In the last decade a number of therapies were approved for advanced renal cell cancer but patients’ survival still remains critical. But the therapeutic armamentarium for treating this tumour is evolving, as remarkable results emerged at the European Cancer Congress (ECC2015), in Vienna.
In the METEOR trial1, an open-label phase III trial, carbozantinib, a targeted therapy that inhibits tyrosine kinases including MET, VEGFRs, and AXL, was compared to mTOR inhibitor everolimus, which is considered the standard of care in second-line therapy for patients with advanced renal cell cancer whose disease progressed following treatment with one or more VEGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors. The trial showed a 42% reduction in the risk of progression or death, and carbozantinib doubled the median progression-free survival.
Positive results were also presented in another trial, CheckMate 0252. In this study, the checkpoint inhibitor nivolumab, demonstrated overall survival benefit in the second-line treatment for advanced renal cell carcinoma after prior anti-angiogenic treatment.
These two drugs are likely to change the clinical practice, according to Cora Sternberg Chief of the Department of Medical Oncology at the San Camillo-Forlanini Hospital in Rome, Italy.