Dr. Porter on the 3-Year Follow-Up Data From the CheckMate-9LA Trial in NSCLC

Jason Porter, MD, medical oncologist, hematologist, director, Lung Cancer Disease Research Group, West Cancer Center and Research Institute, discusses the 3-year follow-up data from the phase 3 CheckMate-9LA trial (NCT03215706) done in patients with metastatic non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

CheckMate-9LA evaluated nivolumab (Opdivo) and ipilimumab (Yervoy) plus chemotherapy vs chemotherapy alone as a first-line treatment for patients with metastatic NSCLC.

The 3-year follow-up data showed encouraging survival benefits with the addition of nivolumab and ipilimumab to chemotherapy, irrespective of patients’ histology or PD-L1 status, Porter says. The 3-year overall survival (OS) rates for patients who received the combination therapy vs chemotherapy alone were 27% and 19%, respectively, Porter adds. Moreover, patients with PD-L1–negative disease who were treated with combination therapy achieved a 3-year OS rate of 25% vs 15% in those who received chemotherapy alone, Porter explains.

Additionally, patients with a PD-L1 expression of at least 1% who received nivolumab/ipilimumab plus chemotherapy experienced a 3-year OS rate of 28% compared with 19% in those who received chemotherapy alone, Porter emphasizes.

Patients who have symptomatic disease or greater disease burden will typically need chemotherapy, Porter adds. Improving outcomes in these patients with only 2 cycles of chemotherapy in CheckMate-9LA is an exciting development, Porter concludes.