Overview
Lung cancer remains a leading cause of cancer-related deaths, with early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) making up a significant portion of new diagnoses. Recent advances have introduced immunotherapy into the care of patients with resectable NSCLC, either before or after surgery. However, little was known about how these therapies are used and how effective they are in real-world clinical practice.
This study examined over 5,700 patients with stage II–IIIA NSCLC who underwent surgery between 2021 and 2023. Researchers found that both neoadjuvant and adjuvant chemoimmunotherapy were associated with favorable real-world distant metastasis-free survival (rwDMFS) at 18 months. However, despite the promising outcomes of these therapies, less than 30% of potentially eligible patients received them in 2023, signaling the need to address barriers to broader implementation.
Why this matters
This research provides important real-world evidence supporting the effectiveness of immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy for patients with resectable NSCLC. The findings highlight that while these treatments can improve patient outcomes, there are significant gaps in their adoption and in biomarker testing. This research underscores the value of real-world data in understanding how new cancer treatments perform outside of clinical trials and points to opportunities for improving lung cancer care in everyday practice.