Amgen (AMGN.US) and Astrazeneca PLC Sponsored ADR (AZN.US) combination therapy extends small cell lung cancer survival by eight months, reducing risk of death by 58%

Amgen (AMGN.US) and Astrazeneca PLC Sponsored ADR (AZN.US) combination therapy achieves positive research results in the treatment of small cell lung cancer. Researchers combined Amgen's Imdelltra with Astrazeneca PLC Sponsored ADR's Imfinzi and found that for patients with aggressive lung cancer whose tumors have spread, the combination extended survival by approximately eight months compared with Imfinzi alone. Small cell lung cancer is one of the cancer types with the worst prognosis. The above research results were presented on Saturday at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) annual congress in Madrid, Spain, and simultaneously published in The New England Journal of Medicine. The study showed that for patients whose cancer had not progressed after chemotherapy and other treatments, Imdelltra and ImfinziUnited Therapeutics Corporation reduced the risk of death by 58%. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute oncologist Jacob Sands, who participated in the study, called this "an unprecedented advance." From a mechanistic perspective, Imdelltra is a bispecific T-cell engager that guides immune system T cells to recognize and kill cancer cells; Imfinzi is an immune checkpoint inhibitor that can release suppression of the immune system. The research suggests that combining a T-cell engager with an immune checkpoint inhibitor may help fight the most deadly cancers. Imdelltra had previously been shown to extend survival in patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer who still progressed after chemotherapy, but the drug is currently only available to patients whose disease still progresses after other treatments. Sands said making the drug available earlier is very important, because typically only about half of patients treated for small cell lung cancer receive subsequent treatment. In terms of safety, among patients receiving Imdelltra and ImfinziUnited Therapeutics Corporation, about half experienced an inflammatory response called cytokine release syndrome, but most cases were milder forms; about 1% of patients experienced neurological disorders affecting the brain. Amgen Chief Medical Officer Paul Burton said that as the trial continues, United Therapeutics Corporation data are expected to improve further. Early research showed that Imdelltra combined with Imfinzi or Roche's Tecentriq can help patients live longer. On the Astrazeneca PLC Sponsored ADR side, Imfinzi is expected to become the company's best-selling drug next year. Another study announced on Saturday showed that Imfinzi combined with Pfizer Inc.'s antibody-drug conjugate Padcev for preoperative treatment of patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer resulted in 64% of patients remaining disease-free after two years, compared with 45% in the control group, with overall survival data also positive. Harvard Medical School professor Joaquim Bellmunt said the combination could become an alternative to the current standard therapy Keytruda plus Padcev, not because of superior efficacy but because of milder side effects. David Fredrickson, executive vice president of Astrazeneca PLC Sponsored ADR's oncology business unit, said this new approach will generate enthusiasm in the bladder cancer field.