RESUMO
Cisplatin-based chemotherapy has been the standard of care for patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer (la/mUC). Enfortumab vedotin, an antibody-drug conjugate directed to Nectin-4, and pembrolizumab, an immune checkpoint inhibitor, are two therapies that have individually provided a survival benefit in patients with la/mUC. The combination regimen of enfortumab vedotin plus pembrolizumab was evaluated in EV-302 (KEYNOTE-A39; NCT0422385), a phase 3 study that showed statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in overall survival, progression-free survival, and a key secondary endpoint of overall response rate versus chemotherapy. Based on these results and those from the EV-103 (KEYNOTE-869; NCT03288545) Dose Escalation cohort, Cohort A, and Cohort K, enfortumab vedotin plus pembrolizumab was granted approval from the US Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of adults with la/mUC. While guidelines and recommendations for the management of adverse events (AEs) have been developed for immune checkpoint inhibitor monotherapy and enfortumab vedotin monotherapy, additional guidance is needed for managing AEs that occur with enfortumab vedotin plus pembrolizumab. As monotherapies, enfortumab vedotin and pembrolizumab are both associated with some of the AEs observed with the combination, such as skin reactions, pneumonitis, and diarrhea, which may confound the attribution of the AE to a specific agent and thereby complicate clinical management. In this manuscript, we aim to provide recommendations for best practice for patient care and the management of AEs of clinical interest for patients with la/mUC receiving enfortumab vedotin plus pembrolizumab, including skin reactions, peripheral neuropathy, hyperglycemia, and pneumonitis. These recommendations were developed based on published guidelines, expert opinions, and the clinical experience of the authors, which include oncologist, advanced practice provider, nursing, and pharmacy perspectives. In addition, guidance on patient education and communication is provided. With vigilant monitoring, early detection, and prompt intervention of treatment-emergent AEs based on recommended approaches described herein, it is the authors' experience that most AEs can be managed with supportive therapy and dose modification/interruptions, allowing patients to continue treatment.
RESUMO
INTRODUCTION: The ligation of the interleukin-2 (IL-2) receptor and immune checkpoint blockade may each alter lymphocytes, thereby inducing regression in various cancers. Single agent objective response rates of 14% to 25% have been reported for usual schedule 14-dose-in-a-row IL-2 therapy of metastatic clear cell renal cancer (ccRCC), with a notable subset of responses being durable. Pembrolizumab yielded a 33% response rate in patients with metastatic ccRCC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This study addressed the safety and feasibility of the combination of IL-2 and pembrolizumab in the treatment of metastatic ccRCC. Subjects were treated with four 9-week blocks of therapy, receiving pembrolizumab every 3 weeks in all blocks and receiving 4 courses of 5-planned-doses high dose IL-2 in each of blocks 2 and 3. Safety was monitored by a Pocock boundary of study suspension and re-evaluation if exceeding a 15% dose limiting toxicity rate at α = 0.05. The Simon 2-stage design tested for an alternative hypothesis response rate of at least a 45% vs. a null hypothesis rate of less than 20%, with α = 0.10 and 90% power RESULTS: No accrual suspension for safety was triggered. The objective response rate was 70% (19/27, 95% CI: 0.50-0.86). Nine patients responded after pembrolizumab alone and ten responded after the addition of IL-2. At a minimum follow-up of 23 months, 9 of the responding patients had no disease progression requiring additional treatment. CONCLUSION: The combination of 5-planned-dose-schedule high dose IL-2 and pembrolizumab is feasible, with a high response rate, justifying further exploration of this dual immune treatment of metastatic ccRCC.
