Dr. Choueiri on Next Steps for Pembrolizumab in RCC

Toni Choueiri, MD, director, Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology, director, Kidney Cancer Center, senior physician, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Jerome and Nancy Kohlberg Chair and Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, discusses the next steps for the evaluation of pembrolizumab (Keytruda) in the phase 3 KEYNOTE-564 trial (NCT03142334) in renal cell carcinoma (RCC).

KEYNOTE-564 evaluated the efficacy and safety of single-agent pembrolizumab vs placebo in patients with RCC following nephrectomy. Updated disease-free survival (DFS) data from 30 months of follow-up were shared at the 2022 ASCO Genitourinary Cancer Symposium.

As follow-up and evaluation continue, investigators will accumulate data from more events to better determine any benefit in overall survival, Choueiri says. Additional end points such as second progression-free survival will also be examined, Choueiri concludes.