Immunotherapy after surgery is beneficial for high-risk bladder cancer patients

USA: Immunotherapy after surgery increases the chance of staying cancer-free in bladder cancer patients compared to those who received a placebo, researchers state in a recent study. Patients on the trial had urothelial cancer of the bladder or upper urinary tract and had tumor features indicating a high risk for recurrence.

The results from the clinical trial were shared in a late-breaking oral presentation at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) 2023 Genitourinary Cancers Symposium in February.

Matthew Galsky, MD, Co-Director of the Center of Excellence for Bladder Cancer at The Tisch Cancer Institute at Mount Sinai, presented three-year follow-up results from the Phase 3 CheckMate 274 trial. 

“Adjuvant nivolumab became a standard of care based on the initial results of CheckMate 274,” Dr. Galsky said. “These results, showing patients’ continued survival three years out, reinforce adjuvant nivolumab as a standard of care for patients with muscle-invasive urothelial cancer of the bladder or upper urinary tract. Normally, patients with this cancer face a high chance of recurrence, especially within the first three years after surgical removal of the bladder or kidney.”