Dr. Brahmer Discusses Second-Line Pembrolizumab in NSCLC

Julie R. Brahmer, MD, associate professor of oncology, co-director of the Upper Aerodigestive Department, Bloomberg Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Johns Hopkins Medicine, discusses second-line pembrolizumab (Keytruda) in non—small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Data on second-line therapy with pembrolizumab after chemotherapy showed a lower response rate of approximately 21%. Brahmer suggests that receiving chemotherapy before pembrolizumab may not be beneficial, particularly for patients who express high levels of PD-L1.

Many in the field are moving away from single-agent pembrolizumab, says Brahmer, specifically in the treatment of patients with nonsquamous cell histologies. However, cohort G of the KEYNOTE-021 study showed higher response rates with the combination of pembrolizumab, carboplatin and pemetrexed compared with carboplatin and pemetrexed alone in NSCLC.