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H. Raftopoulos



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    ORAL 31 - PD1 Axis Inhibition (ID 143)

    • Event: WCLC 2015
    • Type: Oral Session
    • Track: Treatment of Advanced Diseases - NSCLC
    • Presentations: 1
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      ORAL31.02 - Pembrolizumab for NSCLC: Immune-Mediated Adverse Events and Corticosteroid Use (ID 3032)

      16:45 - 18:15  |  Author(s): H. Raftopoulos

      • Abstract
      • Presentation
      • Slides

      Background:
      Pembrolizumab is a humanized monoclonal antibody against PD-1 that has demonstrated robust antitumor activity and a manageable safety profile in patients with advanced malignancies, including NSCLC. Similar to other immune checkpoint inhibitors, immune-mediated toxicities have been observed with pembrolizumab. We characterized the incidence of potentially immune-mediated adverse events (AEs) and the use of systemic corticosteroids for their management in patients with NSCLC treated with pembrolizumab in the phase 1 KEYNOTE-001 trial (ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT01295827).

      Methods:
      550 patients with advanced NSCLC received pembrolizumab 2 or 10 mg/kg every 3 weeks (Q3W) or 10 mg/kg every 2 weeks (Q2W). Potentially immune-mediated AEs were derived from a prespecified list and considered regardless of attribution to study treatment by the investigator. High-dose corticosteroid use was defined as an initial dose of ≥40 mg/day prednisone or equivalent. Low-dose corticosteroid use was defined as an initial dose of <40 mg/day prednisone or equivalent.

      Results:
      71 (12.9%) patients experienced ≥1 immune-mediated AE, including 17 (3.1%) who experienced grade 3-4 events, 1 (0.2) who died because of an immune-mediated AE (pneumonitis), and 14 (2.5%) who discontinued pembrolizumab because of immune-mediated AEs. The median time to onset of the first immune-mediated AE was 104 days (range, 2-393 days). Immune-related AE incidence was similar in patients treated with pembrolizumab 10 mg/kg Q2W and Q3W. The most common immune-mediated AEs were hypothyroidism, pneumonitis, and infusion-related reactions (Table). Pneumonitis was the most common grade 3-4 toxicity. Excluding hypothyroidism, 74.2% of immune-mediated AEs had resolved at the time of data cutoff. Of the 71 patients who experienced immune-mediated AEs, 30 (42.2%) received corticosteroids: 20 received high dose, 10 low dose. The highest incidence of corticosteroid use was for pneumonitis (84.2%) and colitis (80.0%) (Table). The duration of initial steroid use ranged from 1 to 129 days. Analyses related to the impact of steroid use on pembrolizumab efficacy are ongoing and will be available for presentation. Figure 1



      Conclusion:
      Potentially immune-mediated AEs, particularly those of grade 3-5 severity, are relatively infrequent in patients with advanced NSCLC treated with pembrolizumab. As evidenced by the low rate of pembrolizumab discontinuation, most immune-mediated events were managed by temporary pembrolizumab interruption and corticosteroid use.

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