Loading
A year of pembrolizumab after surgery for stage III melanoma cut the risk of recurrence by 43 percent compared with placebo, the first placebo-controlled proof that adjuvant PD-1 blockade works.
Phase 3 placebo-controlled trial of 1,019 patients with completely resected stage III melanoma randomised to pembrolizumab or placebo for one year.
Twelve-month recurrence-free survival was 75.4 versus 61.0 percent (hazard ratio 0.57), consistent across PD-L1 and BRAF subgroups; five-year recurrence-free survival was 55.4 versus 38.3 percent and distant metastasis-free survival was also improved, with grade 3 or higher immune-related events in 7.1 percent.
Adjuvant pembrolizumab is a standard for resected stage III melanoma, with subsequent trials extending it to stage II and to the neoadjuvant setting.
Shares Stage III melanoma (after surgery), New England Journal of Medicine.
Shares Stage III melanoma (after surgery), New England Journal of Medicine.
Shares Stage III melanoma (after surgery), New England Journal of Medicine.