LUNG CANCER

Multiple agents are now challenging chemotherapy as the golden standard in the front-line setting of advanced non–small cell lung cancer.

The combination of nivolumab plus chemotherapy induced a statistically significant improvement in pathologic complete response as neoadjuvant treatment of patients with resectable non–small cell lung cancer.

The FDA approved nivolumab in combination with ipilimumab for the frontline treatment of adult patients with unresectable malignant pleural mesothelioma.

In a phase 3 trial, atezolizumab demonstrated a significantly longer overall survival in patients with non-small cell lung cancer who had high PD-L1 expression regardless of histologic type compared with platinum-based chemotherapy.

Afatinib monotherapy demonstrated clinical activity in Asian and non-Asian patients with non–small cell lung cancer who harbored uncommon EGFR mutations, according to findings from a subanalysis of the afatinib uncommon mutation database.

Vivek Subbiah, MD, shares his take home message regarding the treatment of patients with non–small cell lung cancer who harbor a RET fusion.

The presence of hypothyroidism caused by treatment with immunotherapy correlated with improvement in overall survival among patients with non–small cell lung cancer, suggesting that thyroid toxicity may be a predictor of response to immunotherapy in this patient population.

In the phase 3 EMPOWER-Lung 1 trial, patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer with PD-L1 expression on at least 50% of their tumor cells, had a significant improvement in overall survival and progression-free survival with cemiplimab-rwlc monotherapy compared with platinum-doublet chemotherapy.

Patients with completely resected stage IIIAN2 non–small cell lung cancer should not be recommended for post-operative radiotherapy, according to results from the phase 3 LungART trial that were presented during the ESMO Virtual Congress 2020, due to nonstatistically significant increase in disease-free survival versus those treated in the control group.

According to results from the phase 3 CROWN trial, the third-generation ALK tyrosine kinase inhibitor loralitinib achieved a significant improvement in progression-free survival as well as higher overall and intracranial response rates, compared with crizotinib in patients with ALK-positive non–small cell lung cancer.

The use of durvalumab as treatment of patients with resectable non–small cell lung cancer in the neoadjuvant setting showed preliminary promise with a satisfactory complete surgical resection rate, according to the phase 2 IFCT-1601 IONESC study.

In patients with non–small cell lung cancer who were eligible for surgical resection, treatment with one dose of neoadjuvant atezolizumab was considered safe and induced major pathological responses in some patients.

Larotrectinib induced durable responses in patients with TRK fusion–positive lung cancer, even in patients with central nervous system metastases, according to results pooled from 2 trials of the TRK inhibitor and presented in a poster at the European Society of Medical Oncology Virtual Congress 2020.

Jorge A. Rios, MD, a medical oncologist at Zangmeister Cancer Center in Columbus, Ohio, part of the American Oncology Network, shared the case of a woman who developed multiple severe adverse events attributable to durvalumab.

Edward Kim, MD, chair, Department of Solid Tumor Oncology, Levine Cancer Institute in Charlotte, NC, discussed the use of atezolizumab and durvalumab as treatment of a 73-year-old female patient with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer during a virtual Case Based Peer Perspective event.

Lyudmila Bazhenova, MD, presents the case of a 58-year-old woman with ALK+ non–small cell lung cancer.

Alex Spira, MD, PhD, director, Virginia Cancer Specialists, Phase I Trial Program, Fairfax, VA, discussed the use of durvalumab as treatment of a 63-year-old male with unresectable stage III non–small cell lung cancer.

During a virtual Case Based Peer Perspective series, Zofia Piotrowska, MD, discussed the case of a 66-year-old man with non–small cell lung cancer and a genetic mutation.

The case of a 73-year-old Asian patient diagnosed with non–small cell lung cancer and an EGFR exon 19 deletion was discussed during a virtual Case Based Peer Perspectives event, led by Melissa L. Johnson, MD.