Systematic review and network meta-analysis of targeted therapies in advanced BRAF-mutated colorectal cancer

Patients with advanced BRAF-mutated colorectal cancer often have a poor prognosis and suboptimal response to conventional therapies. Substantial improvements in treatment efficacy were observed after the introduction of anti-EGFR/BRAF based regimens. Owing to the relatively low incidence of BRAF-mutated colorectal cancer, direct comparisons of the efficacy and safety of these targeted regimens remain limited. Researchers from Changzheng Hospital of the Naval Medical University (Shanghai, China) published a systematic review and network meta-analysis of 60 studies involving 4633 patients with advanced BRAF-mutated colorectal cancer. First-line doublet chemotherapy plus anti-EGFR/BRAF regimens were found to offer optimal efficacy and acceptable safety for BRAF-mutated colorectal cancer. The anti-EGFR/BRAF regimen also showed promising efficacy and tolerability in the second line or later line setting. The addition of an additional targeted agent to anti-EGFR/BRAF, such as anti-EGFR/BRAF/MEK, should ensure a balance between efficacy and safety.