Immunotherapy and Antiangiogenic Therapy for the Treatment of Patients With Advanced Renal Cell Carcinoma: A Systematic Review and an Updated Network Meta-Analysis of Phase III Clinical Trials

Cureus. 2023 May 10;15(5):e38838. doi: 10.7759/cureus.38838. eCollection 2023 May.

Abstract

In advanced renal cell carcinoma, few randomized controlled trials involving immunotherapy plus antiangiogenic therapy have shown survival benefits relative to Sunitinib. Our meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of combined immunotherapy and antiangiogenic therapy compared to Sunitinib therapy alone in patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma. Six phase III randomized controlled trials were analyzed, including 4,119 patients. The primary endpoints were overall survival and progression-free survival, and the secondary endpoints were objective response rate and serious adverse events. The results showed that combined immunotherapy and antiangiogenic therapy significantly improved overall survival, progression-free survival, and objective response rate compared to Sunitinib alone. No significant difference was observed in adverse events between the two groups. This study suggests that combined immunotherapy and antiangiogenic therapy is a great treatment option for advanced renal cell carcinoma.

Keywords: advanced renal cell carcinoma; antiangiogenic therapy; immunotherapy; metastatic renal cell carcinoma; phase iii clinical trials.

Publication types

  • Review