Video

Dr. Nghiem on Immunotherapy in Merkel Cell Carcinoma

Paul Nghiem, MD, PhD, Michael Piepkorn Endowed Chair in Dermatology Research, professor of Dermatology/Medicine at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, University of Washington Medicine, discusses immunotherapy for the treatment of Merkel cell carcinoma.

Paul Nghiem, MD, PhD, Michael Piepkorn Endowed Chair in Dermatology Research, professor of Dermatology/Medicine at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, University of Washington Medicine, discusses immunotherapy for the treatment of patients with Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC). He presented 2-year efficacy and safety data from the JAVELIN Merkel 200 trial at the 2018 ASCO Annual Meeting.

MCC is considered by many to be a chemotherapy-sensitive disease. Although over 50% of patients will initially respond to chemotherapy, less than 5% will benefit beyond 1 year, Nghiem says. Part A of the single-arm trial focused on the patient population with the biggest need—those who are chemotherapy-refractory.

Patients were treated with the PD-1 inhibitor avelumab (Bavencio). Progression-free survival was 26% after 2 years, and the objective response rate of 33% remained unchanged after a follow-up of 1 year and 18 months. Nghiem says the biggest difference between immunotherapy and chemotherapy is that 70% to 80% of patients stay in response with immunotherapy, according to these data.

Newsletter

Stay up to date on the most recent and practice-changing oncology data

Latest CME

View All
Tumor Board: Expert Insights on Managing Classical 𝘌𝘎𝘍𝘙 Mutations, 𝘌𝘎𝘍𝘙 Exon 20 Insertions, and Atypical 𝘌𝘎𝘍𝘙 Mutations in Metastatic NSCLC
Video

Tumor Board: Expert Insights on Managing Classical 𝘌𝘎𝘍𝘙 Mutations, 𝘌𝘎𝘍𝘙 Exon 20 Insertions, and Atypical 𝘌𝘎𝘍𝘙 Mutations in Metastatic NSCLC

Jun 6th 2025 - Jul 12th 2025

online-activity
Medical Crossfire®: Expert Perspectives on Targeting c-Met Overexpression and 𝘔𝘌𝘛 Genomic Alterations in NSCLC – Unveiling the Complexities of 𝘔𝘌𝘛 Dysregulation
Video

Medical Crossfire®: Expert Perspectives on Targeting c-Met Overexpression and 𝘔𝘌𝘛 Genomic Alterations in NSCLC – Unveiling the Complexities of 𝘔𝘌𝘛 Dysregulation

Jun 6th 2025 - Jul 12th 2025

online-activity
Evolving Treatment Strategies in Pancreatic Cancer: Current Standards, Emerging Targets, and the Role of Molecular Testing
Video

Evolving Treatment Strategies in Pancreatic Cancer: Current Standards, Emerging Targets, and the Role of Molecular Testing

Jun 5th 2025 - Jul 12th 2025

online-activity