The study results published on Friday (May 31) show that Pfizer’s lung cancer drug significantly slows down the progression of the cancer and improves the quality of life of people in advanced stages of the disease – reports the AFP agency, quoted by .
Pfizer representative: An unprecedented discovery
Lorlatinib, which is already approved and available under the brand name Lorbrena in the United States, was tested in a clinical trial in hundreds of people with advanced anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). About half of the patients received lorlatinib and the rest received crizotinib, an earlier generation drug. After five years of follow-up, more than half of patients treated with lorlatinib had no cancer progression. – We are talking about patients with advanced metastatic disease, so this is a truly unprecedented discovery – Despina Thomaidou from Pfizer.
60 percent Patients receiving lorlatinib as a once-daily oral tablet did not experience disease progression. However, when it comes to crizotinib, this value was 8%. According to Despina Thomaidou, the risk of developing cancer was reduced by 81%.
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death worldwide. NSCLC is responsible for over 80%. cases of lung cancer, with ALK-positive tumors responsible for approximately five percent of NSCLC cases, which translates into approximately 72,000 cases. new cases every year around the world. ALK-positive NSCLC mainly affects younger patients and is not strongly associated with cigarette smoking. However, he is very aggressive. In 25-40 percent people with ALK-positive NSCLC develop brain metastases within the first two years. In patients treated with lorlatinib, the risk of brain metastases was reduced by 94%. compared to crizotinib. However, there are side effects such as swelling, depression and weight gain. The results were published at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology and in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Source: Gazeta
Mabel is a talented author and journalist with a passion for all things technology. As an experienced writer for the 247 News Agency, she has established a reputation for her in-depth reporting and expert analysis on the latest developments in the tech industry.
