New lung cancer treatment keeps EGFR tumors in check longer than chemo

If you or someone you love has EGFR lung cancer, here is good news. When the targeted pills stop working, there is now a new treatment that kept the cancer from growing longer than chemotherapy did. It is called ruzaltatug rezetecan, and it was tested head to head against chemo in a large trial.

The serious side effects were about as common as with chemo. For people who have been told that chemotherapy is the next step, that is a real second option to know about.

EGFR is a change in the genes of some lung cancer cells. Many people with it start on targeted pills, which often work well for a while. Sooner or later the cancer can find a way around them. Until now, chemotherapy has been the usual next step.

How the study worked

This was a phase 3 trial, the kind used to compare a new treatment with the standard one. It ran at 62 sites in China and included 498 adults aged 18 to 75 whose advanced EGFR lung cancer had grown during or after targeted pills. By chance, half got the new drug and half got standard platinum chemotherapy, all by IV every three weeks, and independent reviewers who did not know who got what judged whether the cancer had grown. It was published Oct. 26, 2026, in The Lancet, and this is an early look at the results: the drug’s maker funded it, patients and doctors knew which treatment was given, and survival data are not out yet.

What they found

People on the new drug went longer before their cancer grew than people on chemotherapy. That was the main goal of the trial, and the new drug came out ahead.

The most common serious side effect in both groups was a drop in white blood cells, which the care team tracks with blood tests. Very few people had to stop treatment because of side effects: 1% in each group. One person in the new drug group died of an unknown cause, and the study doctor considered it possibly related to the treatment.

The researchers did not yet report whether the new drug helps people live longer. That is the next thing the trial will show, since it is still ongoing.

What is an antibody-drug conjugate?

That is the name for this kind of medicine. Think of a delivery truck with an address label. The antibody finds a marker on the cancer cells, called HER3, and delivers a dose of chemotherapy right to them. The goal is to bring the medicine straight to the cancer.

What you can do today

If you or someone close to you has EGFR lung cancer that grew on targeted pills, take two minutes to write down one question for the oncologist: “Is an antibody-drug conjugate or a clinical trial an option for me now?” Bring it to the next appointment. You can also look up trials by condition on ClinicalTrials.gov, the free US trial registry, and bring a printout of anything that catches your eye.