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Pembrolizumab for Recurrent/Metastatic Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Long-Term Follow-Up Data From the KEYNOTE-040 and KEYNOTE-048 Trials
Long-Term Follow-Up Data From the KEYNOTE-040 and KEYNOTE-048 Trials
Denis Soulières, MD, Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal, Canada, discusses long-term follow-up data from the phase 3 KEYNOTE-040 and KEYNOTE-048 clinical trials examining pembrolizumab for patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.
The KEYNOTE-040 trial compared pembrolizumab to other standard of care options (methotrexate, docetaxel, or cetuximab) in this patient population after failure of platinum-based chemotherapy regimens. After 6 years of follow-up, pembrolizumab continued to show a benefit in overall survival (OS), regardless of PD-L1 expression.
The KEYNOTE-048 trial compared pembrolizumab monotherapy, pembrolizumab plus platinum-based chemotherapy, and cetuximab plus platinum-based chemotherapy in this patients population. After 5 years of follow-up, pembrolizumab and pembrolizumab plus chemotherapy continued to demonstrate durable antitumor activity and manageable safety.
Dr Soulières presented these findings at the 2022 European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress.
Sources:
Soulieres D, Harrington KJ, Le Tourneau C, et al. Pembrolizumab (pembro) vs standard-of-care (SOC) in previously treated recurrent/metastatic (R/M) head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC): 6-year follow-up of KEYNOTE-040. Presented at: ESMO Congress; September 9-13, 2022. Paris, France and virtual. Abstract 658MO.
Tahara M, Greil R, Rischin D, et al. Pembrolizumab with or without chemotherapy for first-line treatment of recurrent/metastatic (R/M) head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC): 5-year results from KEYNOTE-048. Presented at: ESMO Congress; September 9-13, 2022. Paris, France and virtual. Abstract 659MO.
