A series of sulfonamide-containing 1,5-diarylpyrazole derivatives were prepared and evaluated for their ability to block cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in vitro and in vivo. Extensive structure-activity relationship (SAR) work was carried out within this series, and a number of potent and selective inhibitors of COX-2 were identified. Since an early structural lead (1f, SC-236) exhibited an unacceptably long plasma half-life, a number of pyrazole analogs containing potential metabolic sites were evaluated further in vivo in an effort to identify compounds with acceptable pharmacokinetic profiles. This work led to the identification of 1i (4-[5-(4-methylphenyl)-3-(trifluoromethyl)- H-pyrazol-1-yl]benzenesulfonamide, SC-58635, celecoxib), which is currently in phase III clinical trials for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis.

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PURPOSE Pyrotinib, an irreversible pan-ErbB inhibitor, showed promising antitumor activity and acceptable tolerability in a phase I trial. We assessed the efficacy and tolerability of pyrotinib versus lapatinib, both in combination with capecitabine, in women with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive metastatic breast cancer in an open-label, multicenter, randomized phase II study. PATIENTS AND METHODS Chinese patients with HER2-positive relapsed or metastatic breast cancer previously treated with taxanes, anthracyclines, and/or trastuzumab were assigned (1:1) to receive 400 mg pyrotinib or lapatinib 1,250 mg orally once per day for 21-day cycles in combination with capecitabine (1,000 mg/m2 orally twice per day on days 1 to 14). The primary end point was investigator-assessed overall response rate per Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST), version 1.1. RESULTS Between May 29, 2015, and March 15, 2016, 128 eligible patients were randomly assigned to the pyrotinib (n = 65) or lapatinib (n = 63) treatment groups. The overall response rate was 78.5% (95% CI, 68.5% to 88.5%) with pyrotinib and 57.1% (95% CI, 44.9% to 69.4%) with lapatinib (treatment difference, 21.3%; 95% CI, 4.0% to 38.7%; P = .01). The median progression-free survival was 18.1 months (95% CI, 13.9 months to not reached) with pyrotinib and 7.0 months (95% CI, 5.6 to 9.8 months) with lapatinib (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.36; 95% CI, 0.23 to 0.58; P < .001). The most frequent grade 3 to 4 adverse events were hand-foot syndrome in 16 of 65 patients (24.6%) in the pyrotinib group versus 13 of 63 (20.6%) in the lapatinib group; diarrhea in 10 patients (15.4%) versus three patients (4.8%), respectively; and decreased neutrophil count in six patients (9.2%) versus two patients (3.2%), respectively. CONCLUSION In women with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer previously treated with taxanes, anthracyclines, and/or trastuzumab, pyrotinib plus capecitabine yielded statistically significant better overall response rate and progression-free survival than lapatinib plus capecitabine in this randomized phase II trial.

The Notch pathway is involved in cell proliferation, differentiation and survival. The Notch signaling pathway is one of the most commonly activated signaling pathways in cancer. Alterations include activating mutations and amplification of the Notch pathway, which play key roles in the progression of cancer. Accumulating evidence suggests that the pharmacological inhibition of this pathway can overcome chemoresistance. Efforts have been taken to develop Notch inhibitors as a single agent or in combination with clinically used chemotherapeutics to treat cancer. Some Notch inhibitors have been demonstrated to have therapeutic efficacy in preclinical studies. This review summarizes the recent studies and clinical evaluations of the Notch inhibitors in cancer.

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Through epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), cancer cells acquire enhanced ability of migration and invasion, stem cell like characteristics and therapeutic resistance. Notch signaling regulates cell-cell connection, cell polarity and motility during organ development. Recent studies demonstrate that Notch signaling plays an important role in lung cancer initiation and cross-talks with several transcriptional factors to enhance EMT, contributing to the progression of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Correspondingly, blocking of Notch signaling inhibits NSCLC migration and tumor growth by reversing EMT. Clinical trials have showed promising effect in some cancer patients received treatment with Notch1 inhibitor. This review attempts to provide an overview of the Notch signal in NSCLC: its biological significance and therapeutic application.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13045-014-0087-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

BackgroundIn the AVAGAST study, fluoropyrimidine and cisplatin plus bevacizumab did not significantly improve overall survival (OS) versus fluoropyrimidine and cisplatin plus placebo in patients with advanced gastric cancer. Geographic differences in efficacy were observed in AVAGAST, but the study only included 12 Chinese patients. AVATAR, a study similar in design to AVAGAST, was a randomized, double-blind, phase III study conducted in Chinese patients with advanced gastric cancer.MethodsPatients more than 18 years of age with gastric adenocarcinoma were randomized 1:1 to capecitabine–cisplatin plus either bevacizumab or placebo. The primary endpoint was OS; secondary endpoints included progression-free survival (PFS) and safety.ResultsIn total, 202 patients were included (placebo n = 102; bevacizumab n = 100). Baseline characteristics were well balanced. The primary analysis result did not show a difference in OS for the bevacizumab arm compared to the placebo arm [hazard ratio, 1.11 (95 % CI, 0.79–1.56); P = 0.5567]. Median PFS was also similar in both arms. Bevacizumab plus capecitabine–cisplatin was well tolerated. Grade 3–5 adverse events (AEs) occurred in 60 % of bevacizumab-treated and 68 % of placebo-treated patients, respectively. Grade 3–5 AEs of special interest with bevacizumab occurred in 8 % of bevacizumab-treated patients and 15 % of placebo-treated patients, mainly grade 3–5 hemorrhage (bevacizumab 4 %, placebo 12 %).ConclusionsAddition of bevacizumab to capecitabine–cisplatin in Chinese patients with advanced gastric cancer did not improve outcomes in AVATAR. There was no difference in OS between the two arms and PFS was similar in both arms. Safety findings were as previously experienced with bevacizumab, including AVAGAST; no new safety signals were reported.

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