Renal Cell Carcinoma

The FDA has approved Keytruda (pembrolizumab; Merck) in combination with axitinib (Inlyta; Pfizer), a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, for the first-line treatment of patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma.

The approvals for nivolumab and ipilimumab were based on CheckMate 214, a randomized open-label trial.

Approval provides for treatment in the first-line setting.

Sutent was first approved in 2006 for the treatment of certain patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumors and advanced renal cell carcinoma.