Adjuvant Therapy Transforms Treatment in Advanced Melanoma
Source: OncLive, January 2020
Adjuvant therapy has revolutionized the field of melanoma by treating patients with resected disease with active regimens that have historically been used in the metastatic setting, said Jeffrey S. Weber, MD, PhD.
In 2014, the combination of dabrafenib (Tafinlar) and trametinib (Mekinist) was granted accelerated approval for use in patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma who harbor a BRAF mutation. Subsequently, the combination was evaluated as an adjuvant therapy in the phase III COMBI-AD trial in patients with resected stage III, BRAF-mutant disease.
According to long-term data from the trial, the combination resulted in a 4-year relapse-free survival (RFS) rate of 54% versus 38% with placebo.1 Based on these results, the combination received regulatory approval in 2018 as adjuvant therapy in this patient population.