Dabrafenib efficacious for metastatic melanoma

Houston - Another recent study has shown that the BRAF inhibitor dabrafenib is safe and effective in treating advanced melanoma.

The phase 1 trial showed that 150 mg of dabrafenib given to patients twice daily elicited responses in almost 70 percent of patients and confirmed responses in 50 percent of a cohort of patients with the most common type of BRAF-mutated metastatic melanoma, MedPage Today reports.

The dabrafenib dose-escalation study took place between 2009 and 2012 at eight medical centers in the United States and Australia. The authors enrolled 156 participants with incurable solid tumors such as metastatic melanoma; melanoma with asymptomatic, untreated brain metastases; and nonmelanoma solid tumors.

Investigators began with a dose of oral dabrafenib at 12 mg daily in a 21-day cycle. The dosage was bumped up to 300 mg twice daily. On the basis of pharmacokinetic and response data, they chose 150 mg twice daily as the phase 2 dose.

In addition to responses across all patients in the new trial, dabrafenib showed promise in melanoma patients with untreated brain metastases, MedPage Today reports. Nine out of 10 patients in the new trial demonstrated a reduction in the size of brain lesions and four patients experienced complete resolution.

The study, published in The Lancet, comes on the heels of another study that combined dabrafenib with the MEK inhibitor trametinib, and showed an acceptable safety and objective responses in patients with metastatic melanoma.

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