Merck/Eisai's Keytruda-Lenvima Combo Tops Standard Of Care In Late-Stage Kidney Cancer Study

Merck & Co Inc (NYSE: MRK) and Eisai Co Ltd ESALY unveiled new data from the Phase 3 CLEAR study (KEYNOTE-581/Study 307) evaluating a combo of Merck’s Keytruda and Eisai’s Lenvima (lenvatinib) or Lenvima plus chemotherapy everolimus against Pfizer Inc’s PFE Sutent (sunitinib) for the first-line treatment of advanced renal cell carcinoma.
The companies presented the data at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s Genitourinary Cancers Symposium.
The combination of Keytruda and Lenvima significantly extended the time patients lived without their disease getting worse in a head-to-head matchup with sunitinib, the standard of care.
Keytruda and Lenvima’s combo posted a 61% reduction in the risk of disease progression or death and cut the risk of dying alone by 34%. Patients in the Keytruda plus Lenvima arm saw significant improvement in progression-free survival (PFS) at a median of 23.9 months versus 9.2 months for patients treated with sunitinib alone.
The combo posted a complete response rate of 16.1% and a partial response rate of 54.9% versus 4.2% and 31.9%, respectively, for sunitinib.
Median overall survival was not reached in either treatment arm after a median follow-up of 27 months.
By contrast, Lenvima plus everolimus cut the risk of disease progression or death by 35% with a median PFS of 14.7 months versus 9.2 months in the sunitinib arm.
Lenvima-everolimus arm did not demonstrate an improvement in overall survival compared with sunitinib. The combination arm posted a complete response rate of 9.8% and a partial response rate of 43.7%, significantly better than sunitinib.
Price Action: MRK shares are down 1.2% at $74.1, and ESALY stock decreased 0.68% at $74.1 during market trading on the last check Tuesday.

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