Neoadjuvant pepinemab in combination with nivolumab and/or ipilimumab in resectable metastatic melanoma: a pilot biomarker-driven trial.

What was studied

This was a pilot trial in 38 patients. They had melanoma that had spread but could be removed by surgery. Patients got pepinemab with nivolumab, ipilimumab or both before surgery. Pepinemab blocks a protein called SEMA4D. After surgery, patients got one year of nivolumab. The main aim was a lab goal, not a health goal.

What they found

Regimens with pepinemab had manageable side effects. They did not delay surgery or stop it. The trial met its main goal. Tumors from patients on pepinemab showed signs of activated dendritic cells and immune recruitment. Immune cell clusters also formed in the tumors. These clusters held T cells that had multiplied from the same source.

What it means for patients

The authors say the findings back more study of SEMA4D blocking. They say it may change the tumor surroundings. They say it might add to immunotherapy in melanoma and other solid tumors.

Why it is not certain yet

The trial was too small to show if the drug works. It was a pilot. Results on tumor response were not given in the abstract. The abstract does not give how long patients lived.

Source

Neoadjuvant pepinemab in combination with nivolumab and/or ipilimumab in resectable metastatic melanoma: a pilot biomarker-driven trial.

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