ChemotherapyFDA-approvedFirst-line
Gemcitabine
How it works
Gemcitabine is a nucleoside analog that interferes with DNA synthesis, causing cancer cells to die. It works by being incorporated into the DNA of cancer cells, which prevents them from replicating and eventually leads to cell death.
Cancer types
Pancreatic Cancer— All patients
Lung Cancer— All patients
Efficacy
Studies show that gemcitabine can improve overall survival and response rates in patients with pancreatic cancer, with approximately 20-30% of patients achieving a partial response.
Side effects
Moderate
Side effects can be significant and may require dose adjustments or supportive medication, but the treatment is usually continued.
Evidence from research
| Study | Cancer type | Stage | Efficacy | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Testing a New Device for Delivering Chemotherapy to Pancreatic Cancer Patients | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-1 | — | Source → |
| Testing ZN-c3 and Gemcitabine in Advanced Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-2 | — | Source → |
| PDK4's Role in Pancreatic Cancer Resistance to Gemcitabine | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Testing Combination Therapy for Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-2 | — | Source → |
| Testing a Combination Treatment for Unresectable Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-1 | — | Source → |
| Combination Therapy for Resectable Pancreatic Cancer Before Surgery | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-2 | — | Source → |
| Testing ADI-PEG 20 with Gemcitabine and Docetaxel for Lung Cancer | Lung Cancer | phase-1 | — | Source → |
| Testing Fostamatinib with Chemotherapy in Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-1 | — | Source → |
| Testing Cemiplimab Plus Gemcitabine for Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-2 | — | Source → |
| Testing a New Combination of Chemotherapy Drugs for Advanced Ovarian Cancer | Ovarian Cancer | phase-1 | — | Source → |
| Understanding Pancreatic Cancer Treatment Response | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Testing a New Treatment for Advanced Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-2 | — | Source → |
| First-line Treatment Study for Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-3 | — | Source → |
| Gemcitabine and WEE1 Inhibitor Trial for Recurrent Ovarian Cancer | Ovarian Cancer | phase-2 | — | Source → |
| Gemcitabine, Dasatinib, and Erlotinib in Treating Advanced Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-1 | — | Source → |
| Testing Chemotherapy and Radiation for Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | preclinical | — | Source → |
| Gene BHLHE41 May Help Pancreatic Cancer Cells Respond Better to Treatment | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Combining Camrelizumab with Gemcitabine and Paclitaxel in Pancreatic Cancer Patients | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-2 | The median overall survival was 14.0 months, and the median progression-free survival was 6.4 months. | Source → |
| New Compound Shows Promise in Treating Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Chemotherapy Combination Affects Lung Cancer Cells in Lab Experiments | Lung Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| IGF2BP2 helps cancer cells resist treatment in pancreatic cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| OTUB1 linked to gemcitabine resistance in pancreatic cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| New Nanoparticle Platform for Targeted Pancreatic Cancer Treatment | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| REG3A linked to gemcitabine resistance in pancreatic cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Comparing Treatments for Early Recurring Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | observational | The gemcitabine plus nab-paclitaxel group had a median overall survival of 14.5 months, compared to 11.1 months in the FOLFIRINOX group. | Source → |
| Combining medications to treat advanced breast and ovarian cancer | Ovarian Cancer | phase-1 | There were 3 major responses (1CR, 2PR) at DL1, and 1 CR at DL-1. | Source → |
| Gemcitabine Resistance in Pancreatic Cancer: A New Target for Treatment | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| New Nanoparticles Help Deliver Cancer Treatment to Pancreatic Cancer Cells | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Gemcitabine and Flurbiprofen May Help Kill Pancreatic Cancer Cells | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| α-Asarone May Help Overcome Gemcitabine Resistance in Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Gold Nanoclusters Help Deliver Cancer Drug More Effectively | Breast Cancer | lab-study | The resultant Gem-AuNCs-BSA showed enhanced delivery of drug and therapeutic effects for the treatment of breast cancer and lung cancer with better efficacy than free Gemcitabine. | Source → |
| Bacteria in Pancreatic Tumors May Affect Treatment Effectiveness | Pancreatic Cancer | observational | High intratumoral bacterial abundance impaired aGC efficacy (DFS 9.4 vs 19.1 months, p < 0.001; OS 19.4 vs 34.0 months, p < 0.001), which was mitigated by postoperative ABT application (DFS 7.9 vs 12.4 months, p < 0.001, OS 15.2 vs 29.6 months, p < 0.001). | Source → |
| Gemcitabine Resistance in Pancreatic Cancer Linked to Protein TSPAN15 | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | Venetoclax, a targeted inhibitor of TSPAN15, exhibits synergistic efficacy when combined with gemcitabine for treating PDAC both in vitro and in vivo. | Source → |
| New Approach to Treating Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Gemcitabine Signature Predicts Response in Pancreatic Cancer Patients | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-2 | The Gem+ patients who received adjuvant gemcitabine had significantly better median disease-free survival (DFS) compared to the Gem- patients (NR until 72 months of follow-up vs 19.0 months); stratified hazard ratio [HR]: 0.19; 95% CI, 0.04-0.86; P = .032 | Source → |
| Gemcitabine May Help Overcome Resistance to Leukemia Treatment | Leukemia | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Gemcitabine and Nab-paclitaxel Combination Therapy Linked to Lung Disease in Pancreatic Cancer Patients | Pancreatic Cancer | meta-analysis | — | Source → |
| Knocking Down a Gene May Help Pancreatic Cancer Cells Respond to Treatment | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Gemcitabine-resistant pancreatic cancer cells may be weakened by targeting SLC5A3 | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Researchers Identify Key Player in Pancreatic Cancer Resistance | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Combining a new drug with gemcitabine may improve pancreatic cancer treatment | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | Inhibition of AHR activity caused synergistic effects with gemcitabine, increasing effectiveness by 30-41%. | Source → |
| Gemcitabine-Immunoglobulin Nanoparticles Target Pancreatic Cancer Cells | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | The IC of Gemcitabine for Panc-1 cancer cells dropped seven-fold when encapsulated in GIgG NPs. | Source → |
| Gemcitabine-loaded nanoparticles show promise in treating pancreatic cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Combining CHK1 Inhibitor with Gemcitabine May Help Treat Lung Cancer | Lung Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Combining Gemcitabine and AZD 1775 May Improve Treatment for Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Real-world Outcomes for Pancreatic Cancer Treatment | Pancreatic Cancer | review | In 9/17 clinical studies, median overall survival (mOS) ranged from 4.7 months to 11.4 months for FFX/mFFX, with the unweighted median of the estimates within this range being 9.2 months. | Source → |
| Long-Term Outcomes of Pancreatic Cancer Treatment | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-3 | The median overall survival was 31.6 months in patients given GemCap. | Source → |
| Combining Nadunolimab with Gemcitabine and Nab-Paclitaxel in Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-2 | The median overall survival was 13.2 months, and the 1-year survival rate was 58%. | Source → |
| New Nano-Drug Delivery System Tested for Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| New Lab Model Helps Test Melanoma Treatments | Melanoma | lab-study | The results showed a significant impact on the co-culture distribution of cells, decreasing the population of cancerous cells after the administration of Gemcitabine. | Source → |
| Comparing Chemotherapy Options for Advanced Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | meta-analysis | — | Source → |
| Flurbiprofen May Enhance Gemcitabine Treatment for Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Pancreatic Cancer Models Show Resistance to Gemcitabine | Pancreatic Cancer | animal-study | — | Source → |
| Combining Gemcitabine and Erlotinib May Improve Pancreatic Cancer Treatment | Pancreatic Cancer | meta-analysis | Gem-Erlo significantly improved disease control rate (DCR) [odds ratio (OR) =1.74; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.03 to 2.92; P=0.04]. | Source → |
| Gemcitabine Resistance in Pancreatic Cancer Cells | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Combining Nimotuzumab and Gemcitabine May Improve Pancreatic Cancer Treatment | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-2 | After treatment, PR ratio, SD ratio, ORR, and DCR in the study group were significantly higher than those in the control group, and PD ratio was significantly lower than that in the control group (P < 0.05) | Source → |
| Gemcitabine Chemotherapy May Increase Pancreatic Cancer Spread | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| New Delivery Method for Cancer Drug Shows Promise | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | The in vivo pharmacokinetics revealed approximately 4-fold higher bioavailability of GEM-NPs in comparison with free GEM. | Source → |
| Pancreatic Cancer Research Uncovers Complexity in Testing Treatments | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Parthenolide May Help Treat Pancreatic Cancer Cells Resistant to Gemcitabine | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Gemcitabine Resistance in Pancreatic Cancer Linked to Mitochondrial Metabolism | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Combining Interferon-Alpha and Gemcitabine May Help Treat Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Gemcitabine Resistance Spreads in Pancreatic Cancer | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| New Delivery Method for Pancreatic Cancer Treatment Shows Promise | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | LipotcGem inhibited tumor growth by 70% in subcutaneous xenograft model and 90% in orthotopic xenograft model, respectively. | Source → |
| Pancreatic Cancer Treatment Comparison in Morocco | Pancreatic Cancer | observational | The median overall survival was 6 months for patients treated with Folfirinox versus 3 months for those treated with Gemcitabine. | Source → |
| Combining two treatments may slow pancreatic cancer growth | Pancreatic Cancer | animal-study | Sel-GemPac enhanced the survival of treated mice compared to controls (p < .05). | Source → |
| New Delivery Method for Pancreatic Cancer Treatment | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | LipodmGEM showed a greatly extended half-life (7.22 vs. 1.78 hours) compared to free GEM. | Source → |
| Gemcitabine Sensitivity Predicted in Pancreatic Cancer Patients | Pancreatic Cancer | phase-3 | GemPred+ patients who received adjuvant GEM had a median disease-free survival of 27.3 months (HR, 0.43 [95% CI, 0.29 to 0.65]; p < .001) and cancer-specific survival of 68.4 months (HR, 0.42 [95% CI, 0.27 to 0.66]; p < .001). | Source → |
| Gemcitabine and Trabectedin Combination Shows Promise in Pancreatic Cancer Cells | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | — | Source → |
| Gemcitabine Resistance in Pancreatic Cancer: Understanding and Overcoming | Pancreatic Cancer | review | — | Source → |
| Gemcitabine-resistant pancreatic cancer cells identified | Pancreatic Cancer | lab-study | Pharmacological inhibition of MAOB significantly suppressed proliferation and tumor growth in both mPDAC-R and human PDAC cell lines. | Source → |
This information is provided for general education only and is not medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making treatment decisions.