AACR: Nonsurgical Treatment Feasible for Mismatch Repair-Deficient Tumors
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
TUESDAY, April 29, 2025 -- A neoadjuvant programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) blockade enables nonoperative management among patients with early-stage mismatch repair-deficient (dMMR) solid tumors, according to a study published online April 27 in the New England Journal of Medicine to coincide with the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research, held from April 25 to 30 in Chicago.
Andrea Cercek, M.D., from the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, and colleagues conducted a phase 2 study involving patients with stage I, II, or III dMMR solid tumors amenable to curative-intent surgery who were treated with neoadjuvant dostarlimab, a PD-1 blocking agent, for six months. The response to treatment was assessed in cohort 1, involving 49 patients with dMMR locally advanced rectal cancer, and in cohort 2, involving 54 patients with dMMR nonrectal solid tumors. Patients with a clinical complete response could proceed with nonoperative management.
The researchers found that all 49 patients in cohort 1 who completed treatment had a clinical complete response and proceeded with nonoperative management. At 12 months, 37 had a sustained clinical complete response, which met the criterion for efficacy. A total of 35 patients in cohort 2 who completed treatment had a clinical complete response, and 33 proceeded with nonoperative management. For patients in both cohorts, recurrence-free survival at two years was 92 percent, with a median follow-up for recurrence of 20 months.
"Larger studies are needed to confirm the long-term benefit of this treatment, especially among patients with nonrectal tumors, who had a shorter median follow-up for recurrence," the authors write.
Several authors disclosed ties to biopharmaceutical companies, including GSK, which manufactures dostarlimab and partially funded the study.
Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted April 2025
Read this next
Pulmonary Embolism More Common in Children Than Previously Thought
THURSDAY, May 22, 2025 -- Pulmonary embolism (PE) is more common in children than previously thought, according to a study presented at the American Thoracic Society 2025...
Half of Youth-Serving Clinicians Screen for Substance Use Disorder at Every Well Visit
THURSDAY, May 22, 2025 -- Just over half of youth-serving clinicians report that they routinely screen adolescents for substance use disorders (SUDs) at every well visit...
Many Heart Failure Patients Do Not See a Cardiologist Annually
THURSDAY, May 22, 2025 -- About 40 percent of patients with heart failure diagnosis do not see a cardiologist annually, according to a study published online May 18 in the...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.