Nektar Skin Cancer Combo Spurs More Patient Remissions Over Time

Source: Bloomerg, June 2019

A treatment plan including Nektar Therapeutics’ experimental therapy helped more patients with advanced skin cancer beat back their disease after more than a year of follow up.

In updated results from an early-stage study, four additional patients out of 38 were cleared of their cancer after treatment with Nektar’s bempegaldesleukin in combination with Bristol-Myers Squibb’s Opdivo. Thirteen patients have now had a complete response to the drug combo compared to nine in an update last year from the “Pivot-2” study.

The number of patients who have responded to treatment remains unchanged at 20, including 16 who are still responding, according to data being presented Saturday at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting. “That’s a low rate of relapse,” said Jonathan Zalevsky, Nektar’s chief scientific officer.