Combination therapy with PD-1/PD-L1 blockade: An overview of ongoing clinical trials

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Immunotherapy
• Clinical Trials

Background:

• Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) targeting programmed death 1 (PD-1) or programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) represent advanced tumor immunotherapies.
• Their novel mechanism and broad antitumor efficacy have spurred numerous combination strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a comprehensive analysis of clinical trials involving PD-1/PD-L1 blockade in cancer therapy.
• To identify trends and areas of unmet needs in combination immunotherapy research.

Main Methods:

• A systematic search of clinicaltrials.gov was performed for trials of PD-1/PD-L1 blocking mAbs in cancer therapy, with an end date of April 30, 2017.
• Data on trial count, planned enrollment, and combination therapies were extracted and analyzed.

Main Results:

• A total of 1,218 clinical trials met the criteria, with a planned enrollment of 227,190 patients.
• Nearly half of these trials (493) were initiated in 2016 alone.
• A significant majority (916) of trials combined PD-1/PD-L1 blockade with other treatments, including traditional modalities and novel therapies.

Conclusions:

• The rapid proliferation of clinical trials combining PD-1/PD-L1 blockade necessitates careful evaluation to ensure efficiency.
• This analysis provides data to guide the design of future clinical trials in this rapidly evolving field of oncology research.