Perioperative Nivolumab and Chemotherapy in Stage III Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer

Preliminary results of DESTINY-Lung02 show strong efficacy with trastuzumab deruxtecan (T-DXd). Overall response rate (ORR) was about 50%, with duration of response of 16.8 months. This is now FDA-approved and is an available therapy for patients with ERBB2 mutations after 1st line platinum-based chemo +/- immunotherapy. This is preferred over traditional trastuzumab or afatinib. Interestingly, some responses were seen in the ERBB2-negative patients who had over-expression by IHC. Please continue to sequence your patients and enroll in targeted therapy trials.

Phase III study of amivantamab + chemotherapy vs. chemotherapy alone as first-line therapy in patients with Exon-20 EGFR mutations. While the results of this study are impressive, one wonders what the results would be if the comparator arm were a targeted option. This is not yet reflected in the NCCN guidelines but likely will be added.

Osimertinib with chemotherapy improved the chance of being alive at two years compared to targeted therapy alone at 57 vs 41%. Further analysis of FLAURA2 and new studies will surely look to identify which patients benefit most from the combination of targeted therapy and chemotherapy. For young or healthy patients, this is an acceptable first line option. This is not yet reflected on NCCN but is likely to be added soon.

Adding Durvalumab to chemotherapy preop improved CR (17.2 vs4.3%) regardless of PLD -1 status. We already have approval for neoadjuvant chemotherapy and immunotherapy combinations in resectable lung cancer, so not sure if this regimen will be favored.
The unique thinkg about this one is that durva was also given post op ( not in the opidvo trial) but you can give pembrolizumab as adjuvant in those pts who had opdivo preop, and now pembrolizumab just got its approval in the neoadjuvant setting (last month) in which nit is given post op too.

A nicely done Spanish study showing that in metastatic NSCLC, asymptomatic patients with brain metastases can have radiation therapy deferred.
Starting with systemic therapy was found to be reasonable and effective, validating a common practice. Patients were treated with atezolizumab + carboplatin + pemetrexed + steroids, and any number of brain mets was allowed as long as they had at least one 10mm in size or greater. This study excluded patients harboring EGFR/ALK driver mutations.