In case you missed it, one promising report from ASCO 2023 offers hope to patients who may be looking for additional options after RET-TKI's.
Telisotuzumab vedotin (teliso-v) is a new ADC which targets MET, one of our usual suspects in lung cancer. A Phase 2 trial reported an encouraging 36% response rate in lung cancer: however, a new analysis of their trial found that it had 2 patients with a RET fusion, both of which had a response to the drug. One of the prerequisites was to have MET expression found through IHC (cell staining): it was not a requirement to have a genetic alteration such as MET amplification or mutation (what FISH and NGS methods look for). In fact, according to the author to whom we reached out, neither of the 2 RET patients had a MET alteration on their sequencing reports. This is an encouraging sign that this drug could be very active in RET+ NSCLC.
Why is this important? This may be an additional option to people who experience progression on RET inhibitors such as selpercatinib and pralsetinib. Even if you cannot access a trial, there is a compassionate access program for this drug, accessible through Abbvie: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT04830202
How to access: When you do a tissue biopsy after experiencing progression, you can ask your doctor for a "MET IHC," which is an additional test that's needed to see if you could be eligible for this medication. If the result is positive, this may mean you could benefit from this drug. Your doctor can then consider filing a compassionate use request with the company.