Dr. Chaft on the Next Steps of Osimertinib Research in EGFR+ NSCLC

Jamie E. Chaft, MD, a thoracic medical oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discusses the next steps of osimertinib (Tagrisso) research in EGFR-mutant non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Despite the short follow-up, results from the phase 3 ADAURA trial were impressive and garnered both discussion and debate after the 2020 ASCO Virtual Scientific Program. The hazard ratio of 0.17 for disease recurrence or death, which was reported in patients with stage II to IIIA disease who received adjuvant osimertinib, was a major breakthrough in the lung cancer space, Chaft says. Moreover, adjuvant osimertinib demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in disease-free survival in patients with stage IB to IIIA EGFR-mutant NSCLC.

However, there were also a few surprising findings from this trial, such as the high number of recurrences that were reported in the control arm.

In the short term, additional findings are expected, such as recurrence patterns and updates on quality of life. In the long term, the field will await recurrence rates after treatment discontinuation. Since this is currently unknown, many are hesitant to administer this agent, Chaft concludes.