9.4 months without growing: a sharper breast-cancer pill steps in when the standard ones fail

For women whose advanced breast cancer has outgrown the standard pills — drugs like Ibrance that block two growth enzymes at once — options narrow quickly. Full results from the Phase 2 FOURLIGHT-1 trial, presented at the ESMO cancer congress in Madrid, show Pfizer's atirmociclib, paired with the hormone therapy fulvestrant, held the cancer back for a median of 9.4 months, against 6.6 months on standard treatment — a 40% lower risk of the disease progressing or spreading. The trial followed 264 patients in 14 countries, and the benefit held across patient groups, including women whose cancer had spread to internal organs. Atirmociclib is built to block just one of those two enzymes, CDK4, aiming to keep the anti-cancer effect while easing the blood-count problems linked to blocking the other. The drug is not yet approved, and whether it helps women live longer is still being tested in larger trials.

SDG 3 · Good health and well-being — Mechanism: tech innovation