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Advanced stomach cancer (HER2-negative gastric or GEJ)

RESULTS FOR KEYTRUDA WITH CHEMOTHERAPY

As a first treatment, KEYTRUDA + chemotherapy has been shown to help people live longer compared to chemotherapy alone

A clinical trial compared adults with advanced HER2-negative gastric or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma who received KEYTRUDA in combination with chemotherapy with those who received chemotherapy alone. All adults in the trial had no previous drug treatment for advanced disease, and their tumor tested negative for HER2. A total of 790 adults received 200 mg of KEYTRUDA every 3 weeks with chemotherapy, and 789 adults received chemotherapy alone.

HER2 = human epidermal growth factor receptor 2.

More people lived longer with KEYTRUDA + chemotherapy

100%
0%
24%
16%
187 out of 790 adults were alive
123 out of 789 adults were alive

KEYTRUDA with chemotherapy

(cisplatin + fluorouracil or oxaliplatin + capecitabine)

Chemotherapy alone

(cisplatin + fluorouracil or oxaliplatin + capecitabine)

KEYTRUDA + chemotherapy reduced the risk of disease spreading, growing, or getting worse by 24% compared to chemotherapy alone

Half of the people receiving KEYTRUDA with chemotherapy were alive without their cancer spreading, growing, or getting worse at 6.9 months, compared to 5.6 months for people receiving chemotherapy alone. Cancer did not progress in 28% (218 out of 790) of adults receiving KEYTRUDA with chemotherapy compared to 23% (181 out of 789) of adults receiving chemotherapy alone.

More patients saw tumors shrink

100%
0%
51%
42%

KEYTRUDA with chemotherapy

(cisplatin + fluorouracil or oxaliplatin + capecitabine)

Chemotherapy alone

(cisplatin + fluorouracil or oxaliplatin + capecitabine)

42% had tumors get smaller

(partial response)

36% had tumors get smaller

(partial response)

9% had tumors disappear

(complete response)

6% had tumors disappear

(complete response)

Duration of response

The median response rate was 8.0 months for adults taking KEYTRUDA with chemotherapy (range: 1.2+ to 41.5+ months), compared to 5.7 months for adults taking chemotherapy alone (range: 1.3+ to 34.7+ months).

Understanding different types of results

There’s a lot to learn about your diagnosis. Your doctor may use several terms to talk about treatment goals, and it’s important you understand them.

Living longer

One way your doctor may determine which medicine to choose is overall survival (OS). This is a measurement of time from the start of treatment and measures the length of time a person is alive.

Time without the cancer spreading, growing, or getting worse

Your doctor may measure the amount of time the cancer is not getting worse or spreading. This is called progression-free survival (PFS).

Getting tumors to shrink

Another goal is to have your tumors shrink (get smaller) or disappear. Your doctor may refer to this as objective response rate, or ORR. When a tumor becomes smaller, it is called a partial response. When it disappears, this is called a complete response.

Time responding to treatment

Your doctor may also measure the duration of response (DOR), which is how long you respond to treatment until the time that you are no longer responding.

FDA-Approved Indications

KEYTRUDA is a prescription medicine used to treat a kind of stomach cancer called gastric or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma:

  • KEYTRUDA may be used in adults in combination with fluoropyrimidine and platinum chemotherapy as your first treatment when your stomach cancer:

HER2 = human epidermal growth factor receptor 2.

Important Safety Information

KEYTRUDA is a medicine that may treat certain cancers by working with your immune system. KEYTRUDA can cause your immune system to attack normal organs and tissues in any area of your body and can affect the way they work. These problems can sometimes become severe or life-threatening and can lead to death. You can have more than one of these problems at the same time. These problems may happen any time during treatment or even after your treatment has ended.

Call or see your health care provider right away if you develop any signs or symptoms of the following problems or if they get worse. These are not all of the signs and symptoms of immune system problems that can happen with KEYTRUDA:

Lung problems: cough, shortness of breath, or chest pain.

Intestinal problems: diarrhea (loose stools) or more frequent bowel movements than usual; stools that are black, tarry, sticky, or have blood or mucus; or severe stomach-area (abdomen) pain or tenderness.

Liver problems: yellowing of your skin or the whites of your eyes; severe nausea or vomiting; pain on the right side of your stomach area (abdomen); dark urine (tea colored); or bleeding or bruising more easily than normal.

Hormone gland problems: headaches that will not go away or unusual headaches; eye sensitivity to light; eye problems; rapid heartbeat; increased sweating; extreme tiredness; weight gain or weight loss; feeling more hungry or thirsty than usual; urinating more often than usual; hair loss; feeling cold; constipation; your voice gets deeper; dizziness or fainting; changes in mood or behavior, such as decreased sex drive, irritability, or forgetfulness.

Kidney problems: decrease in the amount of your urine; blood in your urine; swelling of your ankles; loss of appetite.

Skin problems: rash; itching; skin blistering or peeling; painful sores or ulcers in your mouth or in your nose, throat, or genital area; fever or flu-like symptoms; swollen lymph nodes.

Problems can also happen in other organs and tissues. Signs and symptoms of these problems may include: chest pain; irregular heartbeat; shortness of breath; swelling of ankles; confusion; sleepiness; memory problems; changes in mood or behavior; stiff neck; balance problems; tingling or numbness of the arms or legs; double vision; blurry vision; sensitivity to light; eye pain; changes in eyesight; persistent or severe muscle pain or weakness; muscle cramps; low red blood cells; bruising.

Infusion reactions that can sometimes be severe or life-threatening. Signs and symptoms of infusion reactions may include chills or shaking, itching or rash, flushing, shortness of breath or wheezing, dizziness, feeling like passing out, fever, and back pain.

Rejection of a transplanted organ or tissue. Your health care provider should tell you what signs and symptoms you should report and they will monitor you, depending on the type of organ or tissue transplant that you have had.

Complications, including graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), in people who have received a bone marrow (stem cell) transplant that uses donor stem cells (allogeneic). These complications can be serious and can lead to death. These complications may happen if you underwent transplantation either before or after being treated with KEYTRUDA. Your health care provider will monitor you for these complications.

Getting medical treatment right away may help keep these problems from becoming more serious. Your health care provider will check you for these problems during treatment with KEYTRUDA. They may treat you with corticosteroid or hormone replacement medicines. They may also need to delay or completely stop treatment with KEYTRUDA if you have severe side effects.

Before you receive KEYTRUDA, tell your health care provider if you have immune system problems such as Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, or lupus; have had an organ or tissue transplant, including corneal transplant, or have had or plan to have a bone marrow (stem cell) transplant that uses donor stem cells (allogeneic); have had radiation treatment in your chest area; have a condition that affects your nervous system, such as myasthenia gravis or Guillain-Barré syndrome.

If you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant, tell your health care provider. KEYTRUDA can harm your unborn baby. If you are able to become pregnant, you will be given a pregnancy test before you start treatment. Use effective birth control during treatment with KEYTRUDA and for 4 months after your last dose of KEYTRUDA. Tell them right away if you think you may be pregnant or you become pregnant during treatment with KEYTRUDA.

Tell your health care provider if you are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. It is not known if KEYTRUDA passes into your breast milk. Do not breastfeed during treatment with KEYTRUDA and for 4 months after your last dose of KEYTRUDA.

Tell your health care provider about all the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.

Common side effects of KEYTRUDA when used alone include feeling tired; pain, including pain in muscles; rash; diarrhea; fever; cough; decreased appetite; itching; shortness of breath; constipation; bones or joints and stomach-area (abdominal) pain; nausea; and low levels of thyroid hormone.

In children, when KEYTRUDA is used alone, fever, vomiting, headache, stomach area (abdominal) pain, and low levels of white blood cells and red blood cells (anemia) are more common than in adults.

Common side effects of KEYTRUDA when given with certain chemotherapy medicines include feeling tired or weak; nausea; constipation; diarrhea; decreased appetite; rash; vomiting; cough; trouble breathing; fever; hair loss; inflammation of the nerves that may cause pain, weakness, and paralysis in the arms and legs; swelling of the lining of the mouth, nose, eyes, throat, intestines, or vagina; mouth sores; headache; weight loss; stomach-area (abdominal) pain; joint and muscle pain; trouble sleeping; bleeding, blisters, or rash on the palms of your hands and soles of your feet; urinary tract infection; and low levels of thyroid hormone.

Common side effects of KEYTRUDA when given with chemotherapy with radiation therapy medicines include feeling tired or weak; nausea; constipation; diarrhea; decreased appetite; rash; vomiting; cough; trouble breathing; fever; hair loss; inflammation of the nerves that may cause pain, weakness, and paralysis in the arms and legs; swelling of the lining of the mouth, nose, eyes, throat, intestines, or vagina; mouth sores; headache; weight loss; stomach-area (abdominal) pain; joint and muscle pain; trouble sleeping; bleeding, blisters, or rash on the palms of your hands and soles of your feet; urinary tract infection; and low levels of thyroid hormone.

Common side effects of KEYTRUDA when given with enfortumab vedotin include rash; tingling or numbness of the arms or legs; feeling tired; itching; diarrhea; hair loss; weight loss; decreased appetite; dry eye; nausea; constipation; changes in sense of taste; and urinary tract infection.

Common side effects of KEYTRUDA when given with chemotherapy and bevacizumab include tingling or numbness of the arms or legs; hair loss; low red blood cell count; feeling tired or weak; nausea; low white blood cell count; diarrhea; high blood pressure; decreased platelet count; constipation; joint aches; vomiting; urinary tract infection; rash; low levels of thyroid hormone; and decreased appetite.

Common side effects of KEYTRUDA when given with axitinib include diarrhea; feeling tired or weak; high blood pressure; liver problems; low levels of thyroid hormone; decreased appetite; blisters or rash on the palms of your hands and soles of your feet; nausea; mouth sores or swelling of the lining of the mouth, nose, eyes, throat, intestines, or vagina; hoarseness; rash; cough; and constipation.

These are not all the possible side effects of KEYTRUDA. Talk to your health care provider for medical advice about side effects.

You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

Please read the accompanying Medication Guide for KEYTRUDA and discuss it with your doctor. The physician Prescribing Information also is available.