Real-world treatment patterns and clinical outcomes after introduction of immune checkpoint inhibitors: Results from a retrospective chart review of patients with advanced/metastatic non-small cell lung cancer in the EU5.

backgroundReal-world evidence is increasingly used to guide treatment and regulatory decisions for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Real-world treatment patterns and clinical outcomes among patients with advanced/metastatic NSCLC in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK (EU5) were assessed.

methodsThis retrospective physician-completed patient chart review assessed treatment patterns (regimen, duration of treatment [DOT], time to discontinuation), and clinical outcomes (duration of response [DOR], progression-free survival [PFS], and overall survival [OS]) of patients with stage IIIB/C or IV NSCLC who received pembrolizumab-based first-line induction chemotherapy.

resultsOverall, 322 patients were included; at first-line maintenance (1LM), 92% had stage IV NSCLC, 68% had nonsquamous histology, and 89% had no central nervous system (CNS)/brain metastasis. The two most common 1LM regimens were pembrolizumab monotherapy (76% overall) and pembrolizumab + pemetrexed (21% overall). Docetaxel monotherapy was the most common second-line regimen in all countries except Germany (54% overall). For 1LM therapy, the overall median DOT and DOR were 5 and 10 months, respectively; PFS was 7 months and OS was 8 months. Germany had a longer duration of each outcome except for DOR which was longer in Spain. Clinical outcomes were generally poorer for patients with squamous histology and CNS/brain metastases.

conclusionsThis study demonstrated differences in treatment patterns and clinical outcomes in NSCLC across the EU5 and patient subgroups. Improved survival was generally associated with response to first-line therapy, nonsquamous histology, and CNS/brain metastases absence. These real-world data provide valuable insights which may aid treatment decision-making and clinical trial design.