OncoTargets and Therapy (May 2020)
Optimal Management of First-Line Advanced Renal Cell Carcinoma: Focus on Pembrolizumab
Abstract
Abhay Singh, 1,* Inderpreet Singh, 2,* Namrata Singh, 3 Igor Puzanov 1 1Department of Medicine, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY, USA; 2Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USA; 3Department of Medicine, Punjab Institute of Medical Sciences, Punjab, India*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Igor PuzanovDepartment of Medicine, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Elm and Carlton Street, Buffalo, NY 14263, USATel +1 716 845 4101Fax +1 716 845 3423Email [email protected]: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is among the 10 most common cancers in the USA. One-third of the patients diagnosed with this cancer present with locally advanced or metastatic disease. In the past, advanced disease conferred poor survival outcomes; however, the treatment paradigm for RCC has been revolutionized twice since 2005. The initial wave of revolution came with the emergence of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitors and a second wave arose more recently with the emergence and unprecedented success of checkpoint inhibitors in RCC. A third wave combining these two strategies is well underway and likely represents the new paradigm to improve survival outcomes for afflicted patients. In this review, we discuss the current treatment landscape for patients with advanced RCC, focusing on approved VEGF and checkpoint inhibitors in the first-line setting as well as highlighting landmark combination clinical trials.Keywords: renal cell carcinoma, metastatic, VEGF inhibitors, checkpoint inhibitors, axitinib, pembrolizumab
