Dr. Powles on the 42-Month Follow-Up Data From the CheckMate-214 Trial in RCC

Thomas Powles, MD, MBBS, MRCP, director, Barts Cancer Institute, discusses the 42-month follow-up data from the phase 3 CheckMate-214 trial in advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC).

The 42-month follow-up data from the phase 3 CheckMate-214 trial were presented at the 2020 Genitourinary Cancers Symposium. The results showed that patients with intermediate- and poor-risk disease were able to achieve durable remissions with the combination of nivolumab (Opdivo) and ipilimumab (Yervoy) in the frontline setting. The median overall survival was 47.0 months with the combination versus 26.6 months with sunitinib (Sutent), which translated to a 34% reduction in the risk of death.

These results are as important as clinical trial endpoints, which tend to be assessed earlier on in the course of the disease, says Powles. As such, these results are meaningful to patients in that they provide reassurance that checkpoint inhibitors lead to lasting responses, concludes Powles.