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A randomized trial compared standard chemotherapy plus dostarlimab or placebo. Patients with mismatch repair–deficient tumors had 2-year progression-free survival of 61.4% with dostarlimab and 15.7% with placebo.

Recent single-arm studies involving neoadjuvant camrelizumab, a PD-1 inhibitor, plus chemotherapy for resectable locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (LA-ESCC) have shown promising results. This multicenter, randomized, open-label phase 3 trial aimed to further assess the efficacy and safety of neoadjuvant camrelizumab plus chemotherapy followed by adjuvant camrelizumab, compared to neoadjuvant chemotherapy alone. A total of 391 patients with resectable thoracic LA-ESCC (T1b-3N1-3M0 or T3N0M0) were stratified by clinical stage (I/II, III or IVA) and randomized in a 1:1:1 ratio to undergo two cycles of neoadjuvant therapy. Treatments included camrelizumab, albumin-bound paclitaxel and cisplatin (Cam+nab-TP group; n  = 132); camrelizumab, paclitaxel and cisplatin (Cam+TP group; n  = 130); and paclitaxel with cisplatin (TP group; n  = 129), followed by surgical resection. Both the Cam+nab-TP and Cam+TP groups also received adjuvant camrelizumab. The dual primary endpoints were the rate of pathological complete response (pCR), as evaluated by a blind independent review committee, and event-free survival (EFS), as assessed by investigators. This study reports the final analysis of pCR rates. In the intention-to-treat population, the Cam+nab-TP and Cam+TP groups exhibited significantly higher pCR rates of 28.0% and 15.4%, respectively, compared to 4.7% in the TP group (Cam+nab-TP versus TP: difference 23.5%, 95% confidence interval (CI) 15.1–32.0, P  < 0.0001; Cam+TP versus TP: difference 10.9%, 95% CI 3.7–18.1, P  = 0.0034). The study met its primary endpoint of pCR; however, EFS is not yet mature. The incidence of grade ≥3 treatment-related adverse events during neoadjuvant treatment was 34.1% for the Cam+nab-TP group, 29.2% for the Cam+TP group and 28.8% for the TP group; the postoperative complication rates were 34.2%, 38.8% and 32.0%, respectively. Neoadjuvant camrelizumab plus chemotherapy demonstrated superior pCR rates compared to chemotherapy alone for LA-ESCC, with a tolerable safety profile. Chinese Clinical Trial Registry identifier: ChiCTR2000040034 . In a randomized phase 3 trial, neoadjuvant anti-PD-1 plus either paclitaxel and cisplatin or nab-paclitaxel and cisplatin elicited a significantly superior pathological complete response rate versus neoadjuvant paclitaxel and cisplatin alone in patients with resectable locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Background Encouraging antitumor activity of nab-paclitaxel plus S-1 (AS) has been shown in several small-scale studies. This study compared the efficacy and safety of AS versus standard-of-care nab-paclitaxel plus gemcitabine (AG) as a first-line treatment for advanced pancreatic cancer (PC). Methods In this multicenter, randomized, phase II trial, eligible patients with unresectable, locally advanced, or metastatic PC were recruited and randomly assigned (1:1) to receive AS (nab-paclitaxel 125 mg/m2 on days 1 and 8; S-1 twice daily on days 1 through 14) or AG (nab-paclitaxel 125 mg/m2 on days 1 and 8; gemcitabine 1000 mg/m2 on days 1 and 8) for 6 cycles. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS). Results Between July 16, 2019, and September 9, 2022, 62 patients (AS, n = 32; AG, n = 30) were treated and evaluated. With a median follow-up of 8.36 months at preplanned interim analysis (data cutoff, March 24, 2023), the median PFS (8.48 vs 4.47 months; hazard ratio [HR], 0.402; P = .002) and overall survival (OS; 13.73 vs 9.59 months; HR, 0.226; P < .001) in the AS group were significantly longer compared to the AG group. More patients had objective response in the AS group than AG group (37.50% vs 6.67%; P = .005). The most common grade 3-4 adverse events were neutropenia and leucopenia in both groups, and gamma glutamyl transferase increase was observed only in the AG group. Conclusion The first-line AS regimen significantly extended both PFS and OS of Chinese patients with advanced PC when compared with the AG regimen, with a comparable safety profile. (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03636308). Encouraging antitumor activity of nab-paclitaxel plus S-1 has been shown in several small-scale studies. This study compared the efficacy and safety of nab-paclitaxel plus S-1 versus standard-of-care nab-paclitaxel plus gemcitabine as a first-line treatment for advanced pancreatic cancer.

In patients with advanced or recurrent endometrial cancer, the addition of pembrolizumab to standard chemotherapy resulted in significantly longer progression-free survival than with chemotherapy alone.

Background This phase I/II study aimed to determine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) of nanoparticle albumin-bound paclitaxel ( nab ® -paclitaxel) plus cisplatin as treatment for metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Methods Patients were enrolled into 1 of 3 dose cohorts, each with 21-day treatment cycles: 1) intravenous (IV) nab -paclitaxel 260 mg/m 2 on day 1; 2) IV nab -paclitaxel 140 mg/m 2 on days 1 and 8; 3) IV nab -paclitaxel 100 mg/m 2 on days 1, 8, and 15. All patients received IV cisplatin 75 mg/m 2 on day 1. Treatment continued for 4–6 cycles, or until progression or unacceptable toxicity. If more than one-third of the patients in a cohort experienced a dose-limiting toxicity (DLT), the dose used in the previous cohort would be designated the MTD. Secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) expression was detected by immunohistochemistry staining. Results Sixty-nine patients were enrolled, of whom 64 and 67 were eligible for efficacy and safety analysis, respectively. Two DLTs occurred in cohort 1 (grade 4 febrile neutropenia, grade 3 myalgia), none occurred in cohort 2, and 2 occurred in cohort 3 (both grade 3 fatigue). The MTD was not reached. Partial responses were achieved by 42 patients, 15 had stable disease, and 7 had progressive disease, giving an overall response rate of 66 %. Median progression-free survival was 9 months (95 % CI, 6–12 months). Grade ≥ 3 adverse events were mainly hematologic. There was no significant difference between the 3 cohorts with respect to efficacy or safety. Biomarker analyses indicated that stromal, rather than tumoral, SPARC may predict the response to nab-paclitaxel in NPC. Conclusions Our findings suggest that nab -paclitaxel plus cisplatin is a highly active regimen with moderate toxicity for the treatment of metastatic NPC, which warrants further investigation in a phase III study. Trial registrations ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT01735409 . The trial was registered on November 20th, 2012.

Addition of the anti–PD-L1 antibody atezolizumab to nab-paclitaxel as first-line therapy for patients with advanced or metastatic triple-negative breast cancer significantly prolonged progression-free survival, particularly among those with PD-L1–positive tumors.

Background Neoadjuvant dual human epidermal growth factor receptor (HER2) blockade with trastuzumab and pertuzumab plus paclitaxel leads to an overall pathologic complete response (pCR) rate of 46%. Dual HER2 blockade with ado-trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1) and lapatinib plus nab-paclitaxel has shown efficacy in patients with metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer. To test neoadjuvant effectiveness of this regimen, an open-label, multicenter, randomized, phase II trial was conducted comparing T-DM1, lapatinib, and nab-paclitaxel with trastuzumab, pertuzumab, and paclitaxel in patients with early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer. Methods Stratification by estrogen receptor (ER) status occurred prior to randomization. Patients in the experimental arm received 6 weeks of targeted therapies (T-DM1 and lapatinib) followed by T-DM1 every 3 weeks, lapatinib daily, and nab-paclitaxel weekly for 12 weeks. In the standard arm, patients received 6 weeks of trastuzumab and pertuzumab followed by trastuzumab weekly, pertuzumab every 3 weeks, and paclitaxel weekly for 12 weeks. The primary objective was to evaluate the proportion of patients with residual cancer burden (RCB) 0 or I. Key secondary objectives included pCR rate, safety, and change in tumor size at 6 weeks. Hypothesis-generating correlative assessments were also performed. Results The 30 evaluable patients were well-balanced in patient and tumor characteristics. The proportion of patients with RCB 0 or I was higher in the experimental arm (100% vs. 62.5% in the standard arm, p  = 0.0035). In the ER-positive subset, all patients in the experimental arm achieved RCB 0-I versus 25% in the standard arm ( p  = 0.0035). Adverse events were similar between the two arms. Conclusion In early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer, the neoadjuvant treatment with T-DM1, lapatinib, and nab-paclitaxel was more effective than the standard treatment, particularly in the ER-positive cohort. Trial registration Clinicaltrials.gov NCT02073487 , February 27, 2014.

Among patients with triple-negative breast cancer, 5-year survival was 86.6% with neoadjuvant pembrolizumab with chemotherapy followed by adjuvant pembrolizumab and 81.7% with neoadjuvant chemotherapy alone.

Patients with advanced gastric or gastro-oesophageal junction cancer that progresses on chemotherapy have poor outcomes. We compared pembrolizumab with paclitaxel in patients with advanced gastric or gastro-oesophageal junction cancer that progressed on first-line chemotherapy with a platinum and fluoropyrimidine. This randomised, open-label, phase 3 study was done at 148 medical centres in 30 countries. Eligible patients were randomised (1:1) in blocks of four per stratum with an interactive voice-response and integrated web-response system to receive either pembrolizumab 200 mg every 3 weeks for up to 2 years or standard-dose paclitaxel. Primary endpoints were overall survival and progression-free survival in patients with a programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) combined positive score (CPS) of 1 or higher. Safety was assessed in all patients, irrespective of CPS. The significance threshold for overall survival was p=0·0135 (one-sided). This trial is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02370498. Between June 4, 2015, and July 26, 2016, 592 patients were enrolled. Of the 395 patients who had a PD-L1 CPS of 1 or higher, 196 patients were assigned to receive pembrolizumab and 199 patients were assigned to receive paclitaxel. As of Oct 26, 2017, 326 patients in the population with CPS of 1 or higher had died (151 [77%] of 196 patients in the pembrolizumab group and 175 [88%] of 199 patients in the paclitaxel group). Median overall survival was 9·1 months (95% CI 6·2–10·7) with pembrolizumab and 8·3 months (7·6–9·0) with paclitaxel (hazard ratio [HR] 0·82, 95% CI 0·66–1·03; one-sided p=0·0421). Median progression-free survival was 1·5 months (95% CI 1·4–2·0) with pembrolizumab and 4·1 months (3·1–4·2) with paclitaxel (HR 1·27, 95% CI 1·03–1·57). In the total population, grade 3–5 treatment-related adverse events occurred in 42 (14%) of the 294 patients treated with pembrolizumab and 96 (35%) of the 276 patients treated with paclitaxel. Pembrolizumab did not significantly improve overall survival compared with paclitaxel as second-line therapy for advanced gastric or gastro-oesophageal junction cancer with PD-L1 CPS of 1 or higher. Pembrolizumab had a better safety profile than paclitaxel. Additional trials of pembrolizumab in gastric and gastro-oesophageal cancer are ongoing. Merck Sharp & Dohme, a subsidiary of Merck & Co.