Op­di­vo/Yer­voy com­bo for melanoma fails in key pa­tient pop­u­la­tion

Bris­tol-My­ers Squibb’s ef­forts to ex­pand their check­point in­hibitor com­bi­na­tion have run in­to an­oth­er re­cal­ci­trant can­cer.

The NJ-based phar­ma an­nounced that a com­bi­na­tion of Yer­voy and Op­di­vo didn’t beat out Op­di­vo alone in pa­tients with re­sect­ed high-risk melanoma who had very low lev­els of PD-L1. The drug com­bo couldn’t im­prove re­cur­rence-free sur­vival in these post-surgery pa­tients.

The re­sults mean that adding a CT­LA4 in­hibitor to a PD-1 in­hibitor didn’t help the pa­tients who lacked PD-L1 lig­ands. Bris­tol-My­ers is con­tin­u­ing the study, Check­mate-915,  to see if the com­bo helps the larg­er, all-com­er pool.

Unlock this article instantly by becoming a free subscriber.

You’ll get access to free articles each month, plus you can customize what newsletters get delivered to your inbox each week, including breaking news.

SIGN UP LOG IN BECOME A PREMIUM SUBSCRIBER