Combination Drug Study of Bexarotene and Rosiglitazone to Treat CTCL

Treatment options for CTCL include both skin-directed and systemic therapies. Topical treatments are effective for early-stage disease that is localized to the skin. However, disease involving the lymph nodes or visceral sites can be palliated but rarely cured, even with the most aggressive regimens of systemic chemotherapy. Unfortunately, current treatment options at this stage only provide a short term response. Thus, it is important that additional therapies are investigated to manage this malignancy. Bexarotene has been approved by the FDA for the treatment of Cutaneous T-Cell Lymphoma (CTCL).Bexarotene binds the RXR(Retinoid X Receptor)inside the cell, a receptor that forms heterodimers with a multitude of other nuclear receptors. One of these is the PPARγ (Peroxisome Proliferator Activator Receptor Gamma), a nuclear receptor that binds Rosiglitazone.Rosiglitazone is an FDA approved antidiabetic agent of the Thiazolidinedione class. Rosiglitazone increases insulin sensitivity and is useful in the treatment of type 2 diabetes. In vitro data suggest that rosiglitazone and bexarotene may act synergistically to induce apoptosis in cell lines derived from patients with cutaneous T cell lymphoma (CTCL). This pilot study will investigate this possible synergism in a small cohort of patients with stable or progressive CTCL already being treated with bexarotene.