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NCCN Announces Important Updates to Soft Tissue Sarcoma Guidelines

JENKINTOWN, Pa., May 10, 2006 — The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) announces updates to the NCCN Soft Tissue Sarcoma Guidelines. The NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology™ are widely recognized and applied as the standard for clinical policy in oncology in both the community practice setting and in academic cancer centers. These guidelines are used extensively by managed care companies and by Medicare as the basis for coverage policies. These guidelines are updated continually and are based upon evaluation of scientific data integrated with expert judgment.

The NCCN Soft Tissue Sarcoma panel recently updated the guidelines to version 2.2006 due to the FDA approval of sunitinib malate (Sutent, Pfizer), a small molecule receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) inhibitor, for the treatment of gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) after disease progression on or intolerance to imatinib mesylate. Efficacy and safety in GIST patients were evaluated in a randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled trial in patients who had disease progression during prior imatinib treatment or who were imatinib-intolerant. A planned interim efficacy and safety analysis demonstrated a statistically significant advantage for sunitinib over placebo in the primary endpoint of time to progression, as well as in the secondary endpoint of progression-free survival. The panel added sunitinib to the guidelines as a treatment consideration for patients with progressive disease.

The area of cancer therapeutics is rapidly advancing. All constituencies (for example, physicians, patients, payors) in the cancer community look to the NCCN Guidelines as the most up-to-date, authoritative source of sound, scientific information to inform and improve decision-making. The NCCN remains committed to a guideline process that communicates to all, free of charge, recommendations about appropriate care,” said William T. McGivney, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of the NCCN.

For a detailed listing of all updates to the NCCN Guidelines, please go to www.nccn.org.