Has Rubicatin/Rubicatin been included in the national health insurance system?

Rubicatin (also known as Lurbinectedin, English name: Lurbinectedin) is a new type of anti-tumor alkylating agent, derived from trabectedin, specifically targeted at metastatic small cell lung cancer, which is extremely difficult to treat. Due to its unique efficacy, this drug has attracted worldwide attention. However, for domestic patients, the original drug of Rubicatin has not yet been officially launched in the domestic market. Therefore, it cannot be included in the reimbursement scope of the national medical insurance for the time being.

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC), a neuroendocrine tumor, accounts for approximately 15% of lung cancer cases worldwide. Among them, extensive-stage small cell lung cancer (ES-SCLC) is particularly dangerous, and the 5-year overall survival rate of patients is generally less than 5%. Although immunotherapy has become the first-line treatment option for ES-SCLC, the disease of most patients will inevitably progress.

Rubicatine, as a derivative of the ascidin drugtrabectedin, its efficacy has been verified in the initial phase II clinical study, and it was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Due to its good safety profile, rubicatin is often used in patients with relapsed/refractory ES-SCLC whose disease worsens after chemoimmunotherapy, especially when the disease relapses within 90 days after platinum-based chemotherapy and cannot participate in clinical trials.

For patients with relapsed ES-SCLC in the real world, evidence of the relative efficacy and safety of rubicatin undoubtedly has important implications for clinical management. A deeper understanding of effects in actual treatment settings compared to the controlled setting of randomized trials will help improve the quality of clinical decision-making and patient-shared decision-making. In addition, the current application of rubicatin beyond the second-line treatment of ES-SCLC is not very clear. Therefore, research on the results of its third-line or above treatment is particularly important.