SNMMI: Preliminary Research Suggests Dual-Targeting Radiopharmaceutical May Have Impact in Multiple Cancers

Could an emerging radiopharmaceutical have an impact in treating advanced adenocarcinomas across multiple cancers?

In a new study, presented at the Society for Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) conference, researchers explored the use of the dual-targeted radiopharmaceutical ¹⁷⁷Lu-DOTA-FAPI-RGD for the treatment of advanced adenocarcinoma presentations in nine patients with a variety of cancers including ovarian, pancreatic, pulmonary and renal cancer.

Here one can see intense uptake of ¹⁷⁷Lu-FAPI-RGD in the majority of metastatic lesions including lung and lymph node nodules with baseline 68Ga-FAPI-RGD PET/CT imaging (left) and significant tumor size reduction in PET/CT imaging obtained after two treatment cycles with ¹⁷⁷Lu-FAPI-RGD. (Images courtesy of SNMMI.)

The study authors found that 88.9 percent of the cohort had reductions in tumor size or cessation of tumor growth. The researchers also reported no side effects and added that many patients in the cohort experienced reduced pain as well as improved appetite and quality of life.

“This first-in-human dosimetry trial of ¹⁷⁷Lu-DOTA-FAPI-RGD highlights its potential applicability across a broad spectrum of oncological diseases. The dual-targeting radioligand, ¹⁷⁷Lu-DOTA-FAPI-RGD, exhibited an acceptable safety profile, significant tumor uptake and retention, and a promising therapeutic response,” noted lead study author Jialin Xiang, a PhD student at Peking Union Medical College Hospital in Beijing, China, and colleagues.

(Editor’s note: For additional coverage of news and research from the SNMMI conference, click here.)

The researchers emphasized that the significant uptake of ¹⁷⁷Lu-DOTA-FAPI-RGD and its long retention facilitated high targeted dosing, citing 4.3 Gy/GBq for lung metastases as an example.

“The beauty of this drug is that it stays in tumors for days, allowing prolonged damage to cancer cells. It offers real hope for patients with advanced cancers who have exhausted other treatment options,” added Xiang.

(Editor’s note: For related content, see “Can CT-Based AI Help Predict Renal Function Decline After Radioligand Therapy for mCRPC?,” “What SPECT/CT May Reveal About Early Treatment Response for Pluvicto in Patients with mCRPC” and “New Study Shows Impact of Tau-Positive PET in Risk Stratification for Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease.”)

Reference

1. Xiang J, Wang R, Wang J, Peng X, Wang Y, Zhu Z. Preliminary safety, biodistribution, and dosimetry of fibroblast activation protein and integrin avB3 dual targeting radioligand 177Lu-DOTA-FAPI-RGD: first-in-human results. Presented at the Society for Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) conference, June 21-24, 2025. Available at: https://jnm.snmjournals.org/content/66/supplement_1/251663 .