Lung cancer: A marine-derived substance holds promise

Lung cancer, which is dedicated to the day of August 1st, continues to be a of the most widespread and lethal neoplasms in Italy and in the world. Each year, in Italy alone, 44,831 new cases are diagnosed, and approximately 12% are small cell lung cancer (SCLC), an aggressive and rapidly progressing form, for the for which therapeutic options have long remained limited. In recent years, however, advances in the treatment of SCLC have opened up new perspectives. Among these is a compound synthetic of marine origin, extracted from the invertebrate Ecteinascidia turbinata - which has demonstrated results promising in combination as maintenance therapy in first-line for patients with extensive-stage SCLC (ES-SCLC), one of the most aggressive forms of cancer and with the greatest needs dissatisfied clinicians. Recently, data presented at the ASCO Annual Meeting 2025 in Chicago, and published simultaneously in The Lancet, relating in the phase 3 study called IMforte they demonstrated that the synthetic compound of marine origin in combination with immunotherapy reduces the risk of progression of the disease by 46% disease or death, with a median overall survival of 13.2 months compared to 10.6 months with immunotherapy alone. "Small cell lung cancer is one of the most common forms of aggressive and difficult to treat lung cancer. In In most cases, the diagnosis occurs when the disease is already in an advanced stage and the therapeutic options available are limited - comments Silvia Novello, Director of the Complex Structure under the University Management of Oncology Doctor at the San Luigi Hospital in Orbassano and Professor Professor of Medical Oncology at the University of Turin - "The results of the IMforte study represent an important novelty: the new combination has demonstrated a significant clinical benefit, with an improvement in overall survival and disease-free survival progression". PharmaMar in oncology has worked on a research model that explores the potential of molecules derived from organisms marine for the treatment of cancer. This approach has led to the discovery of innovative therapeutic compounds with mechanisms of action that differ from chemotherapy traditional. The company has a "collection" of over 500,000 samples frozen marine invertebrates, collected in more than 35 countries over the last decades and stored at its R&D center of Madrid. Every year, marine biologists and divers specialized collect approximately 2,000 new samples at depth between 20 and 70 metres.