LUNG CANCER

Modest survival benefits were observed in patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer who received the combination of pembrolizumab and etoposide plus platinum compared with patients who received EP and placebo. Although progression-free survival rates reached the threshold for significance, overall survival rates failed to reach the prespecified threshold, according to data from the phase 3 KEYNOTE-604 trial.

"Based on these results, we note that the combination of nivolumab and ipilimumab, which is now approved by the United States FDA, is a novel chemotherapy-sparing first-line treatment approach for advanced-stage non-small-cell lung cancer."

"Trastuzumab deruxtecan demonstrated clinical activity in this interim analysis, with a high ORR and durable response rate in a heavily pretreated population of patients with HER2-mutated NSCLC."

Frontline treatment with the TIGIT inhibitor tiragolumab plus atezolizumab demonstrated greater efficacy versus single-agent checkpoint inhibitor therapy in locally advanced or metastatic non–small cell lung cancer, according to results of the phase 2 CITYSCAPE trial reported at the 2020 American Society of Clinical Oncology Virtual Scientific Program.

"Prior administration of chemotherapy is associated with increased risk of death [from COVID-19] while immunotherapy and tyrosine kinase inhibitors are not."

Shared insight on recent advances in KRAS-mutant NSCLC, with a focus on new therapies on the horizon.

Nivolumab plus ipilimumab in combination with chemotherapy was granted approval for the frontline treatment of patients with metastatic or recurrent non–small cell lung cancer who do not harbor EGFR or ALK genomic tumor abberations.

Joshua K. Sabari, MD, goes through treatment options in the frontline and second-line for patients with non–small cell lung cancer in a Targeted Oncology case-based peer perspectives live discussion.

"Our trial, together with ongoing randomized trials, provides more evidence on the risks and benefits of immunotherapy as a neoadjuvant treatment, and could help to answer questions regarding the optimal duration, best surrogate endpoint, and best predictive biomarkers for treatment."

In a Targeted Oncology case-based peer perspectives live discussion, David Gerber, MD, addresses the role of biomarkers in guiding treatment decisions for patients with non–small cell lung cancer based on a patient scenario.

The FDA has granted approval to brigatinib for the frontline treatment of patients with ALK-positive metastatic non–small cell lung cancer, as detected by an FDA-approved test.

Atezolizumab has received its fifth indication in NSCLC as treatment of adult patients with metastatic non–small cell lung cancer who have high PD-L1 expression.