year) - non-controlled arterial hypertension (SBP >160 mm or DBP > 100 mm, despite optimal drug treatment), long QT, major non-controlled infection, severe liver failure.
• Any medical, psychological or social situation that (in the investigator's opinion) could limit (i) the patient's compliance with the protocol or (ii) the ability to obtain or interpret data.
• Pregnant or breastfeeding women and women of child-bearing age not using effective means of contraception.
• History or current evidence on physical examination of central nervous system disease or peripheral neuropathy ≥ grade 1, according to according to Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) v.4.0.
• Known hypersensitivity reaction to any of the components of study treatments.
• Pregnancy (the absence of which must be confirmed in a ß-hCG test) or breast-feeding.
• Any significant disease which, in the investigator's opinion, would exclude the patient from the study.
• Patients having been included in a clinical trial within the previous 4 weeks or participating in another trial.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: FOLFOX neoadjuvant chemotherapy; 4 cycles of FOLFOX neoadjuvant chemotherapy are administrated to patient. Curative surgery for resectable pancreatic duct adenocarcinoma will be done after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. 8 cycles of adjuvant chemotherapy are administrated following the surgery	Drug: FOLFOX neoadjuvant chemotherapy; 4 cycles of FOLFOX neoadjuvant chemotherapy are administrated to patient; Procedure: curative surgery for resectable pancreatic duct adenocarcinoma; curative surgery for resectable pancreatic duct adenocarcinoma; Drug: adjuvant chemotherapy; 8 cycles of standard adjuvant chemotherapy are administrated
Experimental: FOLFIRINOX neoadjuvant chemotherapy; 4 cycles of FOLFIRINOX neoadjuvant chemotherapy are administrated to patient. Curative surgery for resectable pancreatic duct adenocarcinoma will be done after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. 8 cycles of adjuvant chemotherapy are administrated following the surgery	Procedure: curative surgery for resectable pancreatic duct adenocarcinoma; curative surgery for resectable pancreatic duct adenocarcinoma; Drug: adjuvant chemotherapy; 8 cycles of standard adjuvant chemotherapy are administrated; Drug: FOLFIRINOX neoadjuvant chemotherapy; 4 cycles of FOLFIRINOX neoadjuvant chemotherapy are administrated to patient
Active Comparator: standard adjuvant chemotherapy; Curative surgery for resectable pancreatic duct adenocarcinoma will be done after randomization. 12 cycles of standard adjuvant chemotherapy are administrated following the surgery	Procedure: curative surgery for resectable pancreatic duct adenocarcinoma; curative surgery for resectable pancreatic duct adenocarcinoma; Drug: Standard adjuvant chemotherapy; 12 cycles of standard adjuvant chemotherapy are administrated

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Number of patients alive	Number of patients alive is evaluated 12 months after the surgery	12 months
Number of patients who achieved the complete chemotherapy treatment sequences	The number of patients who achieved the complete chemotherapy treatment sequences is evaluated 12 months after the surgery	12 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Number of participants with treatment-related adverse events as assessed by CTCAE v4.0	Number of participants with treatment-related adverse events as assessed by CTCAE v4.0	through end of treatment, an average of 12 months
Number of post-operative complications	Evaluation of post-operative complications is assessed using Dindo Clavien classification	1 month after surgery
Number of patients alive and without recurrence	Number of patients alive is evaluated 36 months after the surgery	36 months
Number of accomplished R0 resection surgery	Number of accomplished R0 resection surgery is evaluated by pathologists	Surgery day
Evaluation of quality of life	Evaluation of quality of life is done using EORTC QLQ C30	4 weeks after the end of chemotherapy treatment
Evaluation of quality of life	Evaluation of quality of life is done using EORTC QLQ-PAN26	4 weeks after the end of chemotherapy treatment

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University Hospital, Rouen
• Collaborators: Federation Francophone de Cancerologie Digestive; UNICANCER; Federation of Research in Surgery (FRENCH); GERCOR - Multidisciplinary Oncology Cooperative Group
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Lilian SCHWARZ, MD, University Hospital, Rouen

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Schwarz L, Bachet JB, Meurisse A, Bouche O, Assenat E, Piessen G, Hammel P, Regenet N, Taieb J, Turrini O, Paye F, Turpin A, Souche FR, Laurent C, Kianmanesh R, Michel P, Vernerey D, Mabrut JY, Turco C, Truant S, Sa Cunha A; PANACHE01-FRENCH08-PRODIGE48 Investigators. Neoadjuvant FOLF(IRIN)OX Chemotherapy for Resectable Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma: A Multicenter Randomized Noncomparative Phase II Trial (PANACHE01 FRENCH08 PRODIGE48 study). J Clin Oncol. 2025 Jun 10;43(17):1984-1996. doi: 10.1200/JCO-24-01378. Epub 2025 Apr 4.
• Schwarz L, Vernerey D, Bachet JB, Tuech JJ, Portales F, Michel P, Cunha AS. Resectable pancreatic adenocarcinoma neo-adjuvant FOLF(IRIN)OX-based chemotherapy - a multicenter, non-comparative, randomized, phase II trial (PANACHE01-PRODIGE48 study). BMC Cancer. 2018 Jul 24;18(1):762. doi: 10.1186/s12885-018-4663-4.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): March 1, 2017
• Primary Completion (Actual): August 8, 2023
• Study Completion (Actual): August 8, 2023

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: November 3, 2016
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 7, 2016
• First Posted (Estimated): November 9, 2016

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): February 6, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 4, 2026
• Last Verified: April 1, 2018

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: FOLFOX; FOLFIRINOX
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Neoplasms by Histologic Type; Neoplasms; Carcinoma; Neoplasms, Glandular and Epithelial; Neoplasms, Ductal, Lobular, and Medullary; Adenocarcinoma; Carcinoma, Ductal; Therapeutics; Drug Therapy; Combined Modality Therapy; Chemotherapy, Adjuvant
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2014/0210/HP

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No