Data has been presented by AstraZeneca and Merck demonstrating clinical improvement in median radiologic progression-free survival (rPFS) with Lynparza (olaparib) in combination with abiraterone compared to abiraterone monotherapy, a standard of care, in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC).
Prostate cancer
Lynparza is the first PARP-inhibitor to demonstrate activity in combination with standard of care treatment in prostate cancer. It is being jointly developed by AstraZeneca and Merck.
Noel Clarke, professor of Urological Oncology, Christie NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester, UK, said: “This is the first time we have seen an improvement with the use of a PARP inhibitor in combination with abiraterone in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer and this effect may be independent of HRR status. The data suggest this therapeutic combination may be a promising new treatment approach for this aggressive disease.”
“A previous trial demonstrated improvements in response rates with Lynparza monotherapy in metastatic castration-resistant patients with HRR mutations,” commented Sean Bohen, executive vice president, Global Medicines Development and chief medical officer at AstraZeneca. “The Study 08 combination data suggests that regardless of their mutation status, men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer may potentially benefit from Lynparza in combination with abiraterone.”
Roy Baynes, senior vice president and head of Global Clinical Development, chief medical officer, MSD Research Laboratories, said: “There is a significant unmet medical need for patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer as they are a high-risk group with limited treatment options. Lynparza is the first PARP inhibitor to demonstrate activity in combination with standard-of-care treatment in prostate cancer. These data from Study 08 represent another important milestone in the clinical development of Lynparza.”
The results of Study 08, a randomised, double-blinded, multi-centre Phase II trial, comparing Lynparza in combination with abiraterone to abiraterone monotherapy in patients with previously-treated mCRPC, regardless of homologous recombination repair (HRR) mutation status, were recently presented at the 2018 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago.
