# Amgen Reports 58% Lower Death Hazard in Lung Cancer Trial

By John Kim

Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/business/40261
Published: 2026-10-24T19:26:21.000Z
Updated: 2026-10-24T19:26:21.000Z
Section: Business

> Median overall survival was 21.1 months with tarlatamab and durvalumab, compared with 12.7 months with durvalumab alone. The trial tested the combination as maintenance therapy after initial treatment.

Amgen announced Saturday that adding tarlatamab to durvalumab was associated with a 58% lower hazard of death in a Phase 3 maintenance trial for extensive-stage small cell lung cancer.

Median overall survival was 21.1 months with the combination and 12.7 months with durvalumab alone. The hazard ratio was 0.42 (95% confidence interval: 0.32 to 0.54; P<0.001). Estimated survival at 12 months was 79% with the combination and 53% with durvalumab alone.

DeLLphi-305 randomized 563 patients: 282 received tarlatamab plus durvalumab and 281 received durvalumab alone. Their disease had not progressed after initial treatment with durvalumab, platinum chemotherapy and etoposide. The study compared the two maintenance regimens; it did not test the combination against other first-line or maintenance treatments.

The results came from a planned interim analysis with data collected through July 7, 2026. Median follow-up was 15.9 months in the combination group and 16.1 months in the durvalumab group. Median progression-free survival was 7.4 months with the combination and 1.9 months with durvalumab alone. For that measure, the hazard ratio was 0.34 (95% confidence interval: 0.28 to 0.42; P<0.001), with median follow-up of 13.9 months in both groups.

The 58% figure describes a relative reduction in the hazard of death. It does not mean survival increased by 58 percentage points, and the median results describe trial groups rather than an individual patient’s outcome.

Grade 3 or 4 treatment-related adverse events occurred in 20.9% of patients receiving the combination and 10.8% of those receiving durvalumab alone. Cytokine release syndrome occurred in 49.6% of combination patients. Most cases were grade 1 or 2; one case was grade 3, and none were grade 4 or higher.

Jacob Sands, associate chief of the Lowe Center for Thoracic Oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, said: “This immunotherapy combination sets a new standard of care with tarlatamab plus durvalumab in the maintenance setting after induction chemotherapy plus durvalumab.”

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) currently approves tarlatamab for adults with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer whose disease progressed during or after platinum-based chemotherapy. Amgen plans to share the trial findings with regulatory authorities, but has not specified a submission date.