Amgen drug combined with immunotherapy extends survival in lung cancer trial

By Deena Beasley Oct 24 (Reuters) Amgen s Imdelltra used in combination with AstraZeneca s immunotherapy Imfinzi reduced the risk of death by 58% compared to the Astra drug alone in patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer, according to data from a study presented at ​a major medical meeting on Saturday. Imfinzi is currently the standard of care following chemotherapy ‌for patients with this very aggressive and hard-to-treat disease whose cancer does not worsen after initial chemotherapy. The study found that those given both drugs lived for a median of 21.1 months, compared with 12.7 months for those treated only with Imfinzi. If you give Imdelltra earlier and earlier, you get bigger clinical benefit, said Paul Burton, chief medical officer ‌at ​California-based Amgen. He called the results unprecedented in advancing the treatment of ⁠extensive-stage small cell lung cancer. Imdelltra s ⁠US list price is about $30,000 per cycle, or over $390,000 a year. Wall Street an