Design and Clinical Outcomes From the IMFORTE Trial

The IMforte trial represents a breakthrough for patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer who complete initial treatment without disease progression, offering new hope through maintenance therapy with lurbinectedin. Patients in this phase 3 study received standard induction therapy with carboplatin, etoposide, and atezolizumab for 4 cycles. Then those without progression and good performance status were randomly assigned to receive either standard atezolizumab maintenance alone or combined with lurbinectedin.

Results showed remarkable benefit for patients receiving the combination approach, with progression-free survival improving dramatically from 2.1 to 5.4 months when measured from the start of maintenance therapy. When accounting for the full treatment timeline, including induction, patients experienced approximately 8.6 months of progression-free survival. The study demonstrated that 41% of patients remained progression-free at 6 months with the combination vs only 19% with atezolizumab alone, effectively doubling the chance of controlling disease at this critical timepoint.

Most importantly for patients and their families, the IMforte trial showed that this approach helps people live longer, with overall survival improving from 10.6 to 13.2 months from the start of maintenance therapy. The survival benefit (HR of 0.73) mirrors the significant improvements seen with immunotherapy additions in other settings, representing meaningful extra time for patients to spend with loved ones and maintain quality of life while their cancer remains controlled.