Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) has shared six-year follow-up results from a late-stage study of Opdivo (nivolumab) plus Yervoy (ipilimumab) in certain lung cancer patients.
The phase 3 CheckMate-227 trial has been evaluating the dual immunotherapy-based combination compared to chemotherapy as a first-line treatment in patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), regardless of their PD-L1 expression levels.
According to the results, which were presented at the IASLC 2023 World Conference on Lung Cancer, the combination continued to demonstrate long-term and durable survival benefits.
In patients with tumour PD-L1 expression levels of 1% and more – the primary endpoint population – the six-year survival rate for Opdivo plus Yervoy was 22%, compared to 13% for chemotherapy alone.
Additionally, an exploratory analysis of those with PD-L1 expression levels of less than 1% showed that more than three times as many patients treated with the Opdivo regimen were alive at six years, compared to the chemotherapy group.
The safety profile for the combination remained consistent with previously reported data from the trial, BMS said, with no new safety signals observed.
NSCLC is the most common type of lung cancer, representing up to 85% of diagnoses.
Abderrahim Oukessou, vice president, thoracic cancers global programme lead at BMS, said: “We are ecstatic to see Opdivo plus Yervoy continue to demonstrate almost double the overall survival rates as chemotherapy after six years of follow-up – the longest-ever for a phase 3 trial with immunotherapy in metastatic NSCLC.”
Opdivo is currently approved in more than 65 countries for a range of indications, including melanoma, lung, kidney and gastric cancers.
Opdivo plus Yervoy-based combinations have also shown significant overall survival benefits in metastatic melanoma, advanced renal cell carcinoma, malignant pleural mesothelioma and oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma.
In June, BMS reported positive four-year follow-up results from a late-stage study evaluating Opdivo plus Yervoy in combination with chemotherapy, also in patients with metastatic NSCLC.
With a minimum follow-up of 47.9 months, 21% of patients treated with the dual immunotherapy-based combination were alive at four years, compared to 16% of patients treated with chemotherapy alone.
Oukessou said: “Looking ahead, we are excited to expand our research into targeted and small molecule therapies, as well as additional immunotherapy combinations, in the hope of potentially finding solutions for as many people living with thoracic cancers as possible.”
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