Recently, the FDA approved pembrolizumab for adults with resectable locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). The treatment is approved as a neoadjuvant treatment before surgery, a treatment during radiotherapy, and for continued monotherapy use.
This approval marks the first new treatment in the past six years to be approved for HNSCC. It is also the first perioperative approval for locally advanced HNSCC, marking a significant innovation in treatment options for patients with HNSCC.1
Unmet needs in previous treatment options
Patients facing an HNSCC diagnosis would typically have received a standard of care consisting of surgery followed by radiotherapy, with or without concomitant cisplatin use. Unfortunately, outcomes with this treatment protocol are not ideal, as one-third of patients relapse within a year and the five-year survival rate is only 50%.2
The lack of treatment options and need for more effective types of treatment prompted studies to investigate the use of pembrolizumab for HNSCC.
Compelling results supporting pembrolizumab
KEYNOTE-689 (a phase 3, global, randomized, open-label study) compared perioperative pembrolizumab to the standard-of-care adjuvant radiotherapy with or without cisplatin in 714 patients with newly diagnosed, resectable, locally advanced stage III or IVA HNSCC.1,3 The primary endpoint looked at event-free survival (EFS) and found that the median EFS for taking pembrolizumab was 59.7 months compared to 29.6 months in the control group.1
Additionally, a statistically significant improvement in major pathological response (key secondary end point) was also observed in patients receiving pembrolizumab.3 Adverse events were similar in the pembrolizumab and control treatment groups.
The future of HNSCC treatment
The approval of a new type of treatment for HNSCC gives hope for patients to experience better survival. Beyond this individual indication, the approval is also part of a changing tide in cancer outcomes, where new types of treatments are not only more effective at treating cancer but have less side effects. With further research and continued innovation, cancer diagnoses may continue to become more survivable across a variety of disease types.
As pembrolizumab becomes available in the market for HNSCC, treatment patterns will undoubtedly shift to incorporate this new advanced care option. If you’re wondering how clinical
experts feel about pembrolizumab and other advances in treatments, consider connecting with them directly via the NoeticInsight platform. NoeticInsight provides a range of unique services to enable quick access to health data insights. Obtaining these insights can help you make informed decisions and take immediate action in a rapidly evolving healthcare industry. These conversations with top experts are blinded, unbiased, and on-demand.
If you’ve been looking for a way to access real-world insight and quickly incorporate it into your strategy, contact NoeticInsight. We’re excited to help you meet your specific goals!
Sources:
2. https://www.nejm.org/do/10.1056/NEJMdo008042/full/
3. https://www.targetedonc.com/view/fda-greenlights-perioperative-pembrolizumab-in-resectable-hnscc