My mother participated in a trial for Pebroluzimab from June 2014 until June 2015 with amazing results (treated for NSCLC Stage 4 with mets to both adrenals and bone). All of her tumors responded for that year with no side effects (until one of the adrenal tumors stopped responding). Subsequent development is a secondary diagnosis of breast cancer 3 weeks after stopping immunotherapy treatment. She is now being treated with a regimen of Afinitor and Exemestane which is having a positive result on the breast tumor and seems to be keeping the other tumors in check, however, she is suffering from terrible side effects.
Question - now that some of these immunotherapy drugs have FDA approval (Keytruda, Opdivo) and can be prescribed, is there any data on success rates of immunotherapy as a maintenance drug? If so, please let me know where I can find more information.
Reply # - January 3, 2016, 04:19 PM
The term maintenance is used
The term maintenance is used for treatment given after first line treatment without a break. Without maintenance treatment someone would take 1st line treatment then wait until progression to begin 2nd line. It's questionable whether maintenance is better in the long run. Sometimes the terms seem to become only symantecs.
From the fda website, "The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Opdivo (nivolumab) to treat patients with advanced (metastatic) non-small cell lung cancer whose disease progressed during or after platinum-based chemotherapy." http://www.fda.gov/newsevents/newsroom/pressannouncements/ucm466413.htm
I don't know that this answers your question but maybe will help.
Janine