OBJECTIVES:
Primary
* Compare the objective response rate in patients with metastatic adenocarcinoma of the pancreas treated with two different schedules of gemcitabine hydrochloride and oxaliplatin.
Secondary
* Compare the clinical benefits and tolerability of these regimens in these patients.
* Compare the progression-free and overall survival of patients treated with these regimens.
OUTLINE: This is a randomized, multicenter study. Patients are stratified according to the participating center and ECOG performance status (0 or 1 vs 2). Patients are randomized to 1 of 2 treatment arms.
* Arm I: Patients receive gemcitabine hydrochloride IV over 100 minutes on day 1 and oxaliplatin IV over 2 hours on day 2.
* Arm II: Patients receive gemcitabine hydrochloride IV over 100 minutes followed by oxaliplatin IV over 2 hours on day 1.
In both arms, treatment repeats every 14 days in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity.
After completion of study treatment, patients are followed periodically.
PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 80 patients will be accrued for this study.
