Ongoing research was presented today at ASCO: Alimta consolidation chemotherapy improves survival in lung cancer patients. This was presented as an abstract last year (outcome reported back then was improved progression free survival) and makes a return visit this year with a survival story. A base hit turns into a triple: there have not been that many therapies that prolong survival in lung cancer. The benefit was three months more survival though these numbers got used against us in the Avastin setting so let's just call it a clinically meaningful improvement in survival. We have the esteemed Dr. Chandra Belani saying: "This should become the standard of care" for lung cancer. He is probably right but he would have more credibility if he didn't take money from Lilly. ASCO documents list him as a consultant for Lilly and as a Lilly-funded researcher. I know these are fighting words and right now medicine is struggling with how to deal with conflict of interest with industry but I still feel compelled to take these words of wisdom from our oncology thought leaders with a grain of salt. I personally have had good luck with using Alimta in consolidation for lung cancer in a few patients. The other good thing about the medicine is that it's not too hard on the patients. So now I would like to see an actual journal article about all this instead of these serial abstracts and I would like to see a genuine FDA approval proposal. ODAC (Oncology Drug Advisory Committee featuring the conflict-free Dr. Otis Brawley) is still the toughest game in town and if Lilly can get past them my due diligence as an oncologist is satisfied. http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUSN2914909720090530