Efficacy

Alecensa (Alectinib) Efficacy in Lung Cancer

Alecensa (alectinib) is an oral medication specifically designed to treat non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that is anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive. ALK-positive NSCLC is a subtype of lung cancer characterized by a genetic alteration where the ALK gene is fused with another gene, leading to the development and growth of cancer cells. Alectinib targets and inhibits the activity of the ALK protein, which can slow down or stop the growth of tumors. The efficacy of Alecensa has been demonstrated in several clinical trials, where it has shown significant improvement in progression-free survival compared to other treatments such as chemotherapy or crizotinib, another ALK inhibitor.

In the ALEX trial, a phase III clinical study, patients treated with Alecensa had a median progression-free survival of 34.8 months, which was significantly longer than the 10.9 months observed in patients treated with crizotinib. Additionally, Alecensa has been associated with a higher intracranial response rate, which is particularly important as ALK-positive NSCLC patients are at risk for brain metastases. This demonstrates Alecensa's ability to control disease progression both within and outside the central nervous system.

Retsevmo (Selpercatinib) Efficacy in Lung Cancer

Retsevmo (selpercatinib) is a targeted therapy approved for the treatment of lung cancers with specific genetic alterations, namely RET (rearranged during transfection) gene fusions. RET fusions are implicated in a small percentage of NSCLC cases and contribute to cancer cell growth. Selpercatinib is designed to selectively inhibit RET kinase, thereby reducing tumor growth and potentially leading to tumor regression. The efficacy of Retsevmo has been evaluated in clinical trials involving patients with RET fusion-positive NSCLC who were previously treated with platinum-based chemotherapy.

In the LIBRETTO-001 trial, a phase I/II clinical trial, selpercatinib demonstrated a high overall response rate (ORR) in patients with RET fusion-positive NSCLC. The ORR was reported to be approximately 64% in the overall population, with a median duration of response of 17.5 months. These results indicate that Retsevmo can provide a significant clinical benefit in a patient population with limited treatment options. Furthermore, selpercatinib has shown activity against brain metastases, similar to Alecensa, which is a critical consideration for lung cancer patients with central nervous system involvement.