Dr. Luis Paz-Ares
Invited discussant for both studies, Dr. Luis Paz-Ares of Hospital Universitario Virgen del Rocio in Seville, Spain, said the POPLAR overall survival results align very closely with those he reported at ASCO in the phase III CheckMate 057 study for nivolumab vs. docetaxel (median OS 12.2 months vs. 9.4 months).
“One trial actually confirms to the other, even though we are talking about two different agents from the same class and in different scenarios – phase II and phase III,” he said.
Although somewhat immature, the survival results from BIRCH are consistent with POPLAR and other phase II trials with other agents of this class, Dr. Paz-Ares said. What is yet to be determined is whether first-line patients benefit more from immunotherapy, possibly because the immune system is stronger at that point.
Dr. Martin Reck of Hospital Grosshansdorf, Germany, said atezolizumab is set to substantially change treatment strategies for patients with refractory lung cancer.
“In particular, the option for long-lasting responses and stabilization in combination with an attractive tolerability profile will impact clinical practice,” he said in a statement. “Whether patients should be selected using a biomarker strategy still needs to be determined and remains a significant challenge based on the multiple different companion diagnostics that are in use for the particular agents.”
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