Immunotherapy
drug outperforms chemo in latest trial
A
recent study comparing the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab to chemotherapy
could alter more than 30 years of practice in lung cancer treatment.
The
clinical trial, known as Keynote-024 (KN-024), showed pembrolizumab’s
superiority in preventing cancer progression and prolonging the lives of
previously untreated patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
“We
believe that the KEYNOTE-024 results have the potential to change the
therapeutic paradigm in first-line treatment of non-small cell lung cancer,”
said Dr. Roger M. Perlmutter, president of MSD Research Laboratories. “We look
forward to sharing these data with the medical community and with regulatory
authorities around the world.”
Pembrolizumab
boosts the immune system’s antitumor activity by preventing cancer cells from interacting
with the immune system’s T-cells. During interaction, tumor cells produce a protein
called the Programmed Death-Ligand 1 (PD-L1) which deactivates T-cells. Blocking
this enables T-cells to remain capable of detecting and destroying cancer in the
body.
The Philippine
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved pembrolizumab for the treatment of advanced
melanoma and PD-L1-positive lung cancer that failed previous therapies.
Immuno-oncology leader MSD introduced this breakthrough anti-cancer drug in the
Philippines last March.
Consistent
results on safety and efficacy
KN-024 is
a randomized study with 305 participants who received either pembrolizumab or
chemotherapy. When it demonstrated the new drug’s efficacy in halting the
progress of cancer and increasing survival rates, an independent Data
Monitoring Committee (DMC) recommended an end to the trial. The DMC further recommended
that patients on chemotherapy be given the opportunity to receive pembrolizumab.
The
results also showed that the drug was consistent in terms of safety and
tolerability, with side effects commonly immune-mediated, or due to the response
of the immune system. Only less than five percent of participants experienced
these adverse effects during the study.
In case
of a severe reaction to the drug, doctors advise stopping treatment temporarily
and taking steroids to alleviate the side effects. Treatment may resume once the
patient’s condition improves.
A
game-changer in cancer treatment
According
to Globocan 2012, lung cancer is the top cause of cancer mortality worldwide,
accounting for 1.5 million deaths annually. In the Philippines, doctors report
over 12,000 new cases of lung cancer each year and more 10,000 deaths due to the
disease.
With
immunotherapy possibly becoming the new standard of lung cancer treatment,
millions of patients can now hope for better chances of survival while being
spared from the harsh effects of existing treatment options.
MSD will
present the results of the KN-024 trial in an upcoming medical meeting.
