Dr. Ahn on the Significance of the KEYNOTE-177 Trial in mCRC

Daniel H. Ahn, DO, an oncologist, internist, and assistant professor of medicine at Mayo Clinic, discusses the significance of the phase 3 KEYNOTE-177 trial in patients with microsatellite instability–high (MSI-H) metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC).

The new standard of care for patients with MSI-H mCRC is based on findings from the KEYNOTE-177 trial, which were presented during the 2020 ASCO Virtual Scientific Program, says Ahn.

The study showed a doubling in progression-free survival with pembrolizumab (Keytruda) versus standard chemotherapy in patients with newly diagnosed MSI-H mCRC, Ahn explains.

Prior to these data, a patient with MSI-H mCRC ​that harbors an NTRK fusion would have ​received chemotherapy in the frontline setting, followed by either a checkpoint inhibitor or an ​NTRK-directed TKI​, says Ahn.

However, pembrolizumab monotherapy has now become the new frontline standard of care for ​this subgroup ofpatients, Ahn concludes.