SGO Journal Club Commentary Published in Gynecologic Oncology Reports: Cervical Cancer–Times… They Are A-Changing
The SGO Journal Club, a joint initiative between the SGO Clinical Practice and Education Committees, met in December to discuss updates in cervical cancer therapies as part of the Journal Club webinar series.
Despite the fact that both new occurrences of cervical cancer and deaths due to cervical cancer are declining, deaths are declining at a proportionally slower rate, indicating that current standards for treatment are not meeting the needs of patients. In the recent Journal Club webinar, speakers C. Trey Leath, MD; Jyoti Mayadev, MD; Leslie Randall, MD; and moderators Renata Urban, MD; and Christine Walsh, MD discussed recent research, FDA-approved drugs, immunotherapy in cervical cancer and what’s on the horizon in cervical cancer research.
The Journal Club discussion and accompanying article highlighted the use of immunotherapy in cervical cancer with a focus on the KEYNOTE-826 and GOG-9929 studies. KEYNOTE-826 demonstrated improved survival outcomes and led to the October 13, 2021, FDA approval of pembrolizumab for use in combination with chemotherapy with or without bevacizumab in patients with persistent, recurrent, or metastatic cervical cancer whose tumors express PD-L1. GOG-9929 was a Phase I trial that evaluated sequential ipilimumab after chemoradiation in patients with node positive, locally advanced cervical cancer.
KEYNOTE-826 has changed the standard of care with immunotherapy now available as a treatment option in the first-line setting in patients with PD-L1 positive tumors. GOG-9929 demonstrated tolerability of the immunotherapy/chemoradiation strategy and further work in this area may result in future immunotherapy availability in this setting. NRG GY017, CALLA, and GOG-3047/KEYNOTE A-18/ENGOT-cx11 are all ongoing trials evaluating immunotherapy combinations with chemoradiation. While not the focus of the Journal Club discussion, it’s also important to note that the September 20, 2021, FDA approval of tisotumab vedotin for the treatment of recurrent or metastatic cervical cancer provides a second-line treatment option that does not require PD-L1 positive biomarker status.
The treatment landscape for cervical cancer is rapidly changing, and in this webinar, the Journal Club participants reflected on the role of immunotherapy in cervical cancer, on the application of these trials in their clinical practice and the future directions in treatment options.
Read the full commentary in Gynecologic Oncology Reports and view the Journal Club recording on SGO ConnectEd.