Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33984151›Full record

Trial reportNeuro-oncology2021

A randomized phase II trial of veliparib, radiotherapy, and temozolomide in patients with unmethylated MGMT glioblastoma: the VERTU study.

Hao-Wen Sim, Kerrie L McDonald, Zarnie Lwin, Elizabeth H Barnes, Mark Rosenthal, Matthew C Foote, Eng-Siew Koh, Michael Back, Helen Wheeler, Erik P Sulman and 8 more

Open access · bronzeAbstract readClinical Trial, Phase IIMulticenter StudyRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Neuro-oncology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 63 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
63citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
8.2field-weighted citation impact, top 2% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

63 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 83 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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  12. Recent Advances in Targeted Therapies for Adult Gliomas.Current neurology and neuroscience reports · 2026
    Review
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  19. Phase I Dose-Escalation Trial Combining Olaparib and Thoracic Radiotherapy in Extensive-Stage Small Cell Lung Cancer.Clinical cancer research : an official journal of the American Association for Cancer Research · 2025
    Article
  20. Review

3 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

18 authors at 8 institutions in 2 countries.

Hao-Wen SimNHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
Kerrie L McDonaldCure Brain Cancer Neuro-Oncology Lab, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Zarnie LwinSchool of Medicine, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.
Elizabeth H BarnesNHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
Mark RosenthalDepartment of Medical Oncology, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Australia.
Matthew C FooteSchool of Medicine, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.
Eng-Siew KohSouth Western Sydney Clinical School, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Michael BackDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Royal North Shore Hospital, Sydney, Australia.
Helen WheelerDepartment of Medical Oncology, Royal North Shore Hospital, Sydney, Australia.
Erik P SulmanDepartment of Radiation Oncology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine and Brain and Spine Tumors, New York, New York, USA.
Michael E BucklandNeuropathology Department, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, Australia.
Lauren FisherNHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
Robyn LeonardNHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
Merryn HallNHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
David M AshleyDuke University School of Medicine, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA.
Sonia YipNHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
John SimesNHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
Mustafa KhasrawNHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.ORCID 0000-0003-3249-9849
The University of Sydney · AURoyal North Shore Hospital · AUThe University of Queensland · AUDuke University · USLiverpool Hospital · AUNYU Langone Health · USThe Royal Melbourne Hospital · AUUNSW Sydney · AU

Funding

Women's Cancer Research ProgramP30CA014236 · NCI · DUKE UNIVERSITY · PI JOHN N. NORTON · 1985 to 2026
$174.8M
NCI NIH HHS P30 CA014236
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundTemozolomide offers minimal benefit in patients with glioblastoma with unmethylated O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) promoter status, hence, the need for novel therapies. This study evaluated whether veliparib, a brain-penetrant poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitor, acts synergistically with radiation and temozolomide.

methodsVERTU was a multicenter 2:1 randomized phase II trial in patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma and MGMT-unmethylated promotor status. The experimental arm consisted of veliparib and radiotherapy, followed by adjuvant veliparib and temozolomide. The standard arm consisted of concurrent temozolomide and radiotherapy, followed by adjuvant temozolomide. The primary objective was to extend the progression-free survival rate at six months (PFS-6m) in the experimental arm.

resultsA total of 125 participants were enrolled, with 84 in the experimental arm and 41 in the standard arm. The median age was 61 years, 70% were male, 59% had Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0, and 87% underwent macroscopic resection. PFS-6m was 46% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 36%-57%) in the experimental arm and 31% (95% CI: 18%-46%) in the standard arm. Median overall survival was 12.7 months (95% CI: 11.4-14.5 months) in the experimental arm and 12.8 months (95% CI: 9.5-15.8 months) in the standard arm. The most common grade 3-4 adverse events were thrombocytopenia and neutropenia, with no new safety signals.

conclusionThe veliparib-containing regimen was feasible and well tolerated. However, there was insufficient evidence of clinical benefit in this population. Further information from correlative translational work and other trials of PARP inhibitors in glioblastoma are still awaited.

Indexed as

Brain NeoplasmsGlioblastomaRadiation OncologyAntineoplastic Agents, AlkylatingBenzimidazolesDNA MethylationDNA Modification MethylasesDNA Repair EnzymesHumansMaleMiddle AgedTemozolomideTumor Suppressor ProteinsAntineoplastic Agents, AlkylatingBenzimidazolesDNA Modification MethylasesDNA Repair EnzymesMGMT protein, humanTemozolomideTumor Suppressor ProteinsveliparibDNA damageglioblastomaMGMTPARPveliparib

Identifiers

PMID33984151
PMCPMC8485443
OpenAlexW3160707383

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.