Merck and Pfizer abandon Bavencio JAVELIN Ovarian PARP 100 trial

Germany’s Merck KGaA (MRK: DE) and US pharma giant Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) have discontinued the ongoing Phase III JAVELIN Ovarian PARP 100 study evaluating the efficacy and safety of Bavencio (avelumab) in combination with chemotherapy followed by maintenance therapy of avelumab in combination with talazoparib, a poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitor, versus an active comparator in treatment-naïve patients with locally advanced or metastatic ovarian cancer (Stage III or Stage IV).

The companies have notified health authorities and trial investigators of the decision to discontinue the trial.

The decision was based on several emerging factors since the trial’s initiation, including the previously announced interim results from JAVELIN Ovarian 100. The alliance determined that the degree of benefit observed with avelumab in frontline ovarian cancer in that study does not support continuation of the JAVELIN Ovarian PARP 100 trial in an unselected patient population and emphasizes the need to better understand the role of immunotherapy in ovarian cancer. Additional factors include the rapidly changing treatment landscape and the approval of a PARP inhibitor in the frontline maintenance setting. The decision to discontinue the JAVELIN Ovarian PARP 100 trial was not made for safety reasons.