The Absolute Effect / Evidence / Sunitinib vs Interferon Alfa
Renal Cell Carcinoma · Medical · Advanced / metastatic first line
Sunitinib vs Interferon Alfa
Clinical question
In previously untreated metastatic RCC, does sunitinib improve outcomes compared with interferon alfa?
Trial context
Population
750 patients
Intervention
Sunitinib 50 mg PO daily for 4 weeks followed by 2 weeks off; control interferon alfa 9 MU SC three times weekly.
Comparator
Interferon alfa
Primary / key evidence
Median PFS 11 vs 5 mo; HR 0.42 (95% CI 0.32–0.54), P<.001. The trial established a major efficacy advance over cytokine therapy.
Absolute Effect
What changes for patients?
Median PFS 11 vs 5 mo; HR 0.42 (95% CI 0.32–0.54), P<.001. The trial established a major efficacy advance over cytokine therapy.
NNT/NNH: Not calculated unless a defensible fixed-time event-rate comparison was available in the cited primary analysis; median-survival differences alone are not converted to NNT.
Clinical interpretation
Sunitinib became a benchmark first-line targeted therapy and helped establish VEGF-targeted treatment as a standard approach in metastatic RCC.
Limitations / maturity
Interpret the effect in the context of the trial population, endpoint definition, follow-up and treatment era. Subsequent trials and evolving standards may limit direct applicability to contemporary patients.
Primary publication
Motzer RJ et al. N Engl J Med. 2007;356:115–124.