Improved survival for patients with urothelial cancer
The JAVELIN Bladder 100 phase III clinical trial demonstrates that treatment with immunotherapy avelumab plus best supportive care (BSC) significantly prolongs overall survival compared to BSC alone, in patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer.
The randomized controlled study is the first to demonstrate efficacy of immunotherapy with avelumab for urothelial cancer, earning it FDA Breakthrough Therapy Designation in April 2020.
The clinical trial is a result of academic-industry collaboration, including investigators from the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and University of Washington Medicine with the support of Pfizer and Merck KGaA.
Petros Grivas, MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Division of Medical Oncology, University of Washington, and global co-principal investigator in the JAVELIN Bladder 100 trial, recently presented the results during the ASCO Virtual Scientific Program.
"People with advanced urothelial cancer generally have a poor prognosis, and most experience cancer progression (growth) within eight months after initiation of first-line chemotherapy," said Grivas.
"We are very excited with these results, which indicate that immunotherapy with avelumab first-line maintenance could offer a new treatment option that helps patients live longer."