LUNG CANCER

Atezolizumab monotherapy demonstrated a statistically significant overall survival benefit in comparison with chemotherapy doublets in patients with untreated advanced non&ndash;small cell lung cancer with high PD-L1 expression and without <em>ALK </em>or <em>EGFR </em>mutations. This met the primary endpoint for the phase III IMpower110 trial, according to initial results release by Genentech, the developer of the PD-L1 inhibitor.

The combination of&nbsp;atezolizumab plus carboplatin and nab-paclitaxel demonstrated a clinical overall survival benefit in a subgroup of patients with&nbsp;advanced squamous non&ndash;small cell lung cancer and a high level of PD-L1 expression in the phase III IMpower131 trial. Final data for this study was presented at the 2019 World Conference on Lung Cancer.

The FDA has granted a breakthrough therapy designation to tepotinib, an investigational MET inhibitor, for the treatment of patients with metastatic non&ndash;small cell lung cancer harboring a&nbsp;MET&nbsp;exon 14 skipping alteration who have progressed following platinum-based therapy.

Treatment with selpercatinib induced responses in 68% of patients with&nbsp;<em>RET&nbsp;</em>fusion&ndash;positive non&ndash;small cell lung cancer, according to findings from the phase I/II LIBRETTO-001 trial.

Bemcentinib, a first-in-class AXL inhibitor, in combination with the PD-1 inhibitor&nbsp;pembrolizumab showed activity in patients with immunotherapy-naive&nbsp;advanced&nbsp;non&ndash;small cell lung cancer, according to findings from the phase II study presented at the 2019 World Conference on Lung Cancer.

A statistically significant improvement in overall survival was demonstrated with durvalumab, a PD-L1 inhibitor, combined with chemotherapy in patients with previously untreated extensive-stage small cell lung cancer, according to findings from the phase III CASPIAN trial, presented at the 2019 World Conference on Lung Cancer.

The FDA has granted a fast track designation to AMG 510 for the treatment of patients with previously treated metastatic non&ndash;small cell lung cancer harboring a&nbsp;<em>KRAS&nbsp;</em>G12C mutation.

In a recent analysis published in <em>JAMA</em>, data were evaluated from a collection of clinical trials and analyzed for important takeaways in the testing and treatment of patients with non&ndash;small cell lung cancer. The authors stress the importance of molecular testing in patients with NSCLC as more targeted therapies become available.&nbsp;<br /> &nbsp;

The FDA has granted capmatinib a breakthrough therapy designation as a first-line treatment for patients with <em>MET </em>exon 14 skipping mutation&ndash;positive non&ndash;small cell lung cancer.

Corey J. Langer, MD, detailed the best courses of treatment for a patient with non&ndash;small cell lung cancer to a group of physicians during a recent&nbsp;Targeted Oncology&nbsp;live case-based peer perspectives discussion.

Sarah B. Goldberg, MD, MPH, discusses the role of clinical trials in patients with lung cancer who have molecularly altered tumors, such as&nbsp;<em>EGFR</em>,&nbsp;<em>ALK</em>,&nbsp;<em>BRAF</em>,<em>ROS1,&nbsp;</em>or other alterations. These patients typically consider either targeted therapy or immunotherapy treatment options.

The review period has been extended by the FDA for a&nbsp;supplemental biologics license application for atezolizumab as a frontline treatment for patients with&nbsp;metastatic nonsquamous non&ndash;small cell lung cancer who do not have <em>EGFR</em> or <em>ALK</em> aberrations, in combination with&nbsp;carboplatin and nab-paclitaxel.

Findings from a phase II study in patients with small cell lung cancer suggested tumor immune phenotypes can be predictive of response to immune checkpoint blockade. Responses to the combination of durvalumab plus olaparib were observed in all patients where tumors had an inflamed phenotype.

Lowell L. Hart, MD, FACP, scientific director of clinical research, Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute, and associate professor of medicine, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, discusses the effect of CDK4/6 inhibitor, trilaciclib on myelosuppression in patients with previously treated extensive-stage small cell lung cancer receiving topotecan. Hart presented the phase II results from the blinded, multicenter study during the 2019 ASCO Annual Meeting.

A 61-Year-Old Man With ALK-Rearranged NSCLC

During the <em>20th Annual </em>International Lung Cancer Congress, <em>Targeted Oncology</em> spoke with another Lung-MAP investigator, Fred R. Hirsch, MD, PhD, about the status and importance of the trial and new recommendations for molecular testing and liquid biopsies working their way into practice in the lung cancer field.

The combination of durvalumab and tremelimumab did not meet its primary overall survival endpoint compared with platinum-based chemotherapy in patients with previously untreated stage IV non&ndash;small cell lung cancer and a high tumor mutational burden, according to final OS results from the phase III NEPTUNE trial.

Twenty to 30 years ago, delivering a diagnosis of lung cancer to a patient was a difficult conversation to have for many oncologists. But that has given way to greater optimism today, according to Mark A. Socinski, MD.