Podcast/Dr. Ben Solomon, ALK Inhibition, from Science to FDA

[Guest LCSC Info]

Podcast by Dr. Ben Solomon, on ALK Inhibition, from Science to FDA-Approved Treatment Now Available

http://blog.lungevity.org/2011/11/04/be ... nhibition/

November 4th, 2011 - by Dr. Jack West

A few weeks ago, LUNGevity Foundation partnered with GRACE to do a live webinar with not one but two international stars in lung cancer research that has, in just a few short years, gone from interesting lab-based observation to actual therapy helping (a subgroup of) lung cancer patients. I don’t think there’s a more clear and inspiring example of good science leading to effective treatment than the story of the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitor crizotinib (now FDA approved as XALKORI) for patients with an EML4-ALK rearrangement (approximately 4% of the broader NSCLC population). Our webinar featured Drs. Ben Solomon from Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne, Australia, and Ross Camidge from University of Colorado, in Denver, who worked with a small group of other international researchers to study crizotinib and conduct the critical trials that proved successful.

Dr. Ben Solomon was the first presenter, who gave an overview of the history of the EML4-ALK translocation and the early clinical research efforts developed with crizotinib. He then led us on a tour of the highlights of the efficacy data for this new agent and the side effect profile.

Click the blog link above to find both the audio and video podcast versions of his presentation, along with pdf files of the accompanying transcript and figures.

There will also be two additional podcasts from this program on ALK inhibition. The next one will cover Dr. Camidge’s presentation, which covered practical issues such as screening for ALK and alternative treatment options for ALK-positive patients, so look for that here very soon.