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news.Biopharmaceutical company Antisoma has reported that its cancer drug AS1404 showed a substantial survival benefit in lung cancer during phase II trials of the drug.
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Patients who received AS1404 on top of standard chemotherapy had a median survival of 14 months, compared with 8.8 months in patients treated with chemotherapy alone. This 5.2-month difference is one of the largest ever seen when combining a new agent with chemotherapy for lung cancer. Across the duration of the trial, patients treated with AS1404 had a 27% lower risk of dying than those receiving chemotherapy alone.
The addition of AS1404 to chemotherapy was well tolerated. These findings extend those announced in June and support Antisoma’s plans for a phase III trial in lung cancer.
The lung cancer study is one of three phase II trials of AS1404. Positive responses were recently reported from a trial in prostate cancer and encouraging early data have been presented from an ovarian cancer study. Antisoma is currently in talks with a number of companies with a view to licensing AS1404.
“Survival is the gold standard by which cancer drugs are judged and this news is therefore very exciting,” said Glyn Edwards, CEO of Antisoma.