The real-world insights on the use, safety, and outcome of immune-checkpoint inhibitors in underrepresented populations with lung cancer.

BACKGROUND: The data on immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) use in lung cancer individuals generally underrepresented in clinical trials are limited. We aimed to examine the ICI access, safety, and outcome in these populations using real-world data. METHODS: Patients with lung cancer newly started on ICIs from 2018 to 2021 were included. Patient factors (age, sex, race, insurance, Charlson comorbidity index (CCI), Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status, histories of autoimmune disease (AD), infection within 3 months before treatment, and brain metastasis) were collected and grouped. Associations of each patient factor with the time-to-treatment initiation (TTI) of ICIs and immune-related adverse events (irAEs) were examined via cumulative incidence analyses and Chi-squared tests, respectively. Log-rank tests and Cox models were used to assess association of patient factors with overall survival (OS). RESULTS: Of 125 patients (median age:70 years (50-88), 68 (54.4 %) males), 9 (7.2 %) had Medicaid/uninsured, 44 (35.2 %) had ECOG ≥ 2, 101 (80.8 %) had CCI ≥ 3, 16 (12.8 %) had ADs, 14 (11.2 %) had infections, and 26 (20.8 %) had brain metastases. In newly diagnosed stage IV patients (N = 62), no difference in TTI was found by patient factors. Fifty irAEs occurred within 12 months and no differences in irAEs occurrence by patient factors. In advanced-stage group (N = 123), OS did not differ by patient factors, except for race (p = 0.045). Whites showed an inferior OS than non-Whites in multivariable regression. (Hazards ratio = 2.82 [1.01-7.87], p = 0.047). CONCLUSIONS: Previously poorly represented subgroups were shown to have no significant delays in ICI use, general tolerance, and comparable outcomes. This adds practical evidence to ICI use in clinically and/or socio-demographically marginalized populations.

Screening, Diagnosis, and Initial Care of Asian and White Patients With Lung Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Data on the care of Asian patients with lung cancer in the US are limited; however, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in this population. METHODS: Demographics, low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) screening, disease characteristics, and treatment history were compared between Asian and White patients newly diagnosed with lung cancer from 2014 to 2019 identified from Tufts Medical Center cancer registry. The influence of race on presenting stage was assessed via ordinal logistic regression. Time to treatment initiation (TTI) and overall survival (OS) were analyzed via log-rank tests. The impact of race on OS was evaluated via multivariable Cox regression. RESULTS: Asian patients (N = 144) were more likely to prefer non-English languages, use interpreters, be never-smokers, and harbor EGFR alterations, compared to White patients (N = 472), and to be diagnosed with later-stage lung cancer (odds ratio: 2.14, P < .001), had longer median TTI (early stage: 2.30 vs. 1.43 months, P = .035; curative stage: 1.88 vs. 1.20 months, P = .041) and more often did not receive cancer-directed therapy (12.6% vs. 5.7%, P = .01). Screening LDCT was done only in 11.9% of Asian and 21.4% of White patients (P = .20) who would have met screening criteria prior to diagnosis (N = 215). Median OS was similar between Asian and White patients (not reached vs. 74.8 months, P = .17). Multivariable Cox model suggested better OS for Asian patients (hazard ratio: 0.57, P = .01). CONCLUSION: In our study, Asian patients presented with later-stage lung cancer, had treatment delays, and more often did not receive treatment, compared to White patients, yet did not have inferior survival.