Adjuvant Pembrolizumab Shows Favorable Health-Related Quality-of-Life Results in Resected Melanoma

Source: AJMC, June 2022

An interim analysis of the KEYNOTE-716 trial of adjuvant pembrolizumab supports its use in the adjuvant setting for patients with resected melanoma.
In the KEYNOTE-716 trial of adjuvant pembrolizumab vs placebo in resected high-risk stage II melanoma, pembrolizumab improved recurrence-free survival (RFS).

Health-related quality-of-life (HRQOL) results from a second interim analysis suggest integrating pembrolizumab does not negatively affect HRQOL and support its use in this disease setting.

The standard of care for melanoma was resection and observation until recently, with adjuvant therapy only recommended in clinical trials. But in KEYNOTE-716, pembrolizumab significantly reduced the risk of recurrence. Patients given pembrolizumab had a hazard ratio of 0.61 (95% CI, 0.46-0.92; P = .00658) vs the placebo group at an interim analysis, and the results led to pembrolizumab’s FDA approval for patients with stage IIb or IIc melanoma in the adjuvant setting. The HRQOL implications are important, however, considering some patients may be cured with surgery alone. Findings from a second interim analysis on HRQOL were presented at the 2022 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting.

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