OncoTargets and Therapy (Nov 2021)

Durable Response to Vemurafenib and Cobimetinib for the Treatment of BRAF-Mutated Metastatic Melanoma in Routine Clinical Practice

  • Álamo MC,
  • Ochenduszko S,
  • Crespo G,
  • Corral M,
  • Oramas J,
  • Sancho P,
  • Medina J,
  • Garicano F,
  • López P,
  • Campos Balea B,
  • Rodríguez Garzotto A,
  • Muñoz-Couselo E

Journal volume & issue
Vol. Volume 14
pp. 5345 – 5352

Abstract

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Mª del Carmen Álamo,1 Sebastian Ochenduszko,2 Guillermo Crespo,3 Mónica Corral,4 Juana Oramas,5 Pilar Sancho,6 Javier Medina,7 Fernando Garicano,8 Pedro López,9 Begoña Campos Balea,10 Analia Rodríguez Garzotto,11 Eva Muñoz-Couselo12,13 1Oncology Department, Hospital Universitario Virgen Macarena, Sevilla, Spain; 2Oncology Department, Hospital Universitario Dr. Peset, Valencia, Spain; 3Oncology Department, Hospital Universitario de Burgos, Burgos, Spain; 4Oncology Department, Hospital Clínico Universitario Lozano Blesa, Zaragoza, Spain; 5Oncology Department, Hospital Universitario de Canarias, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain; 6Oncology Department, Hospital Universitario Virgen del Rocío, Sevilla, Spain; 7Oncology Department, Hospital Universitario Virgen de la Salud, Toledo, Spain; 8Oncology Department, Hospital de Galdakao, Bizkaia, Spain; 9Oncology Department, Complejo Hospitalario General de Jaén, Jaén, Spain; 10Oncology Department, Hospital Lucus Augusti, Lugo, Spain; 11Medical Department and Strategy, Roche S.A, Madrid, Spain; 12Oncology Department, Hospital Universitario Vall d´Hebron, Barcelona, Spain; 13VHIO Vall d’Hebron Institute on Oncology, Barcelona, SpainCorrespondence: Eva Muñoz-CouseloOncology Department, Hospital Universitario Vall d´Hebron, Passeig de la Vall d’Hebron, 119, Barcelona, 08035, SpainEmail [email protected]: The combination of BRAF and MEK inhibitors delays the onset of resistance and provides more sustained and dramatic responses in comparison with a BRAF inhibitor in monotherapy. The objective of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the combination therapy with vemurafenib/cobimetinib in terms of durability, and to describe differential characteristics in patients associated to durable responses in real-world settings.Patients and Methods: Retrospective, observational, cross-sectional, multicenter study involving 41 patients with advanced melanoma harboring a BRAFV600 mutation who initiated a combination therapy with vemurafenib/cobimetinib between May 2018 and March 2019. Participants were differentiated regarding the durability of the response: durable (complete response, CR, or a partial response, PR, for at least 12 months) and non-durable (stable disease, SD, progressive disease, PD, or CR/PR < 12 months). Secondary endpoints included treatment adherence, labor productivity, anxiety/depression, and safety profile.Results: During the combination therapy, 12 patients (29.3%) had a CR, 19 a PR (46.3%), 5 showed SD (12.2%), and 5 had PD. A total of 12 patients (29.3%) were considered as achieving a durable response and 29 (70.7%) as a non-durable one. Practically all sociodemographic and clinical characteristics were similar between patients. Body mass index was the only differential factor (with higher body mass index achieving a non-durable response). The treatment adherence was 100% in patients with durable response and 66.7% in those with non-durable.Conclusion: The combination treatment with vemurafenib/cobimetinib results in an important impact on long-term survival, leading to a steady CR in one-third of the patients.Keywords: vemurafenib, cobimetinib, BRAF, metastatic melanoma, durable response, clinical practice

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