Lurbinectedin with atezolizumab maintenance therapy for extensive-stage small-cell lung cancer

Lurbinectedin in combination with atezolizumab is in clinical development for patients with extensive stage small-cell lung cancer (ES-SCLC) after first-line induction therapy. Small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a type of lung cancer that usually develops in the central part of the lungs, and in which the cancer cells are small compared with other types of lung cancer. In extensive-stage, cancer has spread beyond the lung or the area between the lungs or the lymph nodes above the collarbone to other places in the body. Symptoms of ES-SCLC include chest pain, a cough that does not go away or gets worse, coughing up blood, and breathlessness. Smoking is the biggest risk factor for SCLC. Chemotherapy is often effective in the first instance, but relapse rates are high, and the outcome remains very poor. Therefore, new treatments are needed to improve the outcome of ES-SCLC.