The success rate of platinum-based first-line therapy for small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) remains to be controversial. Lurbinectedin, a selective inhibitor of oncogenic transcription, is one of the few second-line therapies that exist for SCLC. This study aims to examine the activity and safety of lurbinectedin in patients with SCLC after the failure of first-line therapy.
This open-label, single-arm, phase 2 basket trial included a total of 105 patients with a pathologically proven diagnosis of SCLC. The patients were assigned to lurbinectedin administered as a 1-h intravenous infusion every 3 weeks. The primary outcome of the study was the number of patients with the overall response.
During a median follow-up of 17.1 months, the overall response was observed in 37 patients (35.2%). Commonly occurring grade 3 or 4 adverse events included hematological abnormalities, such as anemia, neutropenia, and thrombocytopenia. The incident rate of serious treatment-related adverse events was 10%, with the most common events being neutropenia and febrile neutropenia. However, no treatment-related deaths were reported.
The research concluded that lurbinectedin, when used as second-line therapy for SCLC, showed an overall positive response with acceptable and manageable safety. Therefore, lurbinectedin can be a potential new second-line treatment for patients with SCLC.
Ref: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045(20)30068-1/fulltext
