Ariad lung cancer drug shrinks tumors in small trial

(REUTERS) - A small early-stage trial of Ariad Pharmaceuticals Inc's experimental pill AP26113 showed it shrank tumors in eight out of 11 lung cancer patients with a genetic mutation in a gene known as ALK.

The drug, called '113 for short, is being tested in patients with non-small cell lung cancer who test positive for the abnormal ALK gene, as well as those with a specific mutation in a gene known as EGFR.

34 patients have been enrolled in the Phase 1/2 trial, which is designed to determine the ideal dosage for later-stage trials.

Initial findings show that of 11 ALK-positive patients evaluated at five dose levels, eight had partial tumor shrinkage.