AZ and MSD’s parp inhibitor Lynparza cuts risk of progression and death in prostate cancer
pharmafile | October 1, 2019 | News story | Manufacturing and Production |
AstraZeneca and MSD have shown in their Phase 3 PROfound trial, PARP inhibitor Lynparza (olaparib) reduced the risk of disease progression or death by up to 66% in men with metastic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) whose disease had progressed on prior new hormonal agent treatments.
Findings from the study were detailed at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) congress with the results showing a significant and clinically meaningful benefit as patients lived without disease progression for a median of 7.4 months compared to just 3.6 months for those treated with new hormonal agent treatments.
Study author Maha Hussain, remarked: “To see such a significant effect on disease progression and other clinically relevant effects such as pain progression and objective response rate is a remarkable achievement in such heavily pre-treated patients with prostate cancer.
“Prostate cancer has lagged behind all other common solid tumours in the use of molecularly targeted treatment so it is every exciting that now we can personalise an individual’s treatment based on specific genomic alteration in their cancer cells.”
According to both AstraZeneca and MSD, although adverse events were more common in the Lynparza group, the median treatment duration was 7.4 months for Lynparza which is nearly twice the treatment duration of 3.8 months for hormonal treatment. Discontinuation rates due to adverse events were 16.4% for Lynparza and 8.5% for hormonal therapy.
Commenting on the news, Nicholas James of Cancer Research UK, said: “Matching patients to the most appropriate treatment for their tumour type could radically change the way we treat prostate cancer.
“If we get to a point where we can tailor treatments in prostate cancer from an early stage, we can give every patient the best chance of being successfully treated.”
Nik Kiran
