Adjuvant nivolumab in resected esophageal or gastroesophageal junction cancer

The multinational phase 3 CheckMate 577 study compared adjuvant nivolumab versus placebo after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and resection for stage II or III esophageal or gastroesophageal junction cancer. The patients had residual pathological disease. The median disease-free survival was 22.4 months with nivolumab versus 11.0 months with placebo (HR 0.69; p<0.001). Grade 3 or 4 treatment-related adverse events were reported for 13% of patients in the nivolumab group versus 6% in the placebo group.