Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis (NYSE: NVS) has announced preliminary results from a Phase III study that evaluated the efficacy of radioligand therapy (RLT) Lutathera (lutetium (177Lu) oxodotreotide) in combination with the symptom-control drug octreotide as a first-line therapy for SSTR+ well-differentiated grade 2/3 advanced gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs). The clinical data revealed that the combination therapy significantly increased median progression-free survival (PFS) from 8.5 months to 22.8 months and the objective response rate (ORR) from 9.3% to 43%, while reducing the risk of disease progression or death by 72% compared to octreotide alone.
The safety profile of the combination treatment was found to be consistent with previous observations of Lutathera, which is already approved for certain SSTR-positive NET indications in regions including Europe, Japan, and the US. Novartis is currently expanding its RLT manufacturing capacity worldwide and is exploring the potential of these therapies for applications in breast, colon, lung, and pancreatic cancers.- Flcube.com
