New hope in the battle against kidney cancer

Data from a mid-stage clinical trial suggest that combining two targeted therapy drugs may significantly improve survival for some patients with newly diagnosed advanced kidney cancer.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors

The trial testing these two drugs was launched before treatments known as immune checkpoint inhibitors became desirable treatment for these patients.

But immune checkpoint inhibitors, such as Merck's Keytruda and Bristol-Myers Squibb's Opdivo, cannot be used by patients with autoimmune diseases, and their cost can be prohibitive, especially in areas with limited resources.

The 51 patients participating in the trial, all of whom had clear-cell kidney cancer that had spread throughout the body when it was first discovered, received Votriant from Novartis and Avastin from Roche alternately.

Both drugs inhibit the action of a protein called vascular endothelial growth factor, which stimulates the growth of new blood vessels capable of supplying the tumor with oxygen and nutrients. Votriant's effect on the agent diminishes over time, while Avastin effectively removes the agent from the circulation.

Encouraging results

The researchers reported in the scientific journal Lancet Oncology that the average survival period for patients was 63.2 months, including 24.8 months during which their disease did not worsen.

In comparison, when Votriant alone is given as first-line treatment to patients with previously untreated metastatic clear cell kidney cancer, the overall survival rate ranges from 28.4 to 29.3 months, while the median progression-free survival is only 9.2 months.

A very strong benefit was observed in 33 trial participants who were considered a favorable risk group based on their underlying health condition. The researchers found that the average duration of survival without progression of the disease, which is the period that passes before the cancer begins to worsen, in this group was 28.5 months, while the overall survival duration was 76.9 months.