#ASCO21: AstraZeneca's Lynparza earns win in early breast cancer patients, cracking open post-surgery potential
Drugmakers’ race to take targeted cancer therapies into early-line patients — before the disease ever spreads or can’t be removed surgically — has reached a fever pitch in recent years as the dream of real cures comes closer to reality. Eli Lilly recently scored a big win there in breast cancer, but AstraZeneca might have its response lined up with PARP inhibitor Lynparza.
Lynparza cut the risk of cancer recurrence or death by 42% over placebo in BRCA-mutated, HER2-negative breast cancer patients after surgery — a strong showing that could set up a potential first-in-class approval in an aggressive form of the disease and a challenge to Eli Lilly’s Verzenio elsewhere, according to late breaking data from the Phase III OLYMPIA study set to be presented at this weekend’s #ASCO21.
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