"A muchanticipated drug for advanced lung cancer from Pfizer Inc. appears to double survival over standard drugs against tumors with a certain genetic mutation according to research presented Sunday. The drug called crizotinib would be the first targeted treatment for the roughly  people who get this cancer each year worldwide. It might eventually produce annual revenue for Pfizer exceeding  billion. The first overall survival data for patients with advanced nonsmall cell lung cancer treated with the drug called crizotinib showed  percent were still alive after a year and  percent after two years researchers announced at a huge cancer specialists conference. Median overall survival a key measure hasnt been determined because more than half the  patients are still alive. The earlyphase study did not include a direct comparison group. But among similar patients getting standard cancer drugs in other research  percent survived for a year and just  percent were alive after two years said lead researcher Dr. Alice Shaw. Crizotinib part of the new wave of personalized medicine in which drugs are being matched to patients according to genetics would be the first drug in a new class called ALK inhibitors. The twiceaday pill targets the roughly  percent of nonsmall cell lung cancer patients whose tumors have a genetic rearrangement of an enzyme that stimulates growth and survival of those cancer cells. The experimental drug works by turning off that enzyme with a rapid and dramatic effect thats longlasting said Shaw a thoracic oncologist at Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center. This is not a cure for this type of patients. Unfortunately ... cancer becomes resistant over time Shaw added so researchers already are trying to develop new treatments that could push this cancer back into remission. In a continuation of that study also sponsored by Pfizer researchers found that among  patients whose cancer had worsened after three or more prior types of treatment  percent had their tumors shrink at least somewhat over nearly a year followup. Similarly in a midstage study of  patients who failed at least one previous cancer treatment  percent had their tumors shrink by about a third or more and  percent had tumors shrink somewhat. Most patients had mild side effects but two of the nine patient deaths during that study were considered treatmentrelated. U.S. regulators are expediting their review of crizotinib indicating its promise. Pfizer expects it to be approved in the U.S. by years end because under the Fast Track designation the Food and Drug Administration gave the drug last December Pfizer was able to start submitting batches of data in January rather than wait until all studies are completed. Two larger latestage studies comparing crizotinib directly to standard treatments are continuing one in patients for whom prior drugs didnt work and one in new patients. There are no treatments specifically for patients with this type of lung cancer although some others are in much earlier stages of testing. So the FDA is expected to conditionally approve crizotinib based on results of the earlier studies rather than wait until the latest ones are completed said Dr. Robert Sweetman head of medical affairs for Pfizers cancer unit. Analysts also think the drug is likely to get approved. I think crizotinib is one of the most important ... nearterm products for Pfizer said Morningstar analyst Damien Conover. It gives a really important new therapy to a lot of patients that dont have very many options. About  percent of lung cancer cases are nonsmall cell lung cancer. Roughly threefourths arent diagnosed until tumors have spread and only  percent of those patients live five years. Conover predicts crizotinib will build to peak sales of about . billion in about a decade. Credit Suisse analyst Catherine Arnold is forecasting it will bring in  million a year by . Pfizer based in New York also was presenting studies on its other experimental cancer drugs at the American Society of Clinical Oncology conference which began Friday. Those include two studies of axitinib for advanced kidney cancer and three of bosutinib for chronic myeloid leukemia plus studies of two approved Pfizer cancer drugs Sutent and Torisel for new uses."