Updates in checkpoint inhibitors for kidney cancer

The advent of immune checkpoint inhibitors as a distinct class of immunotherapy has made a large impact within the field of oncology, providing a form of treatment that utilizes the host immune system to target the cancer. Immune checkpoint inhibitors regulate the immune system and prevent autoimmunity, with cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated molecule-4 (CTLA-4), programmed cell death receptor-1 (PD-1), and programmed cell death receptor-1 ligand (PD-L1) being common targets for checkpoint inhibitors. Ipilimumab was the first FDA-approves checkpoint inhibitor and was indicated for patients with melanoma. Pembrolizumab and nivolumab, both PD-1 inhibitors, have been approved for renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and multiple clinical trials have demonstrated the potential of novel combination strategies. In this special podcast, leading genitourinary cancer experts Yousef Zakharia, MD, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, Pavlos Msaouel, MD, PhD, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, and Michael Atkins, MD, Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Washington, DC, discuss pivotal clinical trial data assessing pembrolizumab and nivolumab in clear-cell RCC as well as immune-related adverse events observed in patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibition therapy.