Abstract
Purpose. The pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, efficacy, toxicity, and place in therapy of nivolumab, a novel immunotherapy agent for the treatment of advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) of the squamous cell subtype are reviewed. Summary: Nivolumab is a novel programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) immune checkpoint inhibitor indicated as a secondline treatment for patients with NSCLC whose tumors exhibit squamous cell histology. Nivolumab has high affinity for the PD-1 receptor, and durable responses to treatment have been reported in clinical trials. In a Phase II study evaluating the drug's safety and efficacy in patients who had disease progression despite treatment with platinum-based doublet chemotherapy and at least one additional systemic therapy, nivolumab-treated patients had an objective response rate of 14.5%, with a 17% rate of grade 3 or 4 treatment-related adverse events; overall survival at one year was 40.8%. A head-to-head comparison of docetaxel and nivolumab for secondline treatment of squamous cell NSCLC demonstrated superior overall survival and reduced grade 3 or 4 adverse effects in nivolumab-treated patients. Conclusion: Nivolumab is a novel PD-1 immune checkpoint inhibitor that is effective for treating advanced squamous NSCLC in patients previously treated with platinum-based doublet chemotherapy or alternative first-line agents. Based on its improved efficacy and lower toxicity relative to docetaxel, nivolumab should be considered standard second-line therapy for this population.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1851-1855 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy |
Volume | 72 |
Issue number | 21 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Nov 1 2015 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:Copyright © 2015, American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Inc. All rights reserved.
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Pharmacy
- Pharmacology
- Health Policy