GlaxoSmithKline to continue MAGE-A3 cancer drug trial

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has today (March 20th) announced it is extending the phase III trial of its MAGE-A3 cancer treatment.

This comes after the drug was found not to significantly extend disease-free survival in comparison to the placebo in either the overall MAGE-A3 positive population, or in the category who had not received chemotherapy.

Having failed to reach the first or second co-primary endpoints in the trial, GSK said it remains confident regarding the treatment and intends to continue trials.

Vincent Brichard, senior vice-president and head of immunotherapeutics at the firm, stated: "GSK currently remains blinded to the overall trial data from the analysis of the first two co-primary endpoints to allow for the unbiased generation of a mathematical model to assess the third co-primary endpoint."

Final analysis from this phase III trial – which involved 2,312 patients across more than 400 sites in 34 countries globally – is expected to be published in 2015.