Driven by advances in scientific understanding, the treatment of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has begun to see successes one subtype at a time. At the 2021 World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC), which is currently being held in virtual format, researchers were optimistic that the same path would be possible for small-cell lung cancer (SCLC).
Driven by advances in scientific understanding, the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has begun to see successes one subtype at a time. At the 2021 World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC), which is currently being held in virtual format, researchers were optimistic that the same path would be possible for small-cell lung cancer (SCLC).
The sad phase III fate of Abbvie Inc.’s rovalpituzumab tesirine, also known as rova T, in advanced small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) has not discouraged other drug developers targeting delta-like ligand 3 (DLL3) – not all of them, anyway.
As expected, G1 Therapeutics Inc.’s Cosela (trilaciclib) won FDA approval for use in extensive-stage small-cell lung cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy, becoming the first proactively administered myelopreservation therapy to hit the market.
The phase III study of Zepzelca (lurbinectedin) as combination therapy from Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc and Pharmamar SA was a stumble, but the companies said they found plenty of encouraging data prompting them to continue development.
Two months earlier than expected, Pharmamar SA and partner Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc received an accelerated FDA approval of Zepzelca to treat relapsed metastatic small-cell lung cancer patients.
Corey Carter, whose company Epicentrx Inc. just dosed its first patient in a phase III trial for treating third-line and beyond small-cell lung cancer (SCLC), has made studying the disease a life goal. "With my military background, I noticed that smoking rates are higher there," Carter, the company's president and CEO, told BioWorld. "That's when it became important to me. Then, also, my dad had small-cell lung cancer."
