Cobimetinib/Vemurafenib Improves Survival in BRAF-Mutated Melanoma
Source: Cancer Network, November 2015
A combination of cobimetinib and vemurafenib prolongs overall survival (OS) in melanoma patients with BRAF V600 mutations, according to a new study presented at the Society for Melanoma Research 2015 International Congress, held November 18–21 in San Francisco.
The coBRIM trial is a phase III, double-blind, placebo-controlled study that tested the BRAF inhibitor vemurafenib plus either placebo or cobimetinib—an oral, small-molecule, highly selective, allosteric inhibitor of MEK—in 495 previously untreated patients (median age, 55.5) with BRAF V600 mutation–positive unresectable locally advanced or metastatic melanoma.
Combined inhibition of BRAF and MEK is hypothesized to improve clinical outcomes by preventing or delaying the onset of resistance observed with BRAF inhibitors alone. A recently updated progression-free survival (PFS) analysis after 14.2 months of follow-up confirmed a clinically meaningful treatment benefit. The combination led to a median 12.3 months PFS vs 7.2 months for vemurafenib alone, said Victoria Atkinson, MD, of the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Queensland, Australia.