Articles related to IMMUNOTHERAPY

Jacob Laubach, MD, at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute provides a summary of the most recent update from the GRIFFIN trial, assessing daratumumab plus lenalidomide, bortezomib, and dexamethasone in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients. After 24 months of maintenance therapy or treatment discontinuation (median follow-up of 38.6 months), the rate of stringent complete response (sCR) was 66% in the D-RVd treatment arm versus 47.4% in the RVd treatment arm. At the time of data collection, median PFS had not been reached in either arm but is trending towards favoring D-RVd versus RVd. The estimated 36-month PFS rate was 88.9% for D-RVd and 81.2% for RVd.

A systematic review identified 204 eligible publications from 2000 through 2017, with much of the evidence consisting of systematic reviews of observational data, consensus guidelines, case series, and case reports. Due to the paucity of high-quality evidence on management of immune-related adverse events, recommendations are based on expert consensus.

From JAMA Network Open comes this conclusion: “In this study, the benefit associated with olaparib was reduced, eliminated, or inferior in specific subgroups of patients when treatment outcomes were compared with a more active standard of care, ie, cabazitaxel. While treatment with olaparib was associated with superior rPFS in patients with BRCA1/2 variants, those with other HRR variants may have worse outcomes with this approach, which should be reassessed by national guidelines. Numerous active studies…will add to the data regarding the role of PARP inhibitors in mCRPC.”

The results, presented during the virtual ESMO Congress 2021, will substantially change the population of patients with melanoma who undergo treatment in the adjuvant setting, according to Jason J. Luke, MD: “Patients with stage IIB/C melanoma have similar rates of recurrence and melanoma specific survival to those with stage IIIA/B disease. Despite this, adjuvant anti-PD-1 immunotherapy has only been available in standard practice for stage III disease. The results of KEYNOTE-716 will facilitate access to anti-PD-1 for stage IIB/C patients and, in a sense, level the playing field against melanoma.”

Dr. Kenneth Grossmann commented after presenting the results at the ASCO Annual Meeting in June: “The overall survival impact of pembrolizumab was likely influenced by effective post-relapse treatment, with standard-of-care patients receiving PD-1 blockade.” Dr. Grossmann then concluded that “single-agent anti-PD-1 antibody treatment should be a standard-of-care option for adjuvant treatment of high-risk resected melanoma,” and offered that the OS “trend of benefit is there.”

Lead author of the study, Dr. Ana Maria Arance, who presented the results over the summer at the ASCO Annual Meeting, commented: “With additional follow-up, lenvatinib plus pembrolizumab continues to show clinically meaningful, durable responses in patients with advanced melanoma with confirmed progression on a PD-1 or PD-L1 inhibitor given alone or in combination. These data support lenvatinib plus pembrolizumab as a potential regimen for this population of high unmet need.”