KEVLARx: Hit Me With Your Best Shot

Jun 18, 2024

We have officially designated Pat Benatar’s 1980s take-no-prisoners smash single Hit Me With Your Best Shot as the official anthem for KEVLARx. This is the randomized, placebo-controlled Phase 2b clinical trial of RRx-001 (nibrozetone) given as pretreatment before cisplatin and intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) vs. cisplatin and IMRT alone to prevent the development of severe oral mucositis (SOM).

Based on results from a randomized Phase 2a clinical trial called KEVLAR, RRx-001 was awarded Fast Track designation for the treatment of severe oral mucositis.

Just as KEVLAR fibers stop bullets, the hope and the expectation are that RRx-001 pretreatment in KEVLARx will likewise shield head-and-neck cancer patients against the impact of chemoradiation (CRT) and prevent or mitigate severe side effects like SOM, xerostomia (dry mouth), and dysphagia as result.

Benatar’s defiant, kick ass lyrics below perfectly summarize the resolve and toughness of head-and-neck (HNC) cancer patients treated with CRT and the potential for RRx-001 to help them through the worst of it.

Hit me with your best shot
Why don’t you hit me with your best shot? (Hit me with your best shot)
Hit me with your best shot
Fire away (fire away)

You come on with it, come on, you don’t fight fair
But that’s okay, see if I care
Knock me down, it’s all in vain
I’ll get right back on my feet again

Are we All Fired Up about the potential for RRx-001 to change clinical practice in HNC?

You better believe it!

Fire away!