Oncology Reviews (Jul 2020)

Are anti-PD1 and anti-PD-L1 alike? The non-small-cell lung cancer paradigm

  • Giuseppe Luigi Banna,
  • Ornella Cantale,
  • Melissa Bersanelli,
  • Marzia Del Re,
  • Alex Friedlaender,
  • Alessio Cortellini,
  • Alfredo Addeo

DOI
https://doi.org/10.4081/oncol.2020.490
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 14, no. 2

Abstract

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Anti-PD1 and anti-PD-L1 agents may have intrinsic and clinically relevant differences in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. By reviewing currently available indirect evidence on these agents for NSCLC treatment, highlighting possible inter- and intra-class dissimilarities, anti-PD1 agents showed a higher response rate and a better outcome when combined with chemotherapy for the first-line treatment of patients with squamous and PD-L1 low advanced NSCLC, as compared to anti-PD-L1 agents. Conversely, anti-PD-L1 agents were responsible for less severe adverse events (AEs), particularly, immunerelated AEs. These differences could be explained by their different specific properties. Considering possible differences between anti-PD1 and anti-PD-L1 agents could be clinically relevant for treatment tailoring and inspiring new investigational approaches.

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