Dr. Scagliotti on the Phase III ASCEND-5 Study in ALK+ NSCLC

Giorgio Scagliotti, MD, PhD, professor of Medical Oncology, University of Torino, discusses the design and the results of the phase III ASCEND-5 study during an interview at the 2016 ESMO Congress.

The study compared the efficacy and safety of ceritinib (Zykadia) to standard second-line chemotherapy (pemetrexed or docetaxel) in patients with advanced ALK+ non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who progressed on prior crizotinib (Xalkori) and 1 or 2 prior regimens of chemotherapy.

According to Scagliotti, the results of the study were both clinically and statistically meaningful. Median progression-free survival was significantly improved with ceritinib compared to chemotherapy (5.4 vs 1.6 months).