We will accomplish this search through Synapse's Drug Finder. The Drug Finder can be accessed by clicking on the 'Drug' icon on the navigation bar on the left of the page:
Once on the page, you will notice there's a plethora of fields here that we have to choose from. For example, under main fields, we could type in a drug, a drug type, an organization, a target, a mechanism that we're interested in, or an indication.
We are interested in just looking at a specific indication and specific drugs that are proven for that indication. So using the 'Indication' tab, we can go ahead and type "Non-small cell lung cancer" (NSCL), however, it should be noted that Synapse also allows for the use of acronyms instead of typing out the entire phrase. So in this case you can just enter 'NSCL' and you will see the full phrase in the options that appear:
Once the indication is selected. you can scroll down to the 'Indication Properties' section to select 'Approved' next to the 'Highest Phase' option to look at only approved structures within this indication:
You will notice that the number of results goes down from 1,667 drugs to only 96 drugs. This is a great way to keep track of how quickly Synapse can refine your search for you:
If you wanted to refine your search further here you could, but this is good enough for us for what we are looking for. Once you click the 'Search' button, all 96 drugs will be pulled up on the results page. If you wanted to again, refine your results further, you have a filter bar on the left of the screen. So for example, let's say we wanted to focus on a specific drug type, you would need to scroll down to the 'Drug Type' section and select an option. In this case, let's say we wanted to just focus on small molecule drugs within this indication, and all the drugs that have been approved within the indication. All you have to do is click on the tick next to 'Small molecule drug' and then click on refine to showcase all those drugs:
Once you have the results you are happy with, you can take it a step further and set alerts. What this will do is it will actually alert you any time a new drug has been approved within the indication. To do this, you can click on the 'Set Alert' button on the top right corner of the page and it will bring up a pop-up window:
You can then set the alert title and you will also notice that the search condition again is outlined so you will get an alert anytime in this indication space, non-small. So long cancer, there is a drug approved:
You are able to send this alert to yourself as well as to individuals who do not have Synapse. You can then select your frequency and the day you would like to receive the alert email.
So not only is this workflow functional but also provides great value as by setting up email alerts, you receive key updates on the indication and space of interest, and this allows you to stay on top of developments and make informed decisions within that indication space.