Pembrolizumab plus axitinib: a new treatment option for patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma

The treatment scenario for patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) is witnessing its third revolution: the first was the advent of anti-angiogenic targeted therapies, consisting in tyrosine-kinase inhibitors (TKIs) targeting vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF); the second was the introduction of immunotherapy, consisting in immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI), like anti-programmed death 1 (PD-1) receptor or anti-programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1); the third and current revolution is the advent of ICI and TKIs combination.