ESMO 2017 | Exciting results of the SCORES trial

Ezra Cohen, MD, FRCPC, FASCO, from the University of California, San Diego, CA, discusses the SCORES study (NCT02499328) at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2017 in Madrid, Spain. This study assessed the combination of an anti-PDL1 antibody, durvalumab, with a STAT3 inhibitor, AZD9150. STAT3 plays an important role in immune suppression, and when combined with an agent that stimulates T-cells, can affect the tumor microenvironment in a positive way. This combination led to a response rate of 30%, with many being complete responses. An interesting aspect of this study is that responses were seen in both PDL1 positive and negative patients, as well as HPV positive and negative patients. These positive results suggest that there is a possibility to take this study further.