# TreeTopp

Source: https://onco.cc/trials/treetopp/  
OnCo record `treetopp` (Trial). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

TreeTopp tested whether the HER-family blocker varlitinib added to capecitabine helps bile duct and gallbladder cancer after first-line chemotherapy. It did not: response, progression and survival were the same, and the planned phase 3 part was abandoned. A small gallbladder subgroup hinted at slower progression but the finding was not conclusive.

## Summary

TreeTopp (NCT03093870) was a global, double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled phase 2 (part 1 of a planned phase 2/3) in patients with unresectable or metastatic biliary tract cancer, including gallbladder and ampullary cancer, after one prior gemcitabine-containing line. Patients received varlitinib 300 mg or placebo twice daily with capecitabine 1,000 mg/m² twice daily on days 1 to 14 of 21-day cycles. Of 127 treated patients (64 varlitinib, 63 placebo), objective response by independent central review was 9.4 versus 4.8 percent (odds ratio 2.28, p 0.42), median progression-free survival 2.83 versus 2.79 months (hazard ratio 0.90, 95 percent confidence interval 0.60 to 1.37) and overall survival 7.8 versus 7.5 months (hazard ratio 1.11, 0.69 to 1.79). Grade 3 or worse treatment-emergent adverse events occurred in 65.6 versus 58.7 percent. In subgroup analysis varlitinib appeared to prolong progression-free survival in women (4.1 versus 2.8 months, hazard ratio 0.59) and in gallbladder cancer (2.9 versus 1.6 months, hazard ratio 0.55, 0.26 to 1.19). The trial ended varlitinib development in biliary cancer and is the clearest failure of unselected pan-HER inhibition in the disease, in contrast to HER2-selected antibody therapy.

## Fields

- Kind: Trial
- Status: negative
- Last checked: 2026-09-24
- Tags: failure
- Registry id: NCT03093870
- Phase: 2/3
- Setting: Second-line advanced biliary tract cancer after one gemcitabine-containing line: capecitabine with varlitinib or placebo, double-blind randomised (part 1 of a planned phase 2/3)
- Sponsor: ASLAN Pharmaceuticals
- Enrolled: 151
- Result: ORR 9.4% vs 4.8%; PFS 2.83 vs 2.79 months, HR 0.90; OS 7.8 vs 7.5 months, HR 1.11; gallbladder subgroup PFS 2.9 vs 1.6 months, HR 0.55 (0.26 to 1.19).
- Outcomes: Objective response rate (independent central review): Varlitinib + capecitabine 9.4% vs Placebo + capecitabine 4.8%; Progression-free survival: Varlitinib + capecitabine 2.83 months vs Placebo + capecitabine 2.79 months, HR 0.9; Overall survival: Varlitinib + capecitabine 7.8 months vs Placebo + capecitabine 7.5 months, HR 1.11; Progression-free survival, gallbladder cancer subgroup: Varlitinib + capecitabine 2.9 months vs Placebo + capecitabine 1.6 months, HR 0.55

## Sources

- ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03093870: https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT03093870
- Javle et al., ESMO Open 2022: TreeTopp: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esmoop.2021.100314

## Connected records

- cancers: [Biliary tract cancer (all types)](https://onco.cc/cancers/biliary-tract-cancer/), [Biliary tract cancer (cholangiocarcinoma)](https://onco.cc/cancers/cholangiocarcinoma/), [Gallbladder cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/gallbladder/)
- technologies: [Cytotoxic chemotherapy](https://onco.cc/technologies/cytotoxic-chemotherapy/), [Small-molecule kinase inhibitors](https://onco.cc/technologies/kinase-inhibitors/)
- targets: [EGFR](https://onco.cc/targets/egfr/), [HER2](https://onco.cc/targets/her2/)
- drugs: [Capecitabine](https://onco.cc/drugs/capecitabine/), [Varlitinib](https://onco.cc/drugs/varlitinib/)
- terms: [Gallbladder cancer in biliary tract cancer trials (eligibility and subgroups)](https://onco.cc/terms/gallbladder-cancer-in-biliary-trials/)

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