Pembrolizumab increases survival in advanced melanoma

Source: American Pharmacists Association, April 2016

A recent study sought to characterize the association of pembrolizumab with tumor response and overall survival among patients with advanced melanoma. Researchers, led by Antoni Ribas, MD, of University of California, Los Angeles, studied 655 adults in Australia, Canada, France, and the United States for the open-label, multicohort Phase Ib trial.

A recent study sought to characterize the association of pembrolizumab with tumor response and overall survival among patients with advanced melanoma. Researchers, led by Antoni Ribas, MD, of University of California, Los Angeles, studied 655 adults in Australia, Canada, France, and the United States for the open-label, multicohort Phase Ib trial. Patients received pembrolizumab 10 mg/kg every 2 weeks, 10 mg/kg every 3 weeks, or 2 mg/kg every 3 weeks until disease progression, intolerable toxicity, or investigator decision. According to the data, an objective response was reported in one-third of the patients with measurable disease at baseline and in 45% of treatment-naive patients. At 1 year, progression-free survival rates were 35% in the overall population and 52% among treatment-naive patients. The median overall survival in the entire group was 23 months, with a 12-month survival rate of 66% and a 24-month survival rate of 49%. For treatment-naive patients, median overall survival jumped to 31 months, with a 12-month survival rate of 73% and a 24-month survival rate of 60%. Grade 3 or 4 adverse events occurred in 14% of the patients, while treatment-related serious adverse events were reported in 9%.

Journal of the American Medical Association (04/19/16) Vol. 315, No. 15, P. 1600 Ribas, Antoni; Hamid, Omid; Daud, Adil; et al.

http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=2514195