A plain language summary of results from the TORCHLIGHT trial of toripalimab plus chemotherapy for metastatic or recurrent triple-negative breast cancer
Our partner journal Future Oncology recently published a plain language summary of publication describing the interim results of the TORCHLIGHT study. The TORCHLIGHT study has demonstrated that women with recurrent triple-negative breast cancer treated with toripalimab plus standard chemotherapy had significantly longer progression-free survival than those treated with standard chemotherapy alone.
This summary describes interim (not final) results of a clinical study called TORCHLIGHT. The study looked at the effect of a medicine called toripalimab when added to standard chemotherapy in women with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) that has come back after being treated (‘recurrent TNBC’) or has spread to other parts of the body (“metastatic TNBC”). Chemotherapy has been a cornerstone of treatment for recurrent and metastatic TNBC, although it has limited efficacy (ability to produce a desired or intended result). Recent evidence suggests that adding a certain type of immunotherapy (a medicine that boosts the ability of the body’s immune system to kill cancer cells) may improve survival among women with recurrent or metastatic TNBC. Researchers wanted to see whether toripalimab added to standard chemotherapy was safe and effective for increasing the amount of time women with newly diagnosed recurrent or metastatic TNBC could live without their cancer getting worse (a measurement called ‘progression-free survival’). Researchers looked at the safety and efficacy of adding toripalimab among all women with recurrent or metastatic TNBC included in the TORCHLIGHT study, and separately, among a particular subgroup whose breast tumors had a specific protein on their surface called programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1); these patients are referred to as having ‘PD-L1-positive TNBC’.
What are the key takeaways?
Interim results from the TORCHLIGHT study showed that women with PD-L1-positive recurrent or metastatic TNBC treated with toripalimab plus standard chemotherapy had significantly longer progression-free survival than those who received standard chemotherapy alone. The treatment groups with and without toripalimab had similar rates of side effects (an effect of a medicine that is beyond its desired effect and can be harmful), which are tracked to assess safety.
What were the main conclusions reported by the researchers?
Researchers concluded that results of the TORCHLIGHT study showed that women with PD-L1-positive recurrent or metastatic TNBC treated with toripalimab and chemotherapy lived longer without their TNBC getting worse than women treated with chemotherapy alone, results which support the addition of toripalimab to chemotherapy in women with PD-L1-positive recurrent or metastatic TNBC.