New drug for lung cancer approved by FDA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved pembrolizumab, sold as Keytruda, as a first-line lung cancer treatment alternative to chemotherapy. The approval comes nearly a year after clinical studies suggested the immunotherapy drug was a more effective method for treating lung cancer than chemotherapy. Former president Jimmy Carter was famously reported to be cancer-free after using the drug. The FDA's ruling follows extensive evaluation of the drug by scientists from the University of California in Los Angeles. A larger group of patients will now have the option to treat their lung cancer with the drug without having any prior chemotherapy.