Promising Data on the Combination of Dabrafenib and Trametinib in BRAF V600-Mutant Melanoma

Source: Targeted Oncology, October 2019

Ryan Sullivan, MD, associate director, Melanoma Program, Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, discusses the 5-year data pooled from the phase III COMBI-d and COMBI-v trials, which each studied dabrafenib (Tafinlar) plus trametinib (Mekinist) in patients with BRAF V600–mutant unresectable or metastatic melanoma.

Overall, patients from both studies had similar responses and stable disease. The OS rate was 37% in the COMBI-d patients and 34% in the COMBI-v patients. Sullivan says this response is a result of a plateauing effect, which appears to be similar to what is seen with immunotherapy treatment in these patients.

Additionally, for the subset of patients who had lower or normal lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and less than 3 metastatic sites, upfront BRAF/MEK inhibitor combination therapy led to a durable PFS rate of 30% to 35%.