Takeda’s Alunbrig shows promise as first-line ALK NSCLC therapy

Takeda’s Alunbrig cut the risk of disease progression or death by more than 50% compared to Pfizer’s Xalkori in adults with ALK+ non-small cell lung cancer.

ALTA-1L enrolled 275 patients with ALK+ locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC who had not received prior treatment with an ALK inhibitor but may have received up to one prior regimen of chemotherapy in the advanced setting.

Patients received either Alunbrig (brigatinib), 180mg once daily with seven-day lead-in at 90mg once daily, or Xalkori (crizotinib), 250mg twice daily.

Treatment with Alunbrig resulted in superior progression-free survival compared to Xalkori as assessed by a blinded independent review committee, corresponding to a 51% reduction in the risk of disease progression or death.

The findings, from the first interim analysis of the trial, show that Alunbrig “has the potential to be a key player in the first-line setting,” said D Ross Camidge, Joyce Zeff Chair in Lung Cancer Research at the University of Colorado Cancer Center and the lead investigator of ALTA-1L.

Alunbrig has been awarded accelerated approval in the US for ALK+ metastatic NSCLC patients who have progressed on or are intolerant to crizotinib. The drug is also under review in Europe for the same indication, where it was recently recommended for approval.

26th September 2018

http://www.pharmatimes.com/