SynthesisBMJ open2023
Organ-specific immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment in lung cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in BMJ open, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.
- Female underrepresentation and adverse events reporting biases in lung cancer clinical trials: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of the National Cancer Center · 2026Article
- A challenge for treating patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancers, particularly for those with liver metastases.Journal of the Chinese Medical Association : JCMA · 2025Article
- Tumor Immune Microenvironment and Current Status of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy in Colorectal Cancer Liver Metastasis.Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.) · 2025Review
- Research progress of anti-angiogenic therapy combined with immunotherapy and radiotherapy for the treatment of brain metastases in non-small cell lung cancer (Review).Oncology letters · 2025Review
- Organ-Specific Immune Setpoints Underlie Divergent Immune Profiles across Metastatic Sites in Breast Cancer.Cancer immunology research · 2024Article
- Immunotherapy in the context of immune-specialized environment of brain metastases.Discovery immunology · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesBased on the acknowledged organ-specific immune microenvironment, little is known regarding the efficacy of immunotherapy in patients with lung cancer according to metastatic sites. This meta-analysis aimed to explore the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) vs chemotherapy in patients with lung cancer with liver metastases (LM) or brain metastases (BM).
designMeta-analysis and systematic review. DATA SOURCES: We systematically searched in electronic databases (PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library and Web of Science), up to 31 January 2022. We also reviewed the abstracts from major international conferences. Eligibility criteria were randomised controlled phase II or III trials reporting the overall survival (OS) or progression-free survival (PFS) of LM or BM subsets. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% CIs for OS and PFS were extracted and aggregated using a random-effects model.
resultsTwenty-four randomised controlled trials with available outcomes for patients with BMs or LMs were identified. A total of 1124 patients with BM and 2077 patients with LM were included in the analysis. The pooled OS HR of patients with LMs was 0.83 (95% CI 0.72 to 0.95), and that of patients without LM 0.73 (95% CI 0.69 to 0.79). LM was associated with less benefits from ICIs. In patients with BM treated with ICIs, the pooled OS HR compared with the control arms was 0.71 (95% CI 0.53 to 0.94). Subgroup analyses by histology suggested that only patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with BM could gain benefit from ICIs (HR 0.53, 95% CI 0.41 to 0.68). BM negatively influenced efficacy of immunotherapy in patients with small cell lung cancer.
conclusionsOur results showed immunotherapy demonstrated efficacy in patients with lung cancer with LM and BM, survival benefits dominantly favoured patients with NSCLC. Patients with lung cancer with LM obtained less benefits from ICIs than those without. Therefore, organ-specific immunotherapeutic approaches should be considered. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42020212797.
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