Amgen drug combined with immunotherapy extended patient survival in lung cancer clinical trial.

Based on research data presented at a medical conference on Saturday, Amgen's drug Imdelltra, when used in combination with AstraZeneca's immunotherapy Imfinzi, reduced the risk of death in patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer by 58% compared with AstraZeneca's drug alone. For this highly aggressive and difficult-to-treat disease, Imfinzi is currently the standard treatment after chemotherapy for patients whose disease has not worsened after initial chemotherapy. The study found that patients who received both drugs had a median survival of 21.1 months, compared with 12.7 months for patients treated with Imfinzi alone. "The earlier Imdelltra is used, the greater the clinical benefit," said Burton, chief medical officer of California-based Amgen. He called the results "unprecedented in advancing the treatment of extensive-stage small cell lung cancer."