Surgeon's Hub | KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab)

EARLY PD-L1 TESTING FOR M/uR HNSCC
Optimise multidisciplinary team decision-making

Prescribing Information (Great Britain) & Prescribing Information (Northern Ireland) [External links]

KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab) as monotherapy is indicated for the first-line treatment of metastatic or unresectable recurrent (M/uR) HNSCC in adults whose tumours express PD-L1 with a CPS ≥1.¹

By including PD-L1 testing in your diagnostic bundle when you suspect or detect unresectable recurrent HNSCC, you can help to expand your patients’ treatment options at the next MDT meeting.¹

How many of your patients could be PD-L1 positive?

In the KEYNOTE-048 study

85%

of treatment-naïve M/uR HNSCC patients had tumours that expressed PD-L1 (CPS ≥1)^1,2

n = 754/882; PD-L1 CPS was determined using the PD-L1 IHC 22C3 PharmDx assay
(Agilent Technologies, Carpinteria, CA, USA)^1,2

MDT meetings are often time-limited so it is important to have all relevant patient information available for discussion, including investigational results, to ensure that all suitable treatment options can be considered.^3,4

PD-L1 results available for review during MDT meetings could:

Improve MDT meeting effectiveness^3,4

Avoid delays in treatment decisions due to incomplete information^3,4

Broaden and personalise your patients’ treatment options¹

EHNS/ESMO/ESTRO guidelines recommend PD-L1 testing for M/uR HNSCC to achieve personalised treatment for patients that may be eligible for 1L KEYTRUDA.⁵

PD-L1 testing and the head and neck cancer pathway

Dr Christina Wilson
Published on MSD Connect: March 2022

At patient review

Consider including PD-L1 testing in your diagnostic bundle for suspected unresectable recurrent HNSCC¹

Find out more about PD-L1 testing >

At your MDT meeting

For patients whose tumours express PD-L1 CPS ≥ 1, KEYTRUDA could be considered as a treatment option¹

Find out more about KEYTRUDA >

To find out more about PD-L1 testing and how to identify patients who may benefit from KEYTRUDA, arrange a discussion with an MSD representative

KEYTRUDA as monotherapy is indicated for the first-line treatment of metastatic or unresectable recurrent (M/uR) HNSCC in adults whose tumours express PD-L1 with a CPS ≥1.¹

Please refer to the Summary of Product Characteristics for further information before making any prescribing decisions.

Abbreviations

1L = First-line; CPS = Combined Positive Score; EHNS = European Head & Neck Society; ESMO = European Society for Medical Oncology; ESTRO = European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology; HNSCC = Head And Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma; IHC = Immunohistochemistry; MDT = Multidisciplinary Team; M/uR = Metastatic Or Unresectable Recurrent; PD-L1 = Programmed Cell Death Ligand-1.

References

KEYTRUDA Summary of Product Characteristics.
Burtness B et al. Lancet. 2019:394;1915–28.
Cancer Research UK. Meeting Patients’ Needs: Improving the effectiveness of multidisciplinary team meetings in cancer services. 2020. Available at: https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/sites/default/files/full_report_meeting_patients_needs_improving_the_effectiveness_of_multidisciplinary_team_meetings_.pdf
Jalil R et al. Int J Surg. 2013;11:389–94.
Machiels J-P et al. Ann Oncol. 2020;31(11):1462–1475.

Supporting documentation

Prescribing Information (Great Britain) & Prescribing Information (Northern Ireland)
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