Amgen presents groundbreaking research on Vectibix

Amgen has presented data from a cancer drug trial which used new sequencing technology to study the effects of gene mutation on treatment.

The company’s study of its metastatic colorectal cancer therapy Vectibix discovered that mutations in genes such as KRAS (exon 3) and NRAS affected the drug’s efficacy in a number of ways.

For example, patients with KRAS wild-type tumours were shown to experience improved progression-free survival rates when using Vectibix, while those with KRAS or NRAS mutant tumours did not benefit from treatment at all.

Lead investigator Dr Marc Peeters, of the department of oncology at Antwerp University Hospital, stated that this is the first time next-generation sequencing has been used to analyse tumour samples from a phase III clinical trial.

He added: “We are excited to be taking another step forward in the advancement of additional biomarkers with the study results presented.”

In total, Amgen currently has 16 different compounds in its oncology pipeline at varying stages of development.