Pfizer halts Sutent drug trial for liver cancer

Pfizer Inc said it halted a study of its kidney-tumor drug Sutent as a treatment for advanced liver cancer because of a higher rate of complications among patients taking the medicine. The study participants taking Sutent had a “higher rate of serious adverse events” than those taking Bayer AG’s Nexavar, the company said today in a statement. Sutent was also less effective than the comparison drug. The study was from the last of three rounds of tests generally required for US regulatory approval.

Pfizer, based in New York, will continue studying Sutent’s use in other types of cancer, Mace Rothenberg, senior vice president of clinical development for the company’s cancer unit, said in the statement. Pfizer is still testing Sutent for use in treating non-small cell lung cancer, advanced castration- resistant prostate cancer, and for additional uses in kidney cancer, according to the release. Sutent is currently approved for use in kidney cancer, and gastrointestinal stromal tumor, a malignancy affecting the digestive system. The drug had 2009 sales of $964 million, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. “The disappointing outcome of this trial challenges all of us to work harder to understand the complex biology of this disease,” Rothenberg said in the statement.