The study evaluated the effectiveness of a treatment regimen combining pembrolizumab (an immune checkpoint inhibitor) with chemotherapy in patients with advanced gastric cancers.
Key Findings:
- The treatment regimen, which included pembrolizumab plus chemotherapy given before and after surgery, induced a pathologic objective response in approximately 60% of patients.
- The study focused on patients with resectable metastatic gastric and gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma.
- The treatment was well-tolerated among the participants.
Study Details:
- The study enrolled 36 patients, with 34 being evaluable for efficacy analysis.
- Patients received three cycles of capecitabine, oxaliplatin, and pembrolizumab, with optional epirubicin, before and after surgery. They also received additional doses of pembrolizumab.
- The primary endpoint was the pathologic complete response rate, with secondary endpoints including overall response rate, disease-free survival (DFS), overall survival (OS), and safety.
Results:
- 20.6% of the evaluable patients achieved a pathologic complete response, and 17.6% had a pathologic near-complete response.
- Among those who underwent resection, 14.3% experienced disease recurrence.
- The 2-year DFS rate was 67.8%, and the 2-year OS rate was 80.6%.
- Grade 3 or higher treatment-related adverse events occurred in 57.1% of patients.
Implications:
- The study met its primary endpoint, suggesting the potential of this combination treatment in the perioperative setting for patients with advanced gastric cancer.
- The findings indicate that immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy can be effective and feasible in tumor downstaging.
- Ongoing studies are investigating whether this combination can result in an overall survival benefit.