GSK Dabrafenib/ Trametinib combo versus Dabrafenib alone

This was a very interesting session and of relevance to all patients with BRAF mutant Melanoma

Keith Flaherty presented an update on the combo versus mono study from the GSK Phase 1/2 studyhttp://clinicaltrials.gov/show/NCT01072175:

http://abstracts.asco.org/144/AbstView_144_134903.html

The overall survival for the combo was 25 months- I know the abstract says 23.8 but I noted 25 several times, so once I will get the presentation, I'll post more details of the data, against 20.2 for mono therapy. The authors argue that the data for Dabra alone could be confounded because many patients moved on to the combination- so it is most likely rather less.

Interesting to note was that after 2 years on combo

83% patients who had had a complete response

51% who had had a partial response 

35% who had had stable disease

were still alive- so survival depends on how complete one responds to the therapy.

I will post the data but he showed data that patients who first got a BRAF inhibitor and those who were permitted to cross over from the mono to the combination arm were doing WORSE. So that means one should get the combo from the onset, not after progressing on mono therapy. It always means that even allowing for cross-over is not fair for patients- because they will do worse.

This is very important data as it is overall survival data- and that is considered the 'hard' data- especially in the face of the early results from the GSK Phase 3 study presented in the next session.

Have to run, more later!