Merck releases KEYNOTE-013 KEYTRUDA data

Merck recently released KEYTRUDA data demonstrating an overall response rate of 41 percent in patients with relapsed or refractory primary mediastinal large B-cell lymphoma.
The results, which are from the KEYNOTE-013 trial, included a follow-up of up to 27 months.
“For patients with primary mediastinal large B-cell lymphoma who are ineligible for, or fail to respond to, autologous stem-cell transplantation, the prognosis is very poor and there are limited treatment options,” University of Bologna Associate Professor of Hematology Dr. Pier Luigi Zinzani said. “Based on the rarity of this type of blood cancer, clinical research has been historically limited, and it’s encouraging to see clinical trials conducted in this disease where we are seeing durable responses with KEYTRUDA.”
In KEYTRUDA-treated patients, 86 percent of responses at the time of analyses were ongoing with the median duration not reached.
“We are committed to studying immuno-oncology approaches across a broad spectrum of cancers, including studies in more than 20 hematological subtypes,” Merck Research Laboratories Senior Vice President Dr. Roger Dansey said. “These data continue to support the efficacy and safety profile of KEYTRUDA in primary mediastinal large B-cell lymphoma and the importance of ongoing evaluation in this patient population.”