Phase III ANNOUNCE study of Lartruvo fails to meet endpoint in soft tissue sarcoma.- Eli Lilly

Eli Lilly reported that the results of ANNOUNCE, the Phase III study of Lartruvo (olaratumab), in combination with doxorubicin in patients with advanced or metastatic soft tissue sarcoma (STS), did not confirm the clinical benefit of Lartruvo in combination with doxorubicin as compared to doxorubicin, a standard of care treatment. Specifically, the study did not meet the primary endpoints of overall survival (OS) in the full study population or in the leiomyosarcoma (LMS) sub-population; there was no difference in survival between the study arms for either population. Lartruvo was well tolerated; there were no new safety signals identified and the safety profile was comparable between treatment arms. Lilly plans to present the ANNOUNCE data at an upcoming medical conference and will publish the results in a medical journal.

Comment: Lartruvo in combination with doxorubicin previously showed an OS benefit in STS in a 133-patient, U.S.-only, randomized Phase II trial, which led to accelerated approval by the FDA and conditional marketing authorization by the EMA. Continued approval is contingent upon verification of clinical benefit in a confirmatory trial. As ANNOUNCE did not confirm clinical benefit, Lilly is working with global regulators to determine the appropriate next steps for Lartruvo.

While these discussions are ongoing, patients who are currently receiving Lartruvo may, in consultation with their physician, continue their course of therapy if they are receiving clinical benefit. For patients who have not previously received Lartruvo, the results of the Phase III trial do not support initiating treatment with Lartruvo in patients with STS, outside of participation in a clinical trial. At this time, Lilly is suspending promotion of Lartruvo.