(Reuters) – Novocure’s therapy met the primary goal of a late-stage trial of slowing the progression of brain cancer in patients with a type of lung cancer, the company said on Wednesday, sending its shares up 17%.
The therapy using the device slowed the spread of brain cancer by up to 21.9 months with supportive care, compared with 11.3 months for supportive care alone in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), the company said in a statement.
The Tumor Treating Fields device uses a patient-controlled device to create electrical fields that the company says can disrupt the growth of cancer cells. The device failed late-stage trials in patients with ovarian cancer last year.
The device is also being tested in patients with pancreatic cancer. The device is approved for use in cancers that start in the brain and spinal cord, as well as cancers of the thin tissue called mesothelium. The device, under the Optune Gio and Optune Lua brands, generated $509 million in revenue last year.
Secondary brain tumors, called brain metastases, affect about 25% of patients with NSCLC.
The company said the therapy did not reach statistical significance for secondary study objectives such as time to cognitive decline.
Evercore ISI analyst Vijay Kumar said in a note that “one would think that delaying disease progression would lead to neurocognitive benefits… the lack of any benefit would be debated.”
While some secondary goals, such as quality of life and time before cancer spreads to other parts of the body, “showed positive trends,” the company said the full analysis is ongoing.