Zev A. Wainberg, MD, associate professor of medicine and surgery, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), co-director, UCLA Gastrointestinal Oncology Program, director, Early Phase Clinical Research Program, Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses the results of the phase 2 FIGHT trial (NCT03343301) in 

-positive gastric/gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) cancer.

The FIGHT trial randomized patients with 

-positive unresectable, locally advanced or metastatic gastric/GEJ cancer to bemarituzumab, a first-in-class FGFR2b antibody, plus modified FOLFOX6 (mFOLFOX6) or mFOLFOX6 plus placebo in the first-line setting.

The results revealed that bemarituzumab plus mFOLFOX6 led to significant clinical improvements in progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and overall response rate (ORR) compared with mFOLFOX6 plus placebo. The median PFS was 9.5 months with bemarituzumab versus 7.4 months with placebo in the intent-to-treat population, which met the study’s primary end point. As of the data cut-off, the median OS was not reached and 12.9 months, respectively. The median ORR improved from 40% with placebo to 53% with bemarituzumab. Notably, these findings are consistent with previously reported survival rates with mFOXFOX6, concludes Wainberg.

Videos

Zev A. Wainberg, MD, of University of California, Los Angeles, discusses the results of the phase 2 FIGHT trial (NCT03343301) in FGFR2b-positive gastric/gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) cancer.  

Dr. Wainberg on the FIGHT Trial Results in FGFR2b+ Gastric/GEJ Cancer 

Rapid Readouts: Phase 1/2 Study Results of Liposomal Irinotecan and FOLFOX

Zev Wainberg, MD, an assistant professor of medicine, and co-director of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) GI Oncology Program, UCLA, discusses the efficacy findings of pembrolizumab (Keytruda) monotherapy versus chemotherapy for patients with PD-L1—positive advanced gastric/gastroesophageal junction cancer who have a high combined positive score (CPS) in cohort 1 of the phase II KEYNOTE-059 and in the phase III KEYNOTE-061 and KEYNOTE-062 studies.

In KEYNOTE-059, there were around 54 patients who had a CPS score ≥10, and close to 18% of those patients achieved very durable responses. These results provide more confirmation that the optimal use for pembrolizumab in gastric cancer is for the treatment of patients with high CPS scores, says Wainberg.

The randomized studies showed that patients with high CPS scores had better efficacy with pembrolizumab compared with those who had low CPS scores. This was especially true in the subgroup of patients with microsatellite instability—high (MSI-H) disease. MSI-H patients had the most significant benefit from pembrolizumab in both the first- and second-line studies.

 View more from 2020 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium

Zev A. Wainberg, MD discusses the efficacy findings of pembrolizumab monotherapy versus chemotherapy for patients with PD-L1–positive advanced gastric and gastroesophageal junction cancer of high combined positive score in cohort 1 of the phase II KEYNOTE-059 and in the phase III KEYNOTE-061 and KEYNOTE-062 studies.

Zev A. Wainberg, MD

Articles

Dr. Wainberg on the FIGHT Trial Results in FGFR2b+ Gastric/GEJ Cancer

Rapid Readouts: Phase 1/2 Study Results of Liposomal Irinotecan and FOLFOX

Dr. Wainberg on Impact of PD-L1 Status in Gastric/GEJ Cancer Treatment