Advancing lung cancer care: Our enduring commitment to patients

Decades ago, a person diagnosed with lung cancer had about an 11% chance of surviving for five years after diagnosis, and for some patients it was even less time. To a person living with cancer or a loved one, those are odds nobody wants to hear. In the pharmaceutical industry, these are numbers we have long been working to change.

A legacy of leadership and innovation

BMS has a history of developing medicines that provide hope of long-term survival for many patients. Our innovative immunotherapies, which empower a patient's own immune system to detect and fight cancer, have fundamentally changed the treatment landscape in many cancers, and this same spirit of science and innovation extends to our work in lung cancer.

In recent years, we’ve seen encouraging trends: new cases of lung cancer, as well as lung cancer deaths, have been declining. This progress is a testament to advancements in treatment, better screening, early detection and more. Yet, while much progress has been made, we recognize there is still much more work to be done. For example, more than two million people will be diagnosed with lung cancer each year and it remains the leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide.  In particular, NSCLC, which accounts for 80% to 85% of all lung cancer cases, remains an aggressive disease.  

From discovery to delivery: Our end-to-end commitment

Our commitment at BMS spans the entire journey of a medicine, from the earliest stages of discovery to its commercialization and availability to patients globally, with a profound focus on transforming lung cancer outcomes for patients with early and late-stage disease.

The scientific quest to understand cancer's intricate biology is where it all begins. With a broad toolbox of research platforms and modalities available to BMS scientists, we aim to find approaches that meet patient needs. As part of our work to build novel treatments and combinations, we are utilizing causal human biology to address respective drug targets and using insights from known resistance mechanisms.

“Our work begins with a deep dive into the causal human biology of lung cancer, seeking to understand its vulnerabilities to attack the tumor from within and at the same time activate the immune system,” said Emma Lees, PhD, SVP, head of Oncology Thematic Research Center, BMS. “For NSCLC, this means identifying tumor-intrinsic and –extrinsic mechanisms and leveraging advanced genomic profiling technology to design the next generation of therapies that can disrupt the disease's progression and may offer hope.”

The challenge doesn't end with a scientific breakthrough. Cancer is smart and often when a new treatment to suppress tumor growth emerges, cancer cells adapt with new mechanisms to bypass those treatments. Unlocking these mechanisms of resistance is key to helping provide new effective therapies for patients with lung cancer. 

“Translating our discoveries into lung cancer treatments require rigorous clinical investigation. We are constantly pushing the boundaries in our trials, from our foundational Phase 3 studies to our robust pipeline exploring novel modalities,” said Anne Kerber, SVP, head of Development, Hematology, Oncology and Cell Therapy, BMS. “Our goal is not just to prove efficacy and safety, but to deeply understand how to overcome resistance, tailor therapies for diverse patient populations, and ultimately strive for better, more durable outcomes across all stages of lung cancer.”

Our mission extends beyond the lab; it's about ensuring these life-changing innovations reach the patients who need them most, wherever they are in the world. 

“Our ultimate goal is to ensure that our transformative lung cancer medicines reach every patient who can potentially benefit from them,” said Monica Shaw, SVP, Global Oncology Commercialization, BMS. “This involves a complex ecosystem of partnerships, educating healthcare providers on guideline updates, engaging with payers and pathway stakeholders to recognize the value of our therapies and addressing biomarker testing gaps. We strive for a seamless, customer-centric experience to overcome barriers and deliver on the promise of our science.”

A future defined by continued innovation

We are well-positioned to address unmet needs and to provide alternative options for patients across stages of disease, building on our heritage of transformative science in the treatment of lung cancers. 

Our journey to redefine lung cancer treatment is far from over, and we are steadfast in our commitment to leading the charge, transforming hope into reality for patients worldwide.