Dr. Kris on Predicting Benefit With Osimertinib in EGFR+ NSCLC

Mark G. Kris, MD, medical oncologist, William and Joy Ruane Chair in Thoracic Oncology, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discusses methods for predicting benefit with osimertinib (Tagrisso) in patients with EGFR-positive non—small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Data from the pivotal phase III FLAURA trial resulted in a new standard of care for the frontline treatment of patients with EGFR-positive NSCLC. In the trial, patients treated with osimertinib experienced improved overall survival (OS) and less central nervous system progression compared with those who received gefitinib (Iressa).

Additional analysis of the trial is providing further insight regarding risk stratification for those on osimertinib—specifically, which patients are more likely to relapse on the third-generation inhibitor compared with those who are not. By measuring the presence of DNA related to the tumor in the bloodstream, this may be possible. In the analysis, researchers found that patients with a lower amount of tumor DNA in the bloodstream had a better prognosis than those with higher levels after treatment. This enables clinicians to devise a strategy that allows for earlier intervention in patients who will derive a shorter benefit from osimertinib, concludes Kris.