Dr. Long on Treating Melanoma With Dabrafenib Plus Trametinib

Georgina V. Long, BSc, PhD, MBBS, chair of Melanoma Medical Oncology and Translational Research at the Melanoma Institute of Australia (MIA) and Royal North Shore Hospital, University of Australia, discusses the patients with melanoma who respond best to the combination of dabrafenib (Tafinlar) plus trametinib (Mekinist).

According to the pooled analysis results of the COMBI-d study, the 3-year overall survival (OS) of patients on the combination was 44%. The patient profile of those who performed well on this regimen is similar to those who do well on immunotherapy agents. Predictive factors of long-term OS were: normal lactate dehydrogenase at baseline, low sum of diameter of metastases at baseline, and less than 3 organ sites.