Andrea Luciani1, Antonio Marra2, Luca Toschi3, Diego Cortinovis4, Sergio Fava5, Virginio Filipazzi6, Alessandro Tuzi7, Giulio Cerea8, Sabrina Rossi3, Vittorio Perfetti9, Antonio Rossi10, Laura Giannetta8, Luca Sala4, Giovanna Finocchiaro3, Elio Gregory Pizzutilo8, Stephana Carelli11, Francesco Agustoni4, Massimiliano Cergnul5, Sabrina Zonato2, Salvatore Siena8, Paolo Bidoli4, Daris Ferrari2. 1. Medical Oncology Unit, ASST Santi Paolo e Carlo, Università̀ di Milano, Milan, Italy. Electronic address: andrea.luciani@asst.santipaolocarlo.it. 2. Medical Oncology Unit, ASST Santi Paolo e Carlo, Università̀ di Milano, Milan, Italy. 3. Medical Oncology Unit, Humanitas Cancer Center, Rozzano, Italy. 4. Medical Oncology Unit, ASST Monza, Ospedale San Gerardo, Monza, Italy. 5. Medical Oncology Unit, ASST Ovest Milanese, Legnano, Milan, Italy. 6. Medical Oncology Unit, ASST FBF-Sacco, Milan, Italy. 7. Medical Oncology Unit, ASST Settelaghi, Varese, Italy. 8. Medical Oncology, Niguarda Cancer Center, Grande Ospedale Metropolitano Niguarda, Milan, Italy; Dipartimento di Oncologia e Emato-Oncologia, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy. 9. Internal Medicine Unit, Oncologia Oltrepò, Ospedale di Varzi, ASST Pavia, Pavia, Italy. 10. Medical Oncology Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, San Giovanni Rotondo (FG), Italy. 11. Department of Pharmacology, University of Milan, Milan Italy.
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is predominantly a disease of the elderly population. Over the past few years, immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies named checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) greatly improved the clinical management of a significant proportion of patients with metastatic NSCLC. However, pivotal trials excluded older patients, although, given the favorable clinical profile of ICIs, this treatment may be revealed to be a most valuable option also for these patients. To this aim, a multicenter retrospective analysis was performed on patients aged ≥ 75 years with NSCLC treated with anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1)/programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) immunotherapy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Inclusion criteria were: diagnosis of locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC (stage IIIB or IV, according to the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) classification system, version 8.0); age ≥ 75 years; treatment with anti-PD-1/PD-L1 monoclonal antibodies in first or subsequent lines of treatment; absence of epidermal growth factor receptor-activating mutations or anaplastic lymphoma kinase and ROS-1 rearrangements. The primary endpoints of the study were the efficacy, in terms of overall response rate, progression-free survival, and overall survival, and safety, by means of evaluations of the incidence of immune-related adverse events. RESULTS: Eighty-six patients were considered for the final analysis; 71 (82.6%) were male. The mean age was 78.5 years (range, 75-86 years; SD, 3.12 years). Of the 86 patients, 69 (80.2%) of patients had a performance status of 0 or 1. The overall median progression-free survival was 5.6 months (range 1-36 months; SD, 7.5 months,) whereas the median overall survival was 10.1 months (range, 1.7-34.8 months; SD, 8 months). At the Cox regression analysis, the only parameter significantly associated with survival was the smoking status (P = .008). No difference in survival was found between patients younger and older than 80 years. CONCLUSIONS: In the present real-world retrospective cohort, efficacy and toxicity profiles of ICIs in older patients with advanced NSCLC were comparable with those observed in younger patients enrolled in clinical trials.
INTRODUCTION:Non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is predominantly a disease of the elderly population. Over the past few years, immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies named checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) greatly improved the clinical management of a significant proportion of patients with metastatic NSCLC. However, pivotal trials excluded older patients, although, given the favorable clinical profile of ICIs, this treatment may be revealed to be a most valuable option also for these patients. To this aim, a multicenter retrospective analysis was performed on patients aged ≥ 75 years with NSCLC treated with anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1)/programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) immunotherapy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Inclusion criteria were: diagnosis of locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC (stage IIIB or IV, according to the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) classification system, version 8.0); age ≥ 75 years; treatment with anti-PD-1/PD-L1 monoclonal antibodies in first or subsequent lines of treatment; absence of epidermal growth factor receptor-activating mutations or anaplastic lymphoma kinase and ROS-1 rearrangements. The primary endpoints of the study were the efficacy, in terms of overall response rate, progression-free survival, and overall survival, and safety, by means of evaluations of the incidence of immune-related adverse events. RESULTS: Eighty-six patients were considered for the final analysis; 71 (82.6%) were male. The mean age was 78.5 years (range, 75-86 years; SD, 3.12 years). Of the 86 patients, 69 (80.2%) of patients had a performance status of 0 or 1. The overall median progression-free survival was 5.6 months (range 1-36 months; SD, 7.5 months,) whereas the median overall survival was 10.1 months (range, 1.7-34.8 months; SD, 8 months). At the Cox regression analysis, the only parameter significantly associated with survival was the smoking status (P = .008). No difference in survival was found between patients younger and older than 80 years. CONCLUSIONS: In the present real-world retrospective cohort, efficacy and toxicity profiles of ICIs in older patients with advanced NSCLC were comparable with those observed in younger patients enrolled in clinical trials.