Efficacy and safety of immune checkpoint inhibitors in non-small cell lung cancer.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are new therapeutic strategies for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). We aimed to quantitatively evaluate the efficacy and safety of ICIs in NSCLC. Pubmed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science were searched for randomized clinical trials comparing ICIs with control therapies in NSCLC. Data were pooled according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines. A total of 12 trails comprising 6,919 NSCLC patients were included in this meta-analysis. ICIs therapies significantly improved progression-free survival (PFS) (HR, 0.838; < 0.001), overall survival (OS) (HR, 0.747; < 0.001) and objective response rates (ORR) (RR, 1.311; < 0.001) in NSCLC. Prognostic benefit was observed irrespective of age, sex, treatment line, performance status and histology. Survival improvement of ICIs was limited for NSCLC patients with non-smoker (PFS, = 0.468; OS, = 0.317) or central nervous system (CNS) metastasis (PFS, = 0.209; OS, = 0.090), or positive EGFR mutation (PFS, = 0.083; OS, = 0.522) or PD-L1 expression level less than 5% (PFS, = 0.370; OS, = 0.047). The relative risks of all-grade and high-grade (≥3) anemia, neutropenia, leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, stomatitis, nausea, pyrexia, asthenia and neuropathy were all decreased in patients received ICIs compared with control therapies. This meta-analysis provides clinical evidence that ICIs improve PFS, OS, and ORR in NSCLC with fewer adverse effects. Our data establish ICIs as a prefer treatment option for NSCLC patients with smoker, no CNS metastasis, wild type EGFR, and high PD-L1 expression.