Dr. Balmanoukian on Immunotherapy Advancements in GU Cancers

Ani Balmanoukian, MD, director of Thoracic Oncology, associate director of the Phase I Immune-Oncology Program, The Angeles Clinic and Research Institute, discusses immunotherapy advancements in genitourinary (GU) cancers.

The field has come a long way since the introduction of immune checkpoint inhibitors, says Balmanoukian. In the last 2 years, there have been significant advancements in checkpoint inhibitors for the treatment of patients with urothelial cancers and renal cell carcinoma (RCC).

In RCC, nivolumab (Opdivo) has demonstrated an improvement in median overall survival when compared with everolimus (Afinitor). Beyond that, combinations of immune checkpoint inhibitors, such as ipilimumab (Yervoy) plus nivolumab, have carved out a place in urothelial cancers and RCC, Balmanoukian adds.