Immunotherapy for brain metastases from non-small cell lung cancer: current status and advances

Abstract

The most common subtype of lung cancer is non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) , accounting for 80% to 85% of lung cancer. During the development process, the tumor is easily metastasized to the brain, seriously affecting the treatment prognosis and quality of life of patients. At present, the main treatment options for brain metastasis of lung cancer are surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy. In recent years, breakthroughs have been made in the application of immune checkpoint inhibitors, and some combination immunotherapies have been clinically approved. According to the Chinese Experts Consensus on Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors for Non-small Cell Lung Cancer, there have been certain studies showing that immunotherapy can be applied to the treatment of advanced NSCLC. Immunotherapy is like a double-edged sword, and its practical clinical significance still needs further exploration. This article reviews the progress of immunotherapy for brain metastasis of NSCLC and explores more reasonable clinical treatment plans for patients with brain metastasis of lung cancer.

Keywords

• non-small cell lung cancer
• brain metastasis
• immunotherapy
• immune checkpoint inhibitor
• programmed cell death receptor
• radiotherapy
• chemotherapy
• targeted therapy
• anti angiogenic therapy