Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2020 Jul;12(7):3796-3803.
doi: 10.21037/jtd.2019.08.29.

Are there any ethnic differences in the efficacy and safety of immune checkpoint inhibitors for treatment of lung cancer?

Jiyun Lee  1 , Jong-Mu Sun  1 , Se-Hoon Lee  1 , Jin Seok Ahn  1 , Keunchil Park  1 , Myung-Ju Ahn  1
Affiliations
Review

Are there any ethnic differences in the efficacy and safety of immune checkpoint inhibitors for treatment of lung cancer?

Jiyun Lee et al. J Thorac Dis. 2020 Jul.

Abstract

Immunotherapy, especially immune checkpoint inhibitors, has revolutionized the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer. However, data on ethnic differences in response to these treatments are still lacking. We reviewed the currently available clinical data on immune checkpoint inhibitors and analyzed the ethnic difference in terms of treatment efficacies and side effects. Despite different epidemiology, genetic susceptibility and molecular profiles, Asian lung cancer patients demonstrated comparable outcomes to Western patients in terms of response rates and survival benefits. The incidence of immune-related adverse events has been reported with a higher incidence in Japanese patients, but was not consistent across other Asian patient populations, and warrants further investigation.

Keywords: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC); ethnic difference; immunotherapy.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of Interest: All authors have completed the ICMJE uniform disclosure form (available at http://dx.doi.org/10.21037/jtd.2019.08.29). The series “Ethnic Difference in Lung Cancer” was commissioned by the editorial office without any funding or sponsorship. The authors have no other conflicts of interest to declare.

References

    1. Brahmer JR, Govindan R, Anders RA, et al. The Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer consensus statement on immunotherapy for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). J Immunother Cancer 2018;6:75. 10.1186/s40425-018-0382-2 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kazandjian D, Suzman DL, Blumenthal G, et al. FDA Approval Summary: Nivolumab for the Treatment of Metastatic Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer With Progression On or After Platinum-Based Chemotherapy. Oncologist 2016;21:634-42. 10.1634/theoncologist.2015-0507 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Borghaei H, Paz-Ares L, Horn L, et al. Nivolumab versus Docetaxel in Advanced Nonsquamous Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer. N Engl J Med 2015;373:1627-39. 10.1056/NEJMoa1507643 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Brahmer J, Reckamp KL, Baas P, et al. Nivolumab versus Docetaxel in Advanced Squamous-Cell Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer. N Engl J Med 2015;373:123-35. 10.1056/NEJMoa1504627 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Nishio M, Hida T, Atagi S, et al. Multicentre phase II study of nivolumab in Japanese patients with advanced or recurrent non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer. ESMO Open 2017;1:e000108. 10.1136/esmoopen-2016-000108 - DOI - PMC - PubMed