Lilly aims to change the conversation around precision oncology

A growing emphasis on large addressable markets, coupled with some disappointing targeted oncology launches, have raised concerns about the prospects of precision cancer therapies. Eli Lilly’s oncology leaders, however, aim to counter that narrative with a clinical and commercial strategy they’re hoping will turn marketed RET inhibitor Retevmo into a case study for how success can be achieved in precision oncology.

According to Jake van Naarden and David Hyman, one step toward reaching that goal is effectively communicating the benefits of the targeted therapy over standard of care, and that requires generating data that can help build the case for a change in testing and prescribing patters. van Naarden is an EVP at Eli Lilly and Co. (NYSE:LLY) and president of the pharma’s Loxo Oncology unit. Hyman is CMO of Lilly and Loxo...