Spectrum lifts on Phase II NSCLC data
Spectrum Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:SPPI) soared $5.21 (36%) to $19.67 on Wednesday after reporting interim data from a Phase II study of poziotinib (HM781-36B) to treat non-small cell lung cancer with EGFR exon 20 insertion mutations.
Among 11 evaluable patients who received one or more prior systemic treatments, poziotinib led to eight partial responses for an objective response rate (ORR) of 73%. On a conference call Wednesday, John Heymach said that in retrospective studies, median response rates to other therapies have been 4-8% among exon 20-mutant patients, and progression-free survival (PFS) averages less than two months. Heymach is a professor at University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, where the single-center trial was conducted...