The most common side effects include rash, diarrhea, tiredness, peripheral edema (swelling, especially of ankles and feet), nausea and acneiform dermatitis (acne-like inflammation of the skin).[5] When taken in combination with dabrafenib the most common side effects include fever, tiredness, nausea, chills, headache, diarrhea, vomiting, joint pain and rash.[5]
In May 2013, trametinib was approved as a single-agent by the US Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of people with V600E mutated metastatic melanoma.[9][10] It was approved for medical use in the European Union in June 2014.[5]
Medical uses
Trametinib, as monotherapy or in combination with dabrafenib is indicated for the treatment of melanoma and glioma.[4][5][6][7]
History
Clinical trial data demonstrated that resistance to single-agent trametinib often occurs within 6 to 7 months.[11] To overcome this, trametinib was combined with the BRAF inhibitor dabrafenib.[11] As a result of this research, on 8 January 2014, the FDA approved the combination of dabrafenib and trametinib for the treatment of patients with BRAF V600E/K-mutant metastatic melanoma.[12] On 1 May 2018, the FDA approved the combination dabrafenib/trametinib as an adjuvant treatment for BRAF V600E-mutated, stage III melanoma after surgical resection based on the results of the COMBI-AD phase 3 study,[13] making it the first oral chemotherapy regimen that prevents cancer relapse for node positive, BRAF-mutated melanoma.[14]
Society and culture
Legal status
In November 2023, the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) adopted a positive opinion, recommending the granting of a marketing authorization for the medicinal product Spexotras, intended for the treatment of low- and high-grade glioma (LGG and HGG).[15] The applicant for this medicinal product is Novartis Europharm Limited.[15] Spexotras was approved for medical use in the European Union in January 2024.[6][7]
Research
Trametinib had good results for metastatic melanoma carrying the BRAFV600E mutation in a phase III clinical trial. In this mutation, the amino acid valine (V) at position 600 within the BRAF protein has become replaced by glutamic acid (E) making the mutant BRAF protein constitutively active.[16]
^ abcdefg"Mekinist EPAR". European Medicines Agency. 17 September 2018. Archived from the original on 9 August 2021. Retrieved 27 February 2023. Text was copied from this source which is copyright European Medicines Agency. Reproduction is authorized provided the source is acknowledged.
^ abcd"Spexotras EPAR". European Medicines Agency. 9 November 2023. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
^ ab"Trametinib". NCI Drug Dictionary. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute. Archived from the original on 3 January 2023. Retrieved 28 February 2023. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
^Robert C, Flaherty KT, Hersey P, Nathan PD, Garbe C, Milhem MM, et al. (31 January 2017). "METRIC phase III study: Efficacy of trametinib (T), a potent and selective MEK inhibitor (MEKi), in progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), compared with chemotherapy (C) in patients (pts) with BRAFV600E/K mutant advanced or metastatic melanoma (MM)". Journal of Clinical Oncology. 30 (18_suppl): LBA8509. doi:10.1200/jco.2012.30.18_suppl.lba8509.