Pfizer has announced longer-term follow-up results from the Phase 3 CROWN trial, evaluating Lorlatinib, a lung cancer treatment in people with previously untreated, anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

After five years of median follow-up, median progression-free survival (PFS) based on investigator assessment showed an 81 percent reduction in the rate of disease progression or death compared to Crizotinib. Further, 60 percent of patients treated with Lorlatinib were alive without disease progression after five years compared to 8 percent on the Crizotinib treatment arm.  The CROWN clinical trial involved 296 people with previously untreated ALK-positive advanced NSCLC. The treatment is currently available across several countries in MENA region, including GCC, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan and Morocco.

“These results from the CROWN trial are unprecedented, as the majority of patients on Lorlatinib are living beyond five years without disease progression,” said Roger Dansey, M.D., Chief Development Officer, Oncology, Pfizer. “These results are an excellent example of Pfizer’s long-standing commitment to discovering and developing scientific breakthroughs for patients, and support Lorlatinib as a standard of care for the first-line treatment of people with ALK-positive advanced NSCLC.”

Lung cancer is the second deadliest cancer in the MENA region accounting for around 10 percent of all cancer deaths[i]. Survival rates for lung cancer remain relatively poor in the MENA region, with a 5-year survival rate estimated at eight percent, compared to the global range of nine to sixteen percent[ii], suggesting a high incidence of diagnoses at advanced stages[iii]. The prevalence of lung cancer in the MENA region is affected by several factors, including smoking habits, exposure to environmental pollutants, and genetic predisposition.

Cancer (IARC) TIA for R on. “Global Cancer Observatory.” https://gco.iarc.fr/.
 Cancer (IARC) TIA for R on. “Global Cancer Observatory.” https://gco.iarc.fr/.

 Jazieh AR, Algwaiz G, Errihani H et al. Lung Cancer in the Middle East and North Africa Region. Journal of Thoracic Oncology 14(11), 1884–1891 (2019).