Special Report

*Author for correspondence:

E-mail Address: roberto.ferrara@istitutotumori.mi.it

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6443-5642

Department of Research, Molecular Immunology Unit Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori, Milan, Italy

Department of Medical Oncology, Thoracic Oncology Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori, Milan, Italy

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Ignacio Matos

Research Department of Haematology, Cancer Immunology Unit, University College London Cancer Institute, London, UK

Vall d´Hebron Institute of Oncology, Barcelona, Spain

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Published Online:20 Jul 2020https://doi.org/10.2217/fon-2020-0186

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Abstract

In the immunoncology era, an acceleration of tumor growth upon immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI), defined as hyperprogressive disease (HPD) has been observed across different cancers. Although in non-small-cell lung cancer, most of the available evidence regarding HPD has been reported for patients treated with single agent PD-1 and PD-L1 inhibitors, in retrospective series a variable proportion of patients receiving ICI combinations also experienced HPD. Similarly, the shape of survival curves and the progression rates in clinical trials testing combinations of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors and anti-CTLA-4 agents suggest the occurrence of HPD. Few data are available regarding pseudoprogression upon ICI combinations. However, considering that pseudoprogression has been reported for anti-PD-1/PD-L1 agents and for CTLA-4 inhibitors separately, it is likely that it may occur also upon combinations of these two classes of drugs.

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Vol. 16, No. 23

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History

Received 3 March 2020

Accepted 4 May 2020

Published online 20 July 2020

Published in print August 2020

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Acknowledgments

I Matos was funded by an ESMO fellowship program in 2019.

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

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Atypical patterns of response and progression in the era of immunotherapy combinations

Abstract

References