Johnson & Johnson (J&J) announced that its lung cancer treatment regimen, which includes the drugs Rybrevant and Lazcluze, significantly extends survival compared to AstraZeneca’s Tagrisso, the leading treatment for a specific type of lung cancer. According to J&J, patients on their regimen live at least a year longer than those on Tagrisso, a result confirmed by a pivotal trial. The company plans to share detailed findings at an upcoming medical conference. J&J aims to challenge Tagrisso, a once-daily pill that has reshaped non-small cell lung cancer treatment, particularly for cases involving EGFR mutations, which account for 10-15% of lung cancer instances in the U.S.
While J&J heralds this breakthrough as transformative, challenges remain. The new regimen causes more side effects and necessitates infusions every few weeks, which may deter some doctors and patients from switching from Tagrisso. Dr. Stephen Liu emphasized the importance of identifying which patients would benefit most from the new treatment. J&J forecasts that annual sales for Rybrevant and Lazcluze could exceed $5 billion, compared with Tagrisso’s $6 billion in 2023, indicating a competitive market for lung cancer therapies.
