Dr Rao talks to ecancer at ESMO 2024 about results she presented from the phase 3 POD1UM-303/InterAACT 2 trial.

The study showed that adding retifanlimab-dlwr to carboplatin and paclitaxel improves progression-free survival in patients with recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the anal canal (SCAC) who have not received prior chemotherapy.

Patients treated with retifanlimab, carboplatin, and paclitaxel had a median PFS of 9.3 months, compared to 7.4 months for those receiving placebo with carboplatin and paclitaxel. The addition of retifanlimab reduced the risk of progression by 37% (HR=0.63; P=0.0006). The median follow-up times were 7.6 months for the retifanlimab group and 7.1 months for the placebo group.

Dr Sheela Rao notes that this combination could become a new standard of care for advanced SCAC