What is new in the treatment of gastrointestinal (GI) cancer? Read our gastrointestinal cancer blog and learn more about the latest advancements in the treatment of colorectal (CRC), gastric, pancreatic, hepatocellular (liver), oesophageal, and biliary (cholangio) carcinoma.
Atezolizumab +/- cobimetinib vs regorafenib for previously treated metastatic colorectal cancer (IMblaze370)
Combining programmed death 1 ligand (PD-L1) inhibitor atezolizumab with MEK-inhibitor cobimetinib in patients with previously treated metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) does not improve the overall survival (OS) when compared to regorafenib, as was reported by the investigators of the IMblaze370 (NCT02788279) trial in the Lancet Oncology.
Trifluridine/tipiracil combination FDA approved for metastatic gastric or GEJ adenocarcinoma
On 22 February 2019, the FDA approved the fixed combination tablets of the nucleoside metabolic inhibitor trifluridine plus the thymidine phosphorylase inhibitor tipiracil (Lonsurf®, Taiho Pharmaceutical) for the treatment of adult metastatic gastric or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma patients pretreated with two or more prior lines of chemotherapy including a fluoropyrimidine, a platinum, and either a taxane or irinotecan plus (when appropriate) HER2/neu-targeted therapy.
Trastuzumab-biosimilar Ontruzant® FDA approved in several indications
On 18 January 2019, the FDA approved the Herceptin®-biosimilar Ontruzant® (trastuzumab-dttb, Samsung BioEpsis), a HER2/neu receptor antagonist, for patients with HER2-overexpressing (HER2+) breast cancer in the adjuvant and metastatic setting, and in metastatic HER2+ gastric cancer patients. Ontruzant® was approved as biosimilar, not as an interchangeable product.
ESMO 2018 HCC: The ESMO18 hepatobiliary cancer track summarised
Whereas this year’s American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting (ASCO 2018) boasted two Phase III studies and four Phase II studies with notable results in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the trend did not continue to the European Society for Medical Oncology Conference (ESMO 2018), held in Münich, Germany between October 19-23, 2018. The focus for this years ESMO was mostly on biliary-tract cancers (BTC). Welcome to the hepatobiliary track of ESMO 2018.
Anti-PD1 sintilimab plus biosimilar bevacizumab receive IND-status by China NMPA
SUZHOU, China, Oct. 14, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — The combination therapy of novel programmed death 1 (PD-1) antibody IBI308 (sintilimab, Innovent Biologics) with biosimilar bevacizumab antibody IBI305 (Innovent Biologics) has received the investigational new drug (IND) application for clinical development approval by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA, formerly known as CFDA) in China.
CheckMate 032: Nivolumab +/- ipilimumab for metastatic esophagogastric cancer
Immunotherapy with either nivolumab (Opdivo®, Bristol-Myers Squibb) alone or the combination nivolumab plus ipilimumab (Yervoy®, Bristol-Myers Squibb) in patients with chemotherapy-refractory esophagogastric cancer leads to durable responses and encouraging long-term overall survival with a manageable safety profile, concluded the investigators of the CheckMate 032 study.
EBV, MSI, and CPS predict pembrolizumab outcome in gastric cancer
Metastatic gastric cancer (mGC) patients with microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H) or Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-positive tumours, or those with a positive (≥1%) combined positive score (CPS) respond best to pembrolizumab PD-1 immunotherapy.
Ipilimumab plus nivolumab FDA approved for MSI-H and dMMR pre-treated mCRC
On July 10th, the FDA granted accelerated approval to ipilimumab (Yervoy©, Bristol-Myers Squibb) for use in combination with nivolumab (Opdivo©) for the treatment of adult and paediatric patients ≥12 years of age with microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H) or mismatch repair deficient (dMMR) metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) that has progressed following treatment with a fluoropyrimidine, oxaliplatin, and irinotecan.
Combination encorafenib plus binimetinib for unresectable/metastatic BRAF V600E or V600K-positive melanoma FDA approved
On June 27th, the FDA approved Array Biomarpharma’s combination encorafenib (BRAFTOVI®) plus binimetinib (and MEKTOVI®) for patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma harbouring a BRAF V600E or V600K mutation detected by an FDA-approved test.
ASCO 2018 HCC: The ASCO18 hepatocellular cancer track summarised
This year’s American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting includes two Phase III studies in the second-line treatment of the disease. Moreover, data with several immune-checkpoint inhibitors were presented, including the KEYNOTE-224 with pembrolizumab. Welcome to the summary of the ASCO 2018 HCC track.
Do you know your lifetime risk on Pancreatic Cancer?
November turns purple for pancreatic cancer awareness. Focus is on one of the most difficult-to-treat tumours with the final objective: to double the survival of pancreatic cancer by 2020. What is your risk to develop pancreatic cancer? And how likely are you to get cured of the disease?
Pembrolizumab approved for advanced gastric cancer
On September 22, 2017, the FDA granted accelerated approval to pembrolizumab (KEYTRUDA, Merck) for use in patients with locally advanced or metastatic, gastric or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma positive for PD-L1 as determined by an FDA-approved companion diagnostic (CDx) and progressing after ≥2 prior systemic therapies, including a fluoropyrimidine– and platinum-containing regimen, and, when appropriate, HER2–targeted therapy.
Nivolumab approved for sorafenib-refractory HCC
On September 22, 2017, the Food and Drug Administration granted accelerated approval to nivolumab (OPDIVO, Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.) for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients who have been previously treated with sorafenib. Approval was based on a 154-patient subgroup of CHECKMATE-040 (NCT 01658878), a multicenter, open-label trial conducted in patients with HCC and […]
IMM101 plus Gemcitabine Hopeful in Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer
A phase II proof-of-concept (POC) study investigating the safety and tolerability of immune modulator IMM-101 plus gemcitabine vs. single agent gemcitabine in advanced pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) showed significant improved progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in metastatic patients receiving the combination treatment.
