A Phase II study of nab-paclitaxel and carboplatin chemotherapy plus necitumumab in the first-line treatment of patients with stage IV squamous non-small cell lung cancer

Squamous cell carcinoma, characterized by large keratinizing and atypical polygonal cells in the respiratory bronchial epithelium [1], affects 30% of patients with lung cancer [2]. Historically, patients with squamous NSCLC were treated with first-line platinum-based chemotherapy [3]. Unlike non-squamous NSCLC, there have been no validated, targetable oncogenic drivers to date. The development and recent approval of targeted immunotherapies, either alone or in combination with platinum-doublet chemotherapy based on improved overall survival, offer a new treatment approach for patients with advanced squamous NSCLC.[4,5] However, platinum-based chemotherapy is the preferred treatment option for patients with squamous NSCLC tumors with high tumor proportion scores after disease progression on first-line pembrolizumab monotherapy.[3] In addition, there remains an unmet need for patients with squamous NSCLC who are ineligible for immunotherapy due to pre-existing autoimmunity, solid organ transplant, or prior immune-related toxicity.
Source: Lung Cancer - Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Source Type: research