AstraZeneca and MedImmune, its global biologics research and development arm, presented data indicating that lung cancer drug Imfinzi could lengthen the lives of people with a type of stage 3 lung cancer.
Sean Bohen, Executive vice president, global medicines development and chief medical officer, said: “These data establish Imfinzi as the first immunotherapy to demonstrate an overall survival benefit for patients with unresectable, Stage III non-small cell lung cancer following chemoradiation therapy. Today’s announcement brings new hope to patients in a setting where survival rates have not changed in decades.”
The Endpoints pharmaceutical website reported that the study is good news for AstraZeneca, which has seen setbacks in efforts to find breakthrough ccancer drugs
Shares of AstraZeneca were trading at $38 a share, not far away from its five-year high of $41. AstraZeneca employs 1,500 in Delaware.
Scott J. Antonia, MD, Ph.D., chair of the Thoracic Oncology Department at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, FL and principal investigator in the PACIFIC trial said: “The five-year survival rate in this setting has historically been around 15 percent after concurrent chemoradiation therapy. The significant survival benefit observed using the PACIFIC regimen provides confidence and clear rationale for a new standard of care.”
Imfinzi is currently approved in the US, EU, Canada, Switzerland, India, Japan and Brazil based on the PACIFIC trial. Other global health authority reviews and submissions are ongoing.
Stage III (locally-advanced) non small cell lung cancer represents approximately one-third of non small cell lung cancer cases iand was estimated to affect around 105,000 patients in the top-eight countries (China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, UK, US) in 2017.
The trial is being conducted in 235 centers across 26 countries involving 713 patients.
The drug is also being tested for effectiveness in treating other types of cancer.
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among both men and women, accounting for about one-third of all cancer deaths.
