Key clinical point: Pembrolizumab plus axitinib continued to top sunitinib monotherapy as first-line treatment of advanced renal cell carcinoma with extended follow-up.

Major finding: At a median follow-up of 30.6 months, the median overall survival was 35.7 months in the sunitinib arm and not yet reached in the pembrolizumab-axitinib arm (hazard ratio, 0.68, 95% CI, 0.55–0.85, P = .0003).

Study details: Phase 3 trial of 861 patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma.

Disclosures: The study was funded by Merck, maker of pembrolizumab. Investigators disclosed ties to Merck and other companies.