Long-term outcomes of ALK inhibitors in metastatic ALK-positive non-small cell lung cancer: an updated indirect comparison using reconstructed patient-level data. (PubMed, Transl Lung Cancer Res)
While second- and third-generation ALKi (including alectinib, brigatinib, ensartinib, envonalkib, and lorlatinib) have demonstrated superior efficacy compared with the first-generation inhibitor crizotinib in randomized trials, the absence of direct head-to-head comparisons limits the definition of their relative clinical benefit. This indirect comparison indicates that lorlatinib provides the most durable PFS and the strongest intracranial disease control, although ALKis are characterized by distinct toxicity profiles. In the absence of clear OS differences at present, first-line treatment selection should integrate efficacy, intracranial activity, tolerability, and emerging molecular features within a personalized therapeutic framework.