Retifanlimab Kicks Anal Cancer

Approved to treat Merkel cell carcinoma, the PD-1 inhibitor retifanlimab (Zynyz; Incyte) may be more effective than standard chemotherapy for anal cancer. In the phase III POD1UM-303 trial, 308 patients with inoperable, locally advanced or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the anal canal were randomly assigned to receive 6 months of carboplatin–paclitaxel therapy with or without retifanlimab. After a median follow up of more than 7 months, patients who received the PD-1 inhibitor were 37% less likely to experience disease progression than those who didn’t. And in an interim analysis, those who received only carboplatin–paclitaxel had a median overall survival of 23 months compared with 29.2 months for those who took retifanlimab plus chemotherapy. The results were presented at the ESMO Congress 2024, held in Barcelona, Spain, September 13–17.