Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39941863›Full record

ReviewCancers2025

The Relationship Between Response Rate and Survival Benefits in Randomized Immunotherapy Studies.

Aditi Jain, Justin Stebbing

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Cancers, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Article
  3. Targeting the Barriers Driving Immune Exclusion.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026
    Review
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Review
  7. Article
  8. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Aditi JainEdinburgh Medical School, Biomedical Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9YL, UK.ORCID 0009-0007-2617-2512
Justin StebbingSchool of Life Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge CB1 1PT, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-1117-6947

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Understanding the relationship between the Objective Response Rate (ORR) and survival outcomes, notably Progression-Free Survival (PFS) and Overall Survival (OS), is relevant for assessing the efficacy of regimens in oncology. We evaluate the relationship between ORR, PFS and OS in immuno-oncology (IO) trials. Data from 68 clinical trials submitted to the FDA were evaluated, examining immunotherapy regimens, notably immune checkpoint inhibitors such as anti-programmed death (ligand)-1 [anti-PD-(L)1], cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein-4 (CTLA-4) inhibitors and combination therapies [e.g., IO + IO, anti-PD-L1 + chemotherapy, anti-PD-L1 + CTLA-4, anti-PD-L1 + TKI (tyrosine kinase inhibitors)]. Studies were included based on their reporting of ORR, PFS, and OS. Of the 68 clinical trials reviewed, 55 were included in the analysis. The correlation between ORR and PFS was moderate across most immunotherapy regimens, indicating that ORR can serve as a useful predictor of short-term disease control. However, the correlation between ORR and OS was weaker, especially in trials including combination therapies, indicating that ORR alone may not reliably predict long-term survival outcomes. ORR predicts PFS better in first-line treatment but declines in later lines and remains a weak OS predictor overall. Differing degrees of correlation between ORR and survival metrics, particularly across treatment lines and combinations, are observed. While ORR can serve as a surrogate marker for PFS in IO trials, its utility in predicting OS is restricted and the interpretation of the relationship between ORR and PFS or OS is a key limitation. Rather, a decline in PFS with increasing ORR may reflect trial differences rather than a direct relationship. Future analyses should adopt better methodologies to capture these dynamics and focus on improving surrogate endpoints for immunotherapy to improve clinical trial design and patient outcomes.

Indexed as

anti-PD-L1immuno-oncologyimmunotherapyobjective response rateoverall survivalprogression free survivaltrial

Identifiers

PMID39941863
PMCPMC11815975

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.