A lung cancer wonder drug has been shown to dramatically extend survival for patients with an incurable form of the disease.
Experts said “unprecedented” results from a trial of the daily pill, lorlatinib, were among the best ever recorded for advanced lung cancer treatments.
After five years, 60 percent of patients taking the drug had not seen their cancer grow – a measure known as progression-free survival.
This compared to just eight percent of those receiving another standard treatment.
The study, presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s (ASCO) annual conference in Chicago, was hailed as a “major step forward for lung cancer care”.
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Lead author Dr Benjamin Solomon, of the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Australia, said: “This is the longest progression-free survival ever reported in ALK+ non small cell lung cancer, and indeed, to our knowledge, of any targeted therapy in lung cancer to date.”
Dr David Spigel, an ASCO expert and chief scientific officer at the Sarah Cannon Research Institute, described the data as “off the chart”.
He said: “We just haven’t seen results like that in oncology that often, much less in non-small cell lung cancer.
“These are among the best results we’ve seen in advanced disease in any setting…a really major step forward in lung cancer care.”
The research involved 296 people with ALK-positive non-small cell lung cancer, a form of the disease caused by a mutation of the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene.
Around 350 people are diagnosed with this type each year in the UK. It is particularly common among women below the age of 55 and non-smokers.
Lorlatinib, developed by Pfizer, works by blocking the abnormal protein that signals cancer cells to multiply.
It is available on the NHS to around 80-90 patients per year for whom other similar drugs have failed.
However, it is not available as a first line treatment. The medicines watchdog ruled that evidence of its clinical benefits was uncertain and the cost too high.
The latest results offer hope that its use could be extended, experts said.
Debra Montague, chair or ALK Positive Lung Cancer UK, said: “Lung cancer often spreads to the brain and lorlatinib is very successful at stopping this.
“The drug is not yet in use in for first line treatment in the England but hopefully, after these results, it will get approval.
“ALK-positive lung cancer usually affects patients who have never smoked and this drugs raises the prospect of extending lives by many years.”
Cancer Research UK’s chief clinician, Professor Charles Swanton, said the research “gives hope to patients with advanced lung cancer”.
He added: “Despite progress in our understanding of the disease, it can be incredibly challenging to control cancers that have spread and there are limited treatment options for lung cancer.
“Showcasing the power of cancer growth-blocker drugs, this study could present us with an effective way of stopping cancer in its tracks and preventing it from spreading to the brain.
“The groundbreaking results show that over half of the patients who took lorlatinib did not suffer a progression in their disease after five years. In contrast, over half of the patients who took crizotinib experienced disease progression after just nine months.
“Research like this is vital to find new ways to treat lung cancer and help more people survive for longer.”
