Amgen's anti-HGF/SF mAb improves OS in high c-Met patients

Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) said rilotumumab plus chemotherapy significantly improved median overall survival vs. chemotherapy alone in patients with gastric tumors exhibiting high c-Met expression (11.1 vs. 5.7 months, p=0.012). The results came from an exploratory analysis of a subset of 90 patients in a completed Phase II trial of the mAb against human hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor. In patients with low c-Met expression, rilotumumab plus chemotherapy was associated with a trend towards unfavorable OS compared to chemotherapy alone. Based on the results, Amgen plans to move rilotumumab into Phase III testing this year to treat advanced gastric and gastroesophageal junction cancer in patients whose tumors have high c-Met expression. Data will be presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in Chicago in June.

Amgen defined high c-Met expression as more than 50% of tumor cells testing positive for the c-Met protein. Last year, Amgen reported data from all 121 patients in the Phase II trial showing that rilotumumab plus chemotherapy led to median progression-free survival of 5.6 months and OS of 11.1 months, compared to PFS of 4.2 months and OS of 8.9 months for chemotherapy alone. ...