Dr. West on the Significance of the PACIFIC Trial in NSCLC

H. Jack West, MD, medical oncologist, Swedish Cancer Institute of Swedish Medical Center, discusses the significance of the PACIFIC trial in patients with non—small cell lung cancer.

This clinical trial was arguably the most influential at the 2017 ESMO Congress, West explains. There have not been any major advancements in patients with stage III lung cancer; however, this is a large population, one-third of patients with lung cancer. While there was no analysis conducted for overall survival, the trial did show a progression-free survival (PFS) benefit. In the study, the median PFS was 16.8 months with durvalumab compared with 5.6 months for placebo. At 12 months, 55.9% of those in the durvalumab arm remained progression free compared with 35.3% with placebo. The 18-month PFS rates were 44.2% and 27.0%, for durvalumab and placebo, respectively.

This will likely translate to a clinically survival benefit, West predicts. By shifting the survival curve by 1 or 2 years, this will likely impact clinical practice. These results warrant a new standard of care for these patients, he concludes.

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