Merck & Co. Inc.'s pharmaceutical product, Keytruda, has effectively lowered the mortality risk by 38% in kidney cancer patients who are at augmented risk of reoccurrence following surgery, according to the results from phase 3 of the KEYNOTE-564 trial.
It's noteworthy that KEYNOTE-564 is the pioneer Phase 3 trial to display superior overall survival (OS) with supplementary therapy compared to placebo amongst renal cell carcinoma patients.
Upon conducting the third preordained interim analysis (with a median follow-up of 57.2 months), Keytruda as a supplementary therapy signifcantly enhanced overall survival by 38% when compared to placebo. At the 48-month mark, the projected overall survival rate sat at 91.2% for patients treated with Keytruda, in contrast to the 86.0% rate for those who were administered a placebo. This clear surge in survival rate for Keytruda patients was apparent across a variety of subgroups.
Toni Choueiri, director at Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology and Jerome & Nancy Kohlberg professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, stated that up to 40% of kidney cancer patients may be subject to recurrence post-surgery, subsequently leading to a significant decrease in survival chances.
Keytruda has gained global approval for its efficacy in the supplementary treatment of renal cell carcinoma patients in several regions like the U.S., European Union, and Japan. This decision is founded on DFS data procured from KEYNOTE-564, initially presented at the 2021 ASCO Annual Meeting.
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