Dr. Iqbal on the Biggest Advance in the Treatment of Neuroendocrine Tumors

Syma Iqbal, MD, associate professor of clinical medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, discusses the impact of peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT) on the treatment of patients with neuroendocrine tumors (NETs).

PRRT has been the biggest advance in the treatment paradigm, says Iqbal. The randomized NETTER-1 trial compared Lutathera (lutetium Lu 177 dotatate) with octreotide (Sandostatin). Results indicated a 0.21 HR for progression-free survival which is unprecedented in the field. The therapy showed a significant benefit for patients and was well tolerated, says Iqbal. Now that it is FDA approved and has demonstrated a long-term benefit, it will be something that is used often in practice, adds Iqbal.

Now that physicians have multiple therapeutic options, they need a way of predicting response to therapy. Moreover, immunotherapy may enter the field in both in low- and high-grade tumors, though there is still a lot of research to do, Iqbal concludes.