This is a small trial but really promising in patients with tumors expressing PDL-1 > 50%. We need larger randomized trials and longer follow up.
Look at the rate of controlled release (CR) just by induction therapy. Do we really need radiation for those patients? This should be another area to study.
Thoughts from radiation oncologists are welcomed.
Standard therapy for locally advanced non–small-cell lung cancer (LA-NSCLC) is concurrent chemoradiotherapy followed by adjuvant durvalumab. For biomarker-selected patients with LA-NSCLC, we hypothesized that sequential pembrolizumab and risk-adapted radiotherapy, without chemotherapy, would be well-tolerated and effective.
Patients with stage III NSCLC or unresectable stage II NSCLC and an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0-1 were eligible for this trial. Patients with a PD-L1 tumor proportion score (TPS) of ≥50% received three cycles of induction pembrolizumab (200 mg, once every 21 days), followed by a 20-fraction course of risk-adapted thoracic radiotherapy (55 Gy delivered to tumors or lymph nodes with metabolic volume exceeding 20 cc, 48 Gy delivered to smaller lesions), followed by consolidation pembrolizumab to complete a 1-year treatment course. The primary study end point was 1-year progression-free survival (PFS). Secondary end points included response rates after induction pembrolizumab, overall survival (OS), and adverse events.
Twenty-five patients with a PD-L1 TPS of ≥50% were enrolled. The median age was 71, most patients (88%) had stage IIIA or IIIB disease, and the median PD-L1 TPS was 75%. Two patients developed disease progression during induction pembrolizumab, and two patients discontinued pembrolizumab after one infusion because of immune-related adverse events. Using RECIST criteria, 12 patients (48%) exhibited a partial or complete response after induction pembrolizumab. Twenty-four patients (96%) received definitive thoracic radiotherapy. The 1-year PFS rate is 76%, satisfying our efficacy objective. One- and 2-year OS rates are 92% and 76%, respectively. The most common grade 3 adverse events were colitis (n = 2, 8%) and esophagitis (n = 2, 8%), and no higher-grade treatment-related adverse events have occurred.
Pembrolizumab and risk-adapted radiotherapy, without chemotherapy, are a promising treatment approach for patients with LA-NSCLC with a PD-L1 TPS of ≥50%.
Superior to osi (23 vs 16 progression-free survival). This is more toxic though, but seems manageable. Could this be a new first line standard of care? Also, this includes brain penetration data.
Adding SBRT improves local control and disease progression in the brain but not overall survival. Do the radiation oncologists have input? Is it worth it to control symptoms?
Neoadjuvant Osimertinib did not have a significant impact on major pathologic response and there were no ypCR’s after a median of ~8 weeks of therapy. I do think this shows a measurable response, enough such that I would consider Osi in a patient with “borderline resectable” disease.
Bispecific (a bispecific antibody targeting programmed cell death 1 protein and vascular endothelial growth factor) and chemotherapy … and it worked … second line after EGFR therapy failure.
Osimertinib in adjuvant, now after chemotherapy and radiation, next… Neoadjuvant??? Trials are ongoing.
This is here till progression.
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