Kidney cancer

Combination therapy with pembrolizumab plus axitinib results in similar health-related quality of life outcomes to that with sunitinib monotherapy for untreated advanced renal cell carcinoma, KEYNOTE-426 study data show.

Baseline plasma L-arginine levels may predict response to immune checkpoint inhibitors in people with advanced cancers, say French researchers who found that low levels correlated with poorer outcomes.

Statins appear to be associated with improved outcomes among patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma taking nivolumab, indicates a chart review.

People with cancer receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors have a significantly higher risk for major adverse cardiovascular events than their unexposed counterparts or the general population, indicate real-world findings.

US researchers have identified “a protective association” between immune-related toxic effects – either disease flares or immune-related adverse events – in people with autoimmune disease receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors for cancer.

Researchers have used computer-based analyses to identify and confirm a large number genetic biomarkers that predict cancer treatment outcomes, as well as gene–gene interactions that may modify the effects of targeted treatments.

US FDA immunotherapy approval led to a significant increase in use, but did not eliminate socioeconomic disparities among users that were apparent prior to approval, study findings indicate.

The latest findings from the CheckMate 9ER trial show that the combination of nivolumab plus cabozantinib continues to offer superior survival to that of sunitinib for patients with treatment-naïve advanced renal cell carcinoma after a median follow-up of 32.9 months.

French researchers have identified an association between detectable plasma levels of acetaminophen and poor outcomes in people receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors for advanced cancer.

Adjuvant everolimus may improve recurrence-free survival after nephrectomy in people with treatment-naïve renal cell carcinoma, particularly those with a very high risk for recurrence, suggest final results from the EVEREST trial.

The risk for neurologic adverse events is significantly lower with immune checkpoint inhibitors than with other cancer treatments, particularly chemotherapy, suggest results of a systematic review and meta-analysis.

The BONSAI trial has demonstrated encouraging efficacy and manageable toxicity of cabozantinib in treatment-naïve patients with metastatic collecting duct renal cell carcinoma.

The NeoAvAx trial has demonstrated encouraging response and disease-free survival after neoadjuvant treatment with avelumab plus axitinib in people with locally advanced renal cell carcinoma at high risk for relapse after nephrectomy.

Extended follow-up data from the KEYNOTE-564 study show that adjuvant pembrolizumab continues to offer a disease-free survival benefit over placebo in people with renal cell carcinoma at an intermediate-high or high postsurgery recurrence risk.

Combination treatment with nivolumab plus axitinib has achieved a high response rate in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma enrolled in a phase 1/2 trial.

People receiving nivolumab plus cabozantinib for advanced renal cell carcinoma report less decline in health-related quality of life during treatment than those given sunitinib, show data from the phase 3 CheckMate 9ER trial.

Treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors within 90 days of radiotherapy does not lead to a “meaningful increase” in rates of serious adverse events, say researchers who conducted a pooled analysis of US FDA registry data.

Read more about the urothelial cancer and renal cell carcinoma decisions here

The risk for disease progression or death increases with HLA-A*03 allele count in people undergoing immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy for cancer, irrespective of tumor type and agent used, research suggests.

Definitive radiotherapy without systemic therapy may be a feasible strategy for the treatment of oligometastatic renal cell carcinoma, phase 2 study findings indicate.