Lung Cancer
Tumor expression of PD-L1 has consistently predicted response and survival outcomes in non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), whereas the role of PD-L1 in immune cells is unclear, said Edward B. Garon, MD, Director, Thoracic Oncology Program, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, at the 2019 ASCO-SITC Clinical Immuno-Oncology Symposium.
Moving PD-1 or PD-L1 inhibitors to an early line of therapy, immediately after chemoradiation, has improved survival for patients with unresectable, stage III non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
For the second time this month, the FDA has given an approval to Genentech’s PD-L1 inhibitor, Tecentriq.
Although many new treatments, including targeted therapies and immunotherapies, have recently become available for patients with non–small-cell lung cancer, those with small-cell lung cancer have not seen new treatment options in the past 2 decades. But this is about to change.
The drug affordability ratings in the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Evidence Blocks are inconsistent with real-world total episode-of-care costs, according to Scott D. Ramsey, MD, PhD, Director, Institute for Cancer Outcomes Research, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA.
A burning question is whether immunotherapy combinations will further improve outcomes compared with checkpoint inhibitor therapy alone—and if so, which combinations will rise to the top.
The FDA accelerated the approval of brigatinib (Alunbrig), a new generation of oral ALK inhibitor, for the treatment of patients with ALK-positive metastatic NSCLC who do not tolerate or have had an inadequate response to crizotinib..
Chicago, IL—Alectinib (Alecensa), a next-generation anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitor, was called a new standard of care for patients with ALK mutation–positive non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), based on results of the phase 3 ALEX clinical trial, which were presented at the 2017 ASCO annual meeting.
Chicago, IL—Osimertinib (Tagrisso) extends progression-free survival (PFS) compared with standard chemotherapy in patients with EGFR T790M mutation–positive non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have central nervous system (CNS) metastases, reported Marina C. Garassino, MD, Thoracic Oncology Unit, Medical Oncology Department, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori, Milan, Italy, at the 2017 ASCO annual meeting.
