Epacadostat/Pembrolizumab Combo Shows Activity in Advanced Melanoma

Source: Cancer Network, November 2015

A novel combination immunotherapy regimen of epacadostat plus pembrolizumab shows promising clinical activity and is generally well-tolerated by advanced melanoma patients, according to a new study presented at the Society for Melanoma Research 2015 International Congress, held November 18–21 in San Francisco.

Epacadostat is a potent, selective, oral inhibitor of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase 1 (IDO1), which is an enzyme overexpressed in many cancers and induces immune tolerance by suppressing T-cell response, said Omid Hamid, MD, of the Angeles Clinic and Research Institute in Los Angeles. IDO1 inhibition demonstrates antitumor activity that is synergistic with programmed death 1 (PD-1) blockade, he said.

In a prior dose-escalation study in patients with metastatic melanoma, the combination of epacadostat with ipilimumab was generally well-tolerated and led to responses in about one-third of immunotherapy-naïve patients.