Novel active agents in patients with advanced NSCLC without driver mutations who have progressed after first-line chemotherapy.

Despite the efficacy of a number of first-line treatments, most patients with advanced-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) experience disease progression that warrants further treatment. In this review, we examine the role of novel active agents for patients who progress after first-line therapy and who are not candidates for targeted therapies. More therapeutic options are needed for the management of patients with NSCLC after failure of first-line chemotherapy.

Evaluation of changes in renal function in PARAMOUNT: a phase III study of maintenance pemetrexed plus best supportive care versus placebo plus best supportive care after induction treatment with pemetrexed plus cisplatin for advanced nonsquamous non-small-cell lung cancer.

Objectives: To assess the effect of long-term pemetrexed maintenance therapy on patients' renal function.

Methods: In the PARAMOUNT phase III trial (NCT 00789373), pemetrexed was compared with placebo as maintenance treatment in advanced nonsquamous non-small-cell lung cancer patients who completed 4 cycles of pemetrexed plus cisplatin induction therapy. To evaluate changes in renal function during pemetrexed continuation maintenance treatment, we retrospectively analyzed changes in serum creatinine (sCr), treatment-emergent adverse events, dose delays and treatment discontinuations associated with impaired renal function.

The FGFR4-388arg Variant Promotes Lung Cancer Progression by N-Cadherin Induction.

The FGFR4-388Arg variant has been related to poor prognosis in several types of cancer, including lung cancer. The mechanism underlying this association has not been addressed in detail in patients with this pathology. Here, we report that this FGFR4 variant induces MAPK and STAT3 activation and causes pro-oncogenic effects in NSCLC in vitro and in vivo.

Second-Line Treatment Options in Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer: Report From an International Experts Panel Meeting of the Italian Association of Thoracic Oncology.

Non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients inevitably progress to first-line therapy and further active treatments are warranted. In the past few years, new second-line therapies, beyond chemotherapy agents, have become available in clinical practice. To date, several options for the second-line treatment of non-oncogene-addicted NSCLC patients ranging from chemotherapy in combination with antivascular endothelial growth factor receptor to immunotherapeutics are available.

Randomized, Double-Blind Phase Ib/III Study of Erlotinib With Ramucirumab or Placebo in Previously Untreated EGFR-Mutant Metastatic Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer (RELAY): Phase Ib Results.

Background: Despite the likelihood of an initial response to an epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI), EGFR-mutant non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients develop disease progression. Antiangiogenic agents in combination with an EGFR TKI might provide additional benefit in patients with EGFR-mutant NSCLC. In this article we report safety, exposure, and progression-free survival (PFS) results for part A (phase Ib) of RELAY, a randomized, double-blind, phase Ib/III study investigating safety and efficacy of erlotinib (EGFR TKI) with ramucirumab (anti-vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 antibody) or placebo in first-line EGFR-mutant stage IV NSCLC.

Coordinated downregulation of Spinophilin and the catalytic subunits of PP1, PPP1CA/B/C, contributes to a worse prognosis in lung cancer.

The scaffold protein Spinophilin (Spinophilin, PPP1R9B) is one of the regulatory subunits of phosphatase-1 (PP1), directing it to distinct subcellular locations and targets. The loss of Spinophilin reduces PP1 targeting to pRb, thereby maintaining higher levels of phosphorylated pRb. Spinophilin is absent or reduced in approximately 40% of human lung tumors, correlating with the malignant grade.

Outcomes in patients with aggressive or refractory disease from REVEL: A randomized phase III study of docetaxel with ramucirumab or placebo for second-line treatment of stage IV non-small-cell lung cancer.

Objectives: The REVEL study demonstrated improved efficacy for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer treated with ramucirumab plus docetaxel, independent of histology. This exploratory analysis characterized the treatment effect in REVEL patients who were refractory to prior first-line treatment.

Materials And Methods: Refractory patients had a best response of progressive disease to first-line treatment.

Treatment outcomes by histology in REVEL: A randomized phase III trial of Ramucirumab plus docetaxel for advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

Objectives: Ramucirumab, a recombinant human immunoglobulin G1 monoclonal antibody inhibiting vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2, increased overall survival (OS) combined with docetaxel versus docetaxel alone in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in the REVEL trial. Pre-specified exploratory analysis examined efficacy and safety by histology.

Materials And Methods: 1253 patients with NSCLC were randomized to receive ramucirumab (10mg/kg; n=628) plus docetaxel (75mg/m) or placebo plus docetaxel (n=625) after disease progression on or after platinum-based therapy, with or without bevacizumab or maintenance therapy.

Current and Emergent Therapy Options for Advanced Squamous Cell Lung Cancer.

Squamous cell lung cancer (SqCLC) is a distinct histologic subtype of NSCLC that is challenging to treat because of specific clinicopathologic characteristics, which include older age, advanced disease at diagnosis, comorbid diseases, and the central location of tumors. These characteristics have a bearing on treatment outcomes in advanced SqCLC, resulting in a median survival approximately 30% shorter than for patients with other NSCLC subtypes. In the context of the specific features of SqCLC, we review challenges of treating SqCLC and the current guideline-recommended treatments for advanced (metastatic) SqCLC in different patient subpopulations.

EGFR Gene Copy Number by FISH May Predict Outcome of Necitumumab in Squamous Lung Carcinomas: Analysis from the SQUIRE Study.

Introduction: Necitumumab is a monoclonal antibody targeting EGFR. In the SQUIRE trial, the addition of necitumumab to chemotherapy for squamous cell lung cancer significantly improved overall survival (OS) (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.84); in a post hoc analysis, EGFR copy number gain determined by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) showed a trend toward improved OS (HR = 0.

Efficacy and Safety of Necitumumab Continuation Therapy in the Phase III SQUIRE Study of Patients With Stage IV Squamous Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer.

Introduction: In a retrospective analysis of the SQUamous NSCLC treatment with the Inhibitor of EGF REceptor (SQUIRE) study, we investigated the efficacy and safety of single-agent necitumumab continuation therapy in patients with stage IV squamous non-small-cell lung cancer and in a subpopulation of patients with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-expressing tumors.

Patients And Methods: Patients were randomized 1:1 for ≤ 6 cycles of gemcitabine and cisplatin either with or without necitumumab. Patients who received necitumumab continued receiving single-agent necitumumab until progressive disease (necitumumab continuation).

Treating -mutant NSCLC: latest evidence and clinical consequences.

mutations represent one of the most prevalent oncogenic driver mutations in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). For many years we have unsuccessfully addressed mutation as a unique disease. The recent widespread use of comprehensive genomic profiling has identified different subgroups with prognostic implications.

Nivolumab Versus Docetaxel in Previously Treated Patients With Advanced Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer: Two-Year Outcomes From Two Randomized, Open-Label, Phase III Trials (CheckMate 017 and CheckMate 057).

Purpose Nivolumab, a programmed death-1 inhibitor, prolonged overall survival compared with docetaxel in two independent phase III studies in previously treated patients with advanced squamous (CheckMate 017; ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01642004) or nonsquamous (CheckMate 057; ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01673867) non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Meta-analysis of individual patient safety data from six randomized, placebo-controlled trials with the antiangiogenic VEGFR2-binding monoclonal antibody ramucirumab.

Background: Ramucirumab, the human immunoglobulin G1 monoclonal antibody receptor antagonist of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2, has been approved for treating gastric/gastroesophageal junction, non-small-cell lung, and metastatic colorectal cancers. With the completion of six global, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase III trials across multiple tumor types, an opportunity now exists to further establish the safety parameters of ramucirumab across a large patient population.

Materials And Methods: An individual patient meta-analysis across the six completed phase III trials was conducted and the relative risk (RR) and associated 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were derived using fixed-effects or mixed-effects models for all-grade and high-grade adverse events (AEs) possibly related to vascular endothelial growth factor pathway inhibition.

Phase 1 study of intravenous administration of the chimeric adenovirus enadenotucirev in patients undergoing primary tumor resection.

Background: Enadenotucirev (formerly ColoAd1) is a tumor-selective chimeric adenovirus with demonstrated preclinical activity. This phase 1 Mechanism of Action study assessed intravenous (IV) delivery of enadenotucirev in patients with resectable colorectal cancer (CRC), non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), urothelial cell cancer (UCC), and renal cell cancer (RCC) with a comparator intratumoral (IT) dosed CRC patient cohort.

Methods: Seventeen patients scheduled for primary tumor resection were enrolled.

Durvalumab after Chemoradiotherapy in Stage III Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer.

Background: Most patients with locally advanced, unresectable, non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) have disease progression despite definitive chemoradiotherapy (chemotherapy plus concurrent radiation therapy). This phase 3 study compared the anti-programmed death ligand 1 antibody durvalumab as consolidation therapy with placebo in patients with stage III NSCLC who did not have disease progression after two or more cycles of platinum-based chemoradiotherapy.

Methods: We randomly assigned patients, in a 2:1 ratio, to receive durvalumab (at a dose of 10 mg per kilogram of body weight intravenously) or placebo every 2 weeks for up to 12 months.

Aligning digital CD8 scoring and targeted next-generation sequencing with programmed death ligand 1 expression: a pragmatic approach in early-stage squamous cell lung carcinoma.

Aims: To study programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression, tumour-infiltrating T lymphocytes (TILs) and the molecular context in patients with early-stage squamous cell lung carcinomas (SCCs).

Methods And Results: The study included samples from 40 patients (discovery cohort) and 29 patients (validation cohort) diagnosed with early-stage SCC. PD-L1 immunohistochemistry (IHC) was performed with three commercially available clones (E1L3N, SP263 and SP142).

Prospective Clinical Integration of an Amplicon-Based Next-Generation Sequencing Method to Select Advanced Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer Patients for Genotype-Tailored Treatments.

Introduction: A substantial fraction of non-small-cell lung cancers (NSCLCs) harbor targetable genetic alterations. In this study, we analyzed the feasibility and clinical utility of integrating a next-generation sequencing (NGS) panel into our routine lung cancer molecular subtyping algorithm.

Patients And Methods: After routine pathologic and molecular subtyping, we implemented an amplicon-based gene panel for DNA analysis covering mutational hot spots in 22 cancer genes in consecutive advanced-stage NSCLCs.

First-Line Nivolumab in Stage IV or Recurrent Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer.

Background: Nivolumab has been associated with longer overall survival than docetaxel among patients with previously treated non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In an open-label phase 3 trial, we compared first-line nivolumab with chemotherapy in patients with programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1)-positive NSCLC.

Methods: We randomly assigned, in a 1:1 ratio, patients with untreated stage IV or recurrent NSCLC and a PD-L1 tumor-expression level of 1% or more to receive nivolumab (administered intravenously at a dose of 3 mg per kilogram of body weight once every 2 weeks) or platinum-based chemotherapy (administered once every 3 weeks for up to six cycles).

A randomized, phase 2 evaluation of the CHK1 inhibitor, LY2603618, administered in combination with pemetrexed and cisplatin in patients with advanced nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer.

This phase 2 portion of a phase 1/2 study examined the efficacy and safety of LY2603618, a selective checkpoint kinase 1 inhibitor, combined with pemetrexed and cisplatin (LY+Pem+Cis) in patients with advanced nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This multicenter, randomized, controlled, open-label study (NCT01139775) enrolled patients with stage IV nonsquamous NSCLC and an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status ≤1. Patients were randomized (2:1) to LY+Pem+Cis or pemetrexed and cisplatin (Pem+Cis).

Phase II Trial of Atezolizumab As First-Line or Subsequent Therapy for Patients With Programmed Death-Ligand 1-Selected Advanced Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer (BIRCH).

Purpose BIRCH was designed to examine the efficacy of atezolizumab, a humanized anti-programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) monoclonal antibody, in advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) across lines of therapy. Patients were selected on the basis of PD-L1 expression on tumor cells (TC) or tumor-infiltrating immune cells (IC). Patients and Methods Eligible patients had advanced-stage NSCLC, no CNS metastases, and zero to two or more lines of prior chemotherapy.

A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, Phase 1b/2 Study of Rilotumumab or Ganitumab in Combination With Platinum-Based Chemotherapy as First-Line Treatment for Extensive-Stage Small-Cell Lung Cancer.

Introduction/background: In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase 1b/2 study we assessed the efficacy/safety of rilotumumab or ganitumab combined with etoposide and carboplatin or cisplatin as first-line treatment in patients with extensive stage small-cell lung cancer (ES-SCLC).

Patients And Methods: In the phase 1b study, patients received rilotumumab 15 mg/kg or ganitumab 18 mg/kg with etoposide and carboplatin or cisplatin. In the phase 2 study, patients were randomly assigned 1:1:1 to receive placebo, rilotumumab, or ganitumab with etoposide and carboplatin or cisplatin.

Prognostic Role of the FGFR4-388Arg Variant in Lung Squamous-Cell Carcinoma Patients With Lymph Node Involvement.

Background: The identification of prognostic biomarkers for lung squamous-cell carcinoma (SCC) pathology is crucial because of its poor prognosis. A variant of the FGFR4 (fibroblast growth factor receptor 4) gene, FGFR4-388Arg, has been associated with prognosis and is linked to oncogenesis in vitro in several types of cancer. We analyzed the association of this variant with prognosis and downstream signaling alteration in lung SCC patients.

Safety Analyses of Pemetrexed-cisplatin and Pemetrexed Maintenance Therapies in Patients With Advanced Non-squamous NSCLC: Retrospective Analyses From 2 Phase III Studies.

Background: In a phase III study, maintenance pemetrexed showed superior survival over placebo (PARAMOUNT) for patients with advanced non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who completed 4 cycles of pemetrexed plus cisplatin (PC) induction therapy, with low incidence of treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) generally associated with pemetrexed. Prior analyses did not account for toxicities carried over from induction; thus, the current analysis was developed to understand toxicities that may be attributed to pemetrexed maintenance versus PC induction, and how treatment duration affects toxicity.

Patients And Methods: Selected clinically relevant TEAEs were explored in 2 analyses: assessing induction versus maintenance treatment in PARAMOUNT, and comparing PC from PARAMOUNT with toxicity data from a previous phase III study that established the role of PC in front-line therapy of non-squamous NSCLC (JMDB trial).

Afatinib versus gefitinib in patients with EGFR mutation-positive advanced non-small-cell lung cancer: overall survival data from the phase IIb LUX-Lung 7 trial.

Background: In LUX-Lung 7, the irreversible ErbB family blocker, afatinib, significantly improved progression-free survival (PFS), time-to-treatment failure (TTF) and objective response rate (ORR) versus gefitinib in patients with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation-positive non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Here, we present primary analysis of mature overall survival (OS) data.

Patients And Methods: LUX-Lung 7 assessed afatinib 40 mg/day versus gefitinib 250 mg/day in treatment-naïve patients with stage IIIb/IV NSCLC and a common EGFR mutation (exon 19 deletion/L858R).