Comparative effectiveness of atezolizumab, nivolumab and pembrolizumab
in second line treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer
Abstract
Purpose: This observational study aimed to assess the comparative
effectiveness of immunotherapy (IO) in the second-line setting of
advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (aNSCLC). Methods:
Population-based data was obtained from the Cancer Registry of Norway
(CRN) and linked with the hospital data from the Norwegian Patient
Registry (NPR) and treatment data from the Norwegian Prescribed Drug
Registry (NorPD). Adult patients with aNSCLC diagnosis in Norway in
2015-2021 were included. The final cohort included patients using IO in
the second line setting after first-line treatment with
platinum-containing doublet chemotherapy. We performed target trial
emulating key eligibility criteria commonly used in aNSCLC randomized
clinical trials (RCTs) and constructed three pair-wise 1:1 Propensity
score (PS) matched comparison cohorts: atezolizumab versus
pembrolizumab, atezolizumab versus nivolumab and nivolumab versus
pembrolizumab. Age, sex, morphology, ECOG performance status, PDL1
expression level, peripheral vascular disease, chronic lung disease,
diabetes without complications, heart failure, moderate to severe kidney
disease, cerebrovascular disease, number of comorbidities per patients
and etoposide use were included in the PS. The primary outcome was
overall survival (OS). Patients were followed until experiencing death,
emigration or end of study. A Cox proportional hazards regression model
was used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals
(CIs). Results: Analyses included a total of 463 patients, 215
users of atezolizumab, 72 nivolumab and 176 pembrolizumab. The median
follow-up time was 8.4 (IQR 3.4—20.7) months. We found no significant
difference in OS in any of the three pair-wise comparisons; atezolizumab
vs. pembrolizumab (HR 0.92; 95% CI: 0.68—1.23), atezolizumab vs.
nivolumab (HR 1.14; 95% CI: 0.78—1.67) and nivolumab vs.
pembrolizumab (HR 1.11; 95% CI: 0.73—1.71). Conclusion: The
study indicates that the three IO drugs atezolizumab, nivolumab and
pembrolizumab, when used in second line aNSCLC, demonstrate a similar
level of effectiveness. To substantiate these results, further
investigation with larger-scale studies is required.