Dr. Formenti on Combining Radiotherapy With Immunotherapy in NSCLC

Silvia Formenti, MD, chair of Radiation Oncology at Weill Cornell Medical College and radiation oncologist-in-chief at Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYorkPresbyterian Hospital, discusses combining radiotherapy with immunotherapy in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Previous studies investigating anti—CTLA-4 monoclonal antibodies had failed to demonstrate a significant impact in NSCLC, says Formenti. However, when ipilimumab was combined with radiotherapy a 33% objective response rate was demonstrated in patients with NSCLC.

Patients who responded compared to those who did not had some evidence of immunization, as demonstrated by circulating lymphocytes, says Formenti.