Dr. Bendell Discusses Two Studies in BRAF-Mutated CRC

Johanna Bendell, MD, director of GI Cancer Research Program, associate director, Drug Development Program, Sarah Cannon Research Institute, discusses two studies in BRAF-mutated colorectal cancer.

Johanna Bendell, MD, director of GI Cancer Research Program, associate director, Drug Development Program, Sarah Cannon Research Institute, discusses two studies in BRAF-mutated colorectal cancer (CRC).

The studies were both presented at the 2014 ASCO Annual Meeting. The first was an open-label phase I/II study of trametinib, dabrafenib, and panitumumab in combination for patients with BRAF V600E mutated CRC. The second was a phase I study exploring the novel agent encorafenib (LGX818) combined with cetuximab with or without BYL719 in patients with advanced BRAF-mutant CRC.

Bendell says both of these studies showed a response rate of about 35-40%. Usually, patients with BRAF-mutant CRC treated with single-agent chemotherapy only have a response rate of less than 10%. This study showed that an in-depth understanding of molecularly targeted agents and pathways really makes sense, Bendell says.

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