A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Phase III Noninferiority Study of the Long-Term Safety and Efficacy of Darbepoetin alfa for Chemotherapy-Induced Anemia in Patients With Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Abstract Introduction This study evaluated noninferiority of darbepoetin alfa versus placebo for overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) in anemic patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated to a 12.0-g/dL hemoglobin (Hb) ceiling. Methods Adults with stage IV NSCLC expected to receive ≥2 cycles of myelosuppressive chemotherapy and Hb≤11.0 g/dL were randomized 2:1 to blinded 500 μg darbepoetin alfa or placebo Q3W. The primary endpoint was OS; a stratified Cox proportional hazards model was used to evaluate noninferiority (upper confidence limit for hazard ratio [HR] ˂1.15). Secondary endpoints were PFS and incidence of transfusions or Hb≤8.0 g/dL from week 5 to end of the efficacy treatment period (EOETP). Results The primary analysis set included 2516 patients: 1680 randomized to darbepoetin alfa; 836 to placebo. The study was stopped early per independent Data Monitoring Committee recommendation after the primary endpoint was met with no new safety concerns. Darbepoetin alfa was noninferior to placebo for OS (stratified HR=0.92; 95%CI, 0.83‒1.01) and PFS (stratified HR=0.95; 95%CI, 0.87‒1.04). Darbepoetin alfa was superior to placebo for transfusion or Hb ≤8.0 g/dL from week 5 to EOETP (stratified OR=0.70; 95%CI, 0.57‒0.86; P Conclusions Darbepoetin alfa dosed to a 12.0-g/dL Hb ceiling was noninferior to placebo for OS and PFS and significantly reduced odds of transfusion or Hb≤8.0 g/dL in anemic patients with NSCLC receiving myelosuppressive chemotherapy.