BioCentury
ARTICLE | Clinical News

Bavencio fails second ovarian cancer Phase III trial

January 4, 2019 4:47 AM UTC

Merck KGaA (Xetra:MRK) and Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) discontinued the Phase III JAVELIN Ovarian 100 trial of Bavencio avelumab as first-line treatment of ovarian cancer after a planned interim analysis showed that the PD-L1 inhibitor would miss the primary endpoint of improving progression-free survival (PFS) vs. platinum-based chemotherapy alone.

The miss marks Bavencio's second setback in ovarian cancer, where no PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors are approved. In November, Bavencio missed the primary endpoints in the Phase III JAVELIN Ovarian 200 trial to treat platinum-resistant or -refractory ovarian cancer (see "Bavencio Fails Phase III for Ovarian Cancer")...