Feature|Articles|March 13, 2026

Katy Beckermann, MD, PhD, discusses LITESPARK trials and RCC’s evolving landscape

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Katy Beckermann, MD, PhD, discusses how emerging data from the LITESPARK trials—particularly LITESPARK-011 and LITESPARK-022—may expand the role of belzutifan-based combinations across renal cell carcinoma treatment, while emphasizing the clinical significance of durable responses, careful toxicity management, and the need for longer-term survival data to guide practice.

At the 2026 American Society of Clinical Oncology Genitourinary (ASCO GU) Cancers Symposium, new data from the phase 3 LITESPARK-011 trial (NCT04586231) highlighted the potential of belzutifan (Welireg) plus lenvatinib (Lenvima) as a second-line option for patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC) whose disease progresses on anti–PD-1 therapy.^1,2 According to Katy Beckermann, MD, PhD, director of Genitourinary Cancer Research at Tennessee Oncology, the study addresses a major unmet need in the post–PD-1 setting, where clinicians have historically relied on sequential tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs).