The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting is a major conference for oncologists worldwide where the latest innovation is unveiled. Taking place earlier this month in Chicago, the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting featured over 200 sessions complementing the theme The Art and Science of Cancer Care: from Comfort to Cure.
We’ve compiled some of the visionary insights and findings within lung cancer unveiled at the conference to help you stay at the forefront of the newest groundbreaking research, developments, and treatments. Read more about them below.
Lorbrena to help treat ALK-positive lung cancer
Over 70,000 people are diagnosed with ALK-positive lung cancer every year, a rare subtype of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Follow-up research to a previous phase III clinical trial found that 60% of patients who received lorlatinib (Lorbrena) were still alive 5 years after starting therapy, compared with 8% of patients who received a different drug, crizotinib. Data also shows that patients taking lorlatinib were significantly less likely to have their cancer spread to their brain when compared to crizotinib. These findings represent a remarkable result and new treatment option for patients with this aggressive subtype of NSCLC, which tends to affect younger individuals and often spreads to the brain, impacting quality of life.
Tagrisso delivers 84% improvement on the time patients can live without progression
Treatment of unresectable Stage III EGFR-mutated NSCLC with (osimertinib) Tagrisso led to a median of 39.1 months of progression-free survival compared to 5.6 months in a placebo group. Not only does this represent a new treatment option for patients with EGFR-positive unresectable disease, but the response rates alone are significant in delaying treatment progression, representing an 84% increase in the time patients went without disease progression.
Injectable treatment offers better outcomes than intravenous alternative
Results from the PALOMA-3 trial show the subcutaneous (SC) formulation amivantamab-vmjw (Rybrevant) increased survival rates in EGFR positive (ex19del or L858R mutations) NSCLC patients versus the intravenous version of the same drug. The study compared Rybrevant SC plus lazertinib with the current standard regimen of Rybrevant IV plus lazertinib. The goal of the study was to show equivalent outcomes with improved convenience because the SC version requires less time to get an infusion. But, surprisingly, the study also showed better outcomes, most notably a 38% reduction in the risk of death with the SC formulation. Additionally, Rybrevant SC also showed a better tolerability profile and a longer duration of response and progression-free survival.
Palliative care via telehealth in advanced cancer
A large randomized trial found that in-person and telehealth palliative care have nearly identical satisfaction ratings in patients with advanced cancer. The findings from this study highlight the importance of telehealth in improving the accessibility of palliative care. Palliative care may augment quality of life and support pain management.
Adagrasib (Krazati) significantly improved the risk of tumor progression or death by 42% compared with the chemotherapy docetaxel in patients with previously treated KRAS G12C-mutated NSCLC, according to results from the phase III KRYSTAL-12 trial. However, despite these results, the trial found that Krazati only added 1.65 months of progression-free survival for patients so the overall impact is unclear.
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