Dr. Ku on Immunotherapy in Gastric and Esophageal Cancer

Geoffrey Y. Ku, MD, medical oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center discusses immunotherapy treatments for patients with gastric and esophageal cancers.

Researchers of a phase III study tested almost 500 patients who had previously received 2 or more chemotherapy treatments. These patients were treated with either nivolumab (Opdivo), the PD-1 antibody, or placebo.

There was a 12-month overall survival rate of 27% in these patients versus the 11% in patients who had received placebo. For the first time, this phase III evidence confirmed that these drugs are active in patients with gastric and esophageal cancers, says Ku.