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... Lilly Targeted Agent Shows Promise in Treating Primary Brain Cancer Lilly Targeted Agent Shows Promise in Treating Primary Brain Cancer Investigational Oral, Targeted Agent Shrinks Tumor with Minimal Side Effects in Glioblastoma INDIANAPOLIS, May 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Preliminary results from a Phase II clinical trial show patients with recurrent glioblastoma multiforme, a form of primary brain cancer, experienced a significant tumor response rate with minimal side effects when treated with enzastaurin, an oral, targeted agent under development at Eli Lilly and Company (LLY).(1) Enzastaurin is the first targeted agent of Lilly Oncology to enter into late stage clinical development heralding a new phase of innovation for the group, which has produced Gemzar(R) (gemcitabine HCl) and "Recurring glioblastoma is a desperate disease for which there are very few adequate treatments," said Howard Fine, M.D., chief of Neuro-Oncology at the National Cancer Institute and lead author of the study, which was presented today at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).

Glioblastoma, a type of brain cancer, is part of the larger group of tumors that impact the central nervous system, known as gliomas.

Patients with highly recurrent glioblastoma are usually at a more advanced stage of the disease and correspondingly may face altered brain function or death...

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