Pseudoprogression in Lung Cancer after Immunotherapy Treatment

Naiyer A. Rizvi, MD, an associate attending physician, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, discusses the phenomenon of pseudoprogression in patients with lung cancer after they receive immunotherapy treatment.

Clinical Pearls:

• Early scans that appear to be tumor growth may actually be delayed benefit of the treatment or inflammation of the tumor as T cells become active
• This phenomenon occurs in less than 10% of patients
• Physicians should consider the patient’s well being in addition to scans in order to make a decision