In August 2019 the FDA granted breakthrough therapy designation to bempegaldesleukin in combination with nivolumab for the treatment of advanced melanoma.
[4][5] Bempegaldesleukin is a recombinant form of human cytokine interleukin-2 conjugated to six releasable polyethylene glycol chains.
In February 2018 Nektar Therapeutics announced development and commercialization collaboration with Bristol-Myers Squibb to evaluate combination of bempegaldesleukin and nivolumab.
[7] In November 2018 Nektar announced collaboration with Pfizer to evaluate combination of Bempegaldesleukin with avelumab and talazoparib or enzalutamide in multiple cancers.
[8] In March 2022 it was reported that trials for melanoma didn't meet statistical significance at the first interim analysis.