Earlier this year, the FDA approved a new targeted chemotherapy, Datroway (datopotamab deruxtecan) for adults with unresectable or metastatic hormone receptor (HR)-positive, HER2 negative breast cancer. This specific type of cancer makes up 70% of breast cancer cases.
Datroway is approved for patients with metastatic disease who have already tried endocrine-based therapy and chemotherapy.1,2
What makes Datroway interesting?
Datroway is an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC). These drugs target cancer cells in a unique way, which has been likened to a missile: while standard chemotherapy treatments affect the whole body, including healthy cells, ADCs deliver chemotherapy directly to cancer cells and help keep healthy cells unaffected.1,2
In the trial, Datroway showed improved profession-free survival and higher response rates.2 Datroway also has an overall manageable side effect profile. Common side effects included mouth sores, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, hair thinning or loss, and dry eyes. Low white blood cells, anemia, and decreased lymphocytes were also common side effects. These conditions are often observed in ADC treatments.2 Datroway also has a 4.2% risk for interstitial lung disease, but this was not a common side effect.
How will Datroway affect the future treatment landscape?
Cancer experts are not calling the drug a “game changer” just yet, however, given the high incidence of disease, Datroway comes as a welcome market entrance to help give patients other treatment choices. While it is approved for patients with metastatic disease, it may be offered to patients at earlier stages of their cancer treatment journey if it continues to prove effective.1 What’s more, Datroway has picked up accelerated approval by the FDA for the treatment of adults with locally advanced or metastatic epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have received prior EGFR-directed therapy and platinum-based chemotherapy.3
Results from the phase 3 clinical trial studying breast cancer are promising, as patients who received Datroway had an additional ~8 weeks of progression-free survival compared to patients receiving one of four standard chemotherapies. Another benefit of Datroway is its safety profile, as it displayed fewer side effects compared to other treatments. In the trial, the rate of severe adverse reactions was 21% in the Datroway group and 45% in the standard chemotherapy group.1
How will Datroway affect market dynamics?
Antibody-drug conjugates like Datroway can be highly effective at targeting cancer cells but incorporating them into a treatment plan can be challenging, as patients may sometimes develop resistance to treatment without knowing if it is a resistance to the chemotherapy being delivered to the cells of the antibody carrying it. With time and further data, ADCs could prove to be extremely effective and reliable therapies for treating cancer.
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Sources
https://www.verywellhealth.com/fda-approves-datroway-breast-cancer-drug-8785236?utm_
https://oncodaily.com/drugs/datopotamab-deruxtecan-dlnk-datroway