Dr. Luke on Adjuvant Therapies in Development for Melanoma

Jason J. Luke, MD, assistant professor of Medicine, The University of Chicago Medicine, discusses some of the ongoing adjuvant therapies in development for patients with melanoma. Luke shared this insight during the 2017 OncLive^® State of the Science Summit on Melanoma and Immuno-Oncology.

There are many therapies currently being explored in ongoing trials, Luke explains. There have not yet been read-outs on any of these studies; however, results are expected soon on the comparison of PD-1 inhibitors with nivolumab (Opdivo) or pembrolizumab (Keytruda) versus CTLA-4 inhibitors in the adjuvant setting.

Additionally, researchers expect that such trials will be positive for PD-1 agents as they are known to have a better safety profile than CTLA-4 inhibitors, such as ipilimumab (Yervoy).

Moreover, there is another trial of the adjuvant combination of PD-1 plus CTLA-4 inhibitors; this is likely to be very toxic, Luke cautions. Finally, BRAF inhibitors are also being investigated as adjuvant treatments.