2023 World Conference on Lung Cancer (Posters)-EP11.01. The Value of PD-L1 in Circulating Tumor Cells in Patients with Non-small Cell Lung Cancer Receiving Immunotherapy

EP11.01. The Value of PD-L1 in Circulating Tumor Cells in Patients with Non-small Cell Lung Cancer Receiving Immunotherapy - PDF(Slides)

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Immunotherapy has greatly improved treatment outcomes for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors are commonly used in NSCLC, with PD-L1 expression in tumor cells being a crucial biomarker for immunotherapy. However, the response rates to immunotherapy varied even among patients with high PD-L1 expression. Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are cells that have broken off from the primary tumor and circulate in the blood. PD-L1 can also be detected in CTCs, but its value in NSCLC patients undergoing immunotherapy is unknown.<br /><br />A pilot study conducted at Hangzhou First People’s Hospital and Hangzhou Cancer Hospital involved collecting 5ml of peripheral blood from NSCLC patients before, after 2 treatment cycles, and at disease progression after immunotherapy. The number and genotyping of CTCs were assessed using a genotyping assay kit, and PD-L1 expression in both tissue and CTCs was measured. Patient characteristics, objective response, progression-free survival, and PD-L1 expression in tumor tissue were also recorded.<br /><br />Results from the study showed that there was a 50% agreement between baseline CTC and tissue PD-L1 expression. Among patients with CTC PD-L1 (+), 47.1% had an objective response rate (ORR) and 82.4% had disease control rate (DCR). In contrast, among patients with CTC PD-L1 (-), only 13% had ORR and 74% had DCR. The predicted ORR was significantly higher in CTC PD-L1 (+) patients. Sequential CTC PD-L1 results showed a decrease in CTC PD-L1 and CTC numbers at the time of best response and an increase at the time of disease progression.<br /><br />In conclusion, PD-L1 expression in CTCs can easily be accessed, particularly for patients without tissue samples. This study suggests that CTC PD-L1 has potential benefits in predicting the response to immunotherapy. However, further research is needed to validate the value of CTC PD-L1 and evaluate survival outcomes.

Asset Subtitle

Yasi Xu

Meta Tag

Speaker Yasi Xu

Topic Metastatic NSCLC: Immunotherapy - Biomarker

Keywords

Immunotherapy

non-small cell lung cancer

NSCLC

PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors

PD-L1 expression

circulating tumor cells

CTCs

genotyping assay kit

objective response rate

disease control rate