Safety evaluation of pembrolizumab for treating recurrent head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Safety evaluation of pembrolizumab for treating recurrent head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Expert Opin Drug Saf. 2020 May 27;: Authors: Desilets A, Soulières D Abstract INTRODUCTION: Programmed death 1 (PD-1) blockade has changed the therapeutic landscape of recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (R/M HNSCC) with convincing overall response rates and overall survival benefits when compared to chemotherapy alone. The toxicity profile of pembrolizumab appears to be similar to that of other PD-1 or PD-L1 inhibitors, with frequent diarrhoea, hypothyroidism or cutaneous rash cases, and rare cases of grade 3 to 5 pneumonitis.Areas covered: In this article, the pharmacokinetics and mechanism of action of pembrolizumab will be covered, as well as the rationale behind tumour PD-L1 scoring. Safety and efficacy data surrounding pembrolizumab use will be presented. A tentative comparative analysis with other PD-1 (nivolumab) and PD-L1 (durvalumab) inhibitors will also be performed.Expert opinion: Superior OS for pembrolizumab as first-line monotherapy was demonstrated in the CPS ≥ 20 and CPS ≥ 1 populations, with favourable toxicity profile when compared to the EXTREME regimen. Patient selection through adequate PD-L1 scoring is thus essential in order to limit upfront exposure to combination chemotherapy. Further trials are currently investigating the safety of PD-L1 inhibitors, alone or in combination with ant...
Source: Expert Opinion on Drug Safety - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Tags: Expert Opin Drug Saf Source Type: research