Dabrafenib and Trametinib Followed by Ipilimumab and Nivolumab or Ipilimumab and Nivolumab Followed by Dabrafenib and Trametinib in Treating Patients With Stage III-IV BRAFV600 Melanoma

Running, not enrolling · Phase 3

Conditions studied: Clinical Stage III Cutaneous Melanoma AJCC v8, Clinical Stage IV Cutaneous Melanoma AJCC v8, Metastatic Melanoma, Recurrent Melanoma, Unresectable Melanoma

In brief

This phase III trial studies how well initial treatment with ipilimumab and nivolumab followed by dabrafenib and trametinib works and compares it to initial treatment with dabrafenib and trametinib followed by ipilimumab and nivolumab in treating patients with stage III-IV melanoma that contains a mutation known as BRAFV600 and cannot be removed by surgery (unresectable). Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as ipilimumab and nivolumab, may help the body's immune system attack the cancer, and may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Dabrafenib and trametinib may block tumor growth by targeting the BRAFV600 gene. It is not yet known whether treating patients with ipilimumab and nivolumab followed by dabrafenib and trametinib is more effective than treatment with dabrafenib and trametinib followed by ipilimumab and nivolumab.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT02224781

Run by

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

People needed

267

Starts

2015-09-08

Expected to finish

2026-12-19

Last updated by the study team

2026-08-04

Who can join

Age: 18 and older. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

• STEP 1
• Age >= 18 years. Because no dosing or adverse event data are currently available on the use of dabrafenib or dabrafenib + trametinib or nivolumab or nivolumab + ipilimumab therapy in patients < 18 years of age, children are excluded from this study, but will be eligible for future pediatric trials
• Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status: 0 or 1
• Women must not be pregnant or breast-feeding, as the effects of ipilimumab + nivolumab or dabrafenib + trametinib on the developing human fetus are unknown
• All females of childbearing potential must have a blood test or urine study within 2 weeks prior to registration to rule out pregnancy
• A female of childbearing potential is anyone, regardless of whether they have undergone tubal ligation, who meets the following criteria: 1) has not undergone a hysterectomy or bilateral oophorectomy; or 2) has not been naturally postmenopausal for at least 24 consecutive months (i.e., has had menses at any time in the preceding 24 consecutive months)
• The effects of dabrafenib and trametinib or ipilimumab and nivolumab on the developing human fetus are unknown; furthermore, dabrafenib has been reported to interfere with the effect of hormone based oral contraceptives; for this reason and because other therapeutic agents used in this trial are known to be teratogenic, women of child-bearing potential and sexually active males must agree to use at least two other accepted and effective methods of contraception and/or to abstain from sexual intercourse for the duration of their participation in the study, and for at least 4 weeks after treatment with dabrafenib or for 4 months after dabrafenib in combination with trametinib; women of child-bearing potential must use at least two other accepted and effective methods of contraception and/or to abstain from sexual intercourse for at least 5 months after the last dose of nivolumab and/or ipilimumab. Should a woman become pregnant or suspect she is pregnant while she is participating in this study, she should inform her treating physician immediately
• Patients must have unresectable stage III or stage IV disease
• Patients must have measurable disease; all sites of disease must be evaluated within 4 weeks prior to randomization
• Patients must have histological or cytological confirmation of melanoma that is metastatic or unresectable and clearly progressive
• NOTE: Any patient with BRAF V600 mutant melanoma (whether cutaneous, acral or mucosal primary) who meets the eligibility criteria is eligible for participation in this trial; patients with uveal melanoma are not eligible for this trial
• Patients must have BRAF V600 mutation, identified by a Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved test at a Clinical Laboratory Improvement Act (CLIA)-certified lab; if test at CLIA-certified lab used a non-FDA approved method, information about the assay must be provided (FDA approved tests for BRAF V600 mutations in melanoma include: THxID BRAF Detection Kit and Cobas 4800 BRAF V600 Mutation Test, Foundation Medicine); prompt information on tumor BRAF mutation status can also be obtained via Novartis "knowNow" Program
• Patients may have had prior systemic therapy in the adjuvant setting; however this adjuvant treatment must not have included a CTLA4 or PD1 pathway blocking antibody or a BRAF/MEK inhibitor. Also, patients may not have had any prior systemic treatment for advanced (measurable metastatic) disease
• Patients must have discontinued chemotherapy, immunotherapy or other investigational agents used in the adjuvant setting >= 4 weeks prior to entering the study and recovered from adverse events due to those agents; mitomycin and nitrosoureas must have been discontinued at least 6 weeks prior to entering the study; patients must have discontinued radiation therapy >= 1 week prior to entering the study and recovered from any adverse events associated with treatment; prior surgery must be >= 2 weeks from registration and patients must be fully recovered from post-surgical complications
• Patients must not receive any other investigational agents while on study or within four weeks prior to registration
• Patients are ineligible if they have any currently known active and definitive central nervous system (CNS) metastases; patients who have treated brain metastases (with either surgical resection or stereotactic radiosurgery [SRS]) could be eligible; patients must not have taken any steroids =< 10 days prior to randomization for the purpose of managing their brain metastases; repeat imaging after SRS or surgical resection is not required so long as baseline magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is within 4 weeks of registration; patients with multiple brain metastases treated with SRS (with [w] or without [w/o] whole-brain radiotherapy [WBRT]), are not an exclusion; patients with definitive CNS metastases treated with only WBRT are ineligible; patients with potential CNS metastases that are too small for treatment with either SRS or surgery (e.g. 1-2 mm) and/or are of uncertain etiology are potentially eligible, but need to be discussed with and approved by the study principal investigator (PI)
• Patients must not have other current malignancies, other than basal cell skin cancer, squamous cell skin cancer, in situ cervical cancer, ductal or lobular carcinoma in situ of the breast; patients with other malignancies are eligible if they have been continuously disease-free for > 2 years prior to the time of registration
• White blood count >= 3,000/uL (obtained within 4 weeks prior to randomization)
• Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) >= 1,500/uL (obtained within 4 weeks prior to randomization)
• Platelet count >= 100,000/uL (obtained within 4 weeks prior to randomization)
• Hemoglobin > 8 g/dL (obtained within 4 weeks prior to randomization)
• Serum creatinine =< 1.5 x upper limit of normal (ULN) or serum creatinine clearance (CrCl) >= 40 ml/min (obtained within 4 weeks prior to randomization)
• Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) =< 3 x ULN (=< 5 x ULN for patients with documented liver metastases) (obtained within 4 weeks prior to randomization)
• Alkaline phosphatase =< 2 x ULN (=< 5 x ULN for patients with known liver involvement and =< 7 x ULN for patients with known bone involvement) (obtained within 4 weeks prior to randomization)
• Total bilirubin =< 1.5 x ULN except subjects with normal direct bilirubin or those with known Gilbert's syndrome (obtained within 4 weeks prior to randomization)

Where it is running

• Anchorage Associates in Radiation Medicine — Anchorage, Alaska, United States
• Anchorage Radiation Therapy Center — Anchorage, Alaska, United States
• Alaska Breast Care and Surgery LLC — Anchorage, Alaska, United States
• Alaska Oncology and Hematology LLC — Anchorage, Alaska, United States
• Alaska Women's Cancer Care — Anchorage, Alaska, United States
• Anchorage Oncology Centre — Anchorage, Alaska, United States
• Katmai Oncology Group — Anchorage, Alaska, United States
• Providence Alaska Medical Center — Anchorage, Alaska, United States
• Fairbanks Memorial Hospital — Fairbanks, Alaska, United States
• CTCA at Western Regional Medical Center — Goodyear, Arizona, United States
• Kingman Regional Medical Center — Kingman, Arizona, United States
• Cancer Center at Saint Joseph's — Phoenix, Arizona, United States
• CHI Saint Vincent Cancer Center Hot Springs — Hot Springs, Arkansas, United States
• University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences — Little Rock, Arkansas, United States
• Kaiser Permanente-Anaheim — Anaheim, California, United States
• Mission Hope Medical Oncology - Arroyo Grande — Arroyo Grande, California, United States
• PCR Oncology — Arroyo Grande, California, United States
• Sutter Auburn Faith Hospital — Auburn, California, United States
• Sutter Cancer Centers Radiation Oncology Services-Auburn — Auburn, California, United States
• Kaiser Permanente-Baldwin Park — Baldwin Park, California, United States
• Kaiser Permanente-Bellflower — Bellflower, California, United States
• Alta Bates Summit Medical Center-Herrick Campus — Berkeley, California, United States
• Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center/Disney Family Cancer Center — Burbank, California, United States
• Mills-Peninsula Medical Center — Burlingame, California, United States
• University of Alabama at Birmingham Cancer Center — Birmingham, Alabama, United States

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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