Video
Author(s):
Bradley McGregor, MD, discusses the rationale behind combining belzutifan with lenvatinib in pretreated patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma with clear cell components.
Bradley McGregor, MD, clinical director, Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology, senior physician, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; instructor, medicine, Harvard Medical School, discusses the rationale behind combining belzutifan (Welireg) with lenvatinib (Lenvima) in pretreated patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC) with clear cell components.
The phase 3 LITESPARK-011 trial (NCT04586231) is investigating belzutifan plus lenvatinib vs cabozantinib (Cabometyx) in the second line in patients with RCC who have progressed on immunotherapy-based treatment. This trial is seeking to determine the best next line of therapy in this population, McGregor says.
Belzutifan, a hypoxia-inducible factor 2-alpha inhibitor, has already demonstrated activity as a monotherapy in the phase 1 LITESPARK-001 trial (NCT02974738). It also appears to be an effective partner agent, eliciting impressive responses and a good safety profile in the phase 2 LITESPARK-003 trial (NCT03634540), McGregor explains. LITESPARK-011 is taking this research a step further by evaluating whether adding belzutifan to lenvatinib, a TKI, will be a more effective regimen than cabozantinib in pretreated advanced RCC, hopefully answering an important question, McGregor concludes.