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. 2021 Mar 11;10(3):LMT47.
doi: 10.2217/lmt-2020-0027. eCollection 2021 Sep.

A comparative study of immunotherapy as second-line treatment and beyond in patients with advanced non-small-cell lung carcinoma

Jerónimo Rafael Rodríguez-Cid  1   2 , Sonia Carrasco-Cara Chards  3 , Iván Romarico González-Espinoza  4 , Vanessa García-Montes  5 , Julio César Garibay-Díaz  6 , Osvaldo Hernández-Flores  7 , Rodrigo Riera-Sala  1   8 , Anna Gozalishvili-Boncheva  9 , Jorge Arturo Alatorre-Alexander  1   8 , Luis Manuel Martínez-Barrera  1 , Carla Paola Sánchez-Ríos  1   8 , Adriana Martinez-Camacho  10 , José Fabián Martínez-Herrera  8   11 , Jordi Guzmán-Casta  1   8 , Rodrigo Rafael Flores-Mariñelarena  2 , Julián Diaz-Rico  12 , Patricio Santillán-Doherty  13
Affiliations

A comparative study of immunotherapy as second-line treatment and beyond in patients with advanced non-small-cell lung carcinoma

Jerónimo Rafael Rodríguez-Cid et al. Lung Cancer Manag. .

Abstract

Background: Immunotherapy has demonstrated an improved overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) as second-line treatment and subsequent lines compared with chemotherapy.

Materials & methods: This was a retrospective review among eight medical centers comprising 100 patients with a confirmed diagnosis of non-small-cell lung carcinoma, in their second-line treatment or beyond with immune checkpoints inhibitors treatment. The current study aimed to analyze effectiveness of immunotherapy in second-line treatment or further in the Mexican population, using PFS rate, OS rate and the best objective response to treatment by RECIST 1.1 as a surrogate of effectiveness.

Results: In total, 100 patients met the criteria for enrollment in the current study. From the total study population, 49 patients (49.0%) were male and 51 (51.0%) were female, with an average age of 60 years and stage IV as the most prevalent clinical stage at the beginning of the study. A total of 61 patients (61.0%) had partial response; 11 (11.0%) stable disease; 2 (2.0%), complete response, 4 (4.0%), progression; and 22 (22.0%) were nonevaluable. We found a median PFS of 4 months (95% CI: 3.2-4.7 months) and an OS of 9 months (95% CI: 7.2-10.7 months).

Conclusion: The response to immunotherapy is similar, with an improvement in OS and PFS, independent of which drug is used. Patients using nivolumab had a better survival, although that was not statistically significant.

Keywords: NSCLC; atezolizumab; avelumab; immune checkpoint inhibitors; immunotherapy; lung cancer; nivolumab; pembrolizumab; second-line treatment.

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Conflict of interest statement

Financial & competing interests disclosure The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties. No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.. Kaplan–Meier Curve for overall survival.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.. Kaplan–Meier curve for progression-free survival.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.. Kaplan–Meier Curve for overall survival with the immunotherapies used.
OS: Overall survival.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.. Kaplan–Meier curve for progression-free survival with the immunotherapies used.
OS: Overall survival.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.. Kaplan–Meier curve for overall survival in second-line treatment versus subsequent treatments.
Figure 6.
Figure 6.. Kaplan–Meier curve for progression-free survival in second-line treatment versus subsequent treatments.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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