Dr. Zhen on Future Research Efforts in Neuroendocrine Carcinomas

David Zhen, MD, physician, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, assistant professor, the University of Washington School of Medicine, assistant professor, Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, discusses future research efforts in poorly differentiated small cell neuroendocrine carcinomas.

The randomized phase 2/3 SWOG S2012 trial (NCT05058651) is evaluating the addition of atezolizumab (Tecentriq) to the standard-of-care chemotherapy for patients with metastatic small cell neuroendocrine carcinomas that originate outside the lung.

Though neuroendocrine tumors tend to be less aggressive, with patients achieving survival measured in years, poorly differentiated neuroendocrine carcinomas represent a subset of these cancers, Zhen says. These rare tumors are typically much more aggressive than other neuroendocrine tumors, Zhen explains.

Under the current standard of care, with neuroendocrine carcinomas could survive for 1 year or less, and there is a need develop improved therapies for this subset of patients, Zhen concludes.