Pembrolizumab adjuvant for urothelial carcinoma and/or localised muscle invasive bladder cancer

Pembrolizumab is currently in clinical development for patients with localised muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) (where the cancer has grown into, but not through the muscle layer of the bladder) or and/or urothelial cancer (UC) which has spread from where it started to nearby tissue or lymph nodes (locally advanced), who are ineligible or refuse cisplatin therapy (a type of chemotherapy) and have received a radical cystectomy (removal of bladder and surrounding lymph nodes). The survival rates for patients with MIBC and locally advanced UC are low because this type of cancer is more likely to spread to other parts of the body. The current treatment option for patients with MIBC includes adjuvant (treatment given after main treatment, e.g., surgery) chemotherapy. The chemotherapy drug given to treat MIBC is called cisplatin. However, some patients are unable to receive this type of chemotherapy, which increases their risk of cancer spreading to other parts of the body. Therefore, alternative therapy options are required for this patient group.