A new drug combination recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration can stop lung cancer in its insidious tracks — more than 40% longer than previously possible, a large trial funded by pharmaceutical giant Janssen.
Doctors are hailing the discovery as “amazing”.
Lung cancer kills approximately 1.8 million people a year. The insidious disease is known for very low survival rates, especially in those in advanced stages.
The Guardian reported that a group of patients in that precarious condition were given a cocktail of amivantamab, a monoclonal antibody, and lazertinib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor – keeping them alive and progression-free for an average of 23.7 months.
Patients who received the standard treatment, a drug called osimertinib, had an average progression-free survival of 16.6 months, the source found.
The findings come as experts are said to be hailing a “golden age” of cancer research that is leading to better understanding and better treatment methods.
“It’s amazing to see that this new combination shows longer cancer control than osimertinib, which was itself a new treatment just a few years ago,” said Martin Forster, head of the UK trial and a medical oncologist at University College Hospital.
“Better understanding of the biology that drives lung cancer has guided the development of these targeted therapies,” Forster explained.
More than 1,000 patients were enrolled in the phase 3 trial, conducted during 2020-2022 in multiple countries.
All were in advanced stages of common non-small cell lung cancer, or NSCLC.
They were randomly assigned to either the drug combination or the standard treatment that the group of patients would normally have all received.
“By combining these two drugs, which stop the cancer from growing in different ways, we see a significant improvement in progression-free survival rates compared to the drug we currently use,” said Raffaele Califano, a consultant in medical oncology involved with the tracks. .
“The survival rate for lung cancer is still very low compared to other types of the disease and so to see such positive results is a welcome development.”
“We are in a golden age of cancer research, where a greater understanding of what drives specific cancers is informing new and better ways to beat the disease,” Anna Kinsella of Cancer Research UK told The Guardian.
“Research like this helps more people live longer, better lives, without fear of cancer.”
The FDA granted approval for the treatment in August.
The Post previously reported that researchers are campaigning to ban the sale of cigarettes to Gen Z smokers – saying the move would save 1.2 million lives normally lost to lung cancer over a 70-year period.
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