Although we will not be issuing a formal press release, we wanted
to let you know that NICE has today (Thursday, 11 December)
recommended a new combination treatment for a form of advanced
kidney cancer. It is estimated that around 550 people could
benefit.
Avelumab, also known as Bavencio and made by Merck Serono, with
axitinib is recommended in final draft guidance for adults with
untreated advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC).
This is the first immunotherapy recommended for routine use for
people with untreated advanced RCC who are assessed as being in
the favourable-risk group, defined by the International Metastatic Renal
Cell Carcinoma Database Consortium criteria. There were
already treatments recommended for people in both the
intermediate and poor-risk groups.
The first line treatment combination has been available through
the Cancer Drugs Fund since
2020, to allow further data to be collected on its clinical and
cost effectiveness and is now recommended for routine use in the
NHS from today.
Advanced renal cell carcinoma is when cancer that started in the
kidney spreads to another part of the body.
Avelumab plus axitinib is given as an intravenous infusion every
two weeks. It contains a type of protein that targets and
attaches to tumour cells, allowing the body's immune system to
attack the cancer.
Untreated advanced RCC in people with favourable-risk status is
usually treated with sunitinib or tivozanib, and sometimes
pazopanib.
Clinical trial evidence shows that avelumab plus axitinib
increases how long people have before their condition gets worse
compared with sunitinib.
In a clinical trial the median progression-free survival was 20.7
months for people taking avelumab plus axitinib compared with
13.8 months for those taking sunitinib. The median overall
survival was 79.4 months for those on avelumab plus axitinib and
65.5 months for people taking sunitinib.
The company has a confidential commercial arrangement which makes
avelumab available to the NHS with a discount.
Read the full final draft guidance on avelumab with axitinib for
untreated advanced renal cell carcinoma.
