Plain language summary of the CheckMate 816 study results: nivolumab plus chemotherapy given before surgery for non–small-cell lung cancer

• Published in: Future oncology (London, England) Vol. 19; no. 8; pp. 549 - 557
• Main Authors: Forde, Patrick M, Spicer, Jonathan, Lu, Shun, Provencio, Mariano, Mitsudomi, Tetsuya, Awad, Mark M, Felip, Enriqueta, Broderick, Stephen R, Brahmer, Julie R, Swanson, Scott J, Kerr, Keith, Wang, Changli, Ciuleanu, Tudor-Eliade, Saylors, Gene B, Tanaka, Fumihiro, Ito, Hiroyuki, Chen, Ke Neng, Liberman, Moishe, Vokes, Everett E, Taube, Janis M, Dorange, Cecile, Cai, Junliang, Fiore, Joseph, Jarkowski, Anthony, Balli, David, Sausen, Mark, Pandya, Dimple, Calvet, Christophe Y, Girard, Nicolas
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Future Medicine Ltd 01.03.2023
• Subjects: Adult; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols - adverse effects; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung - drug therapy; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung - surgery; clinical trial; Humans; immunotherapy; Ipilimumab - therapeutic use; lay summary; Lung Neoplasms - drug therapy; Lung Neoplasms - etiology; Lung Neoplasms - surgery; neoadjuvant treatment; nivolumab; Nivolumab - adverse effects; non–small cell lung cancer; plain language summary; presurgery treatment; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; clinical trial; nivolumab; immunotherapy; non–small cell lung cancer; presurgery treatment; lay summary; plain language summary; neoadjuvant treatment
• ISSN: 1479-6694; 1744-8301
• DOI: 10.2217/fon-2023-0007

In this article, we summarize results from the ongoing phase 3 CheckMate 816 clinical study that were published in in 2022. The goal of CheckMate 816 was to find out if , an immunotherapy that activates a person's immune system (the body's natural defense system) to fight cancer, works better than when given before surgery in people with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that can be removed surgically (resectable NSCLC). Adults who had not previously taken medications to treat NSCLC and whose cancer could be removed with surgery were included in CheckMate 816. During this study, a computer randomly assigned the treatment each person would receive before surgery for NSCLC. In total, 179 people were randomly assigned to receive , and 179 people were randomly assigned to receive . The researchers assessed whether people who received lived longer without the cancer geting worse or coming back and whether there were any cancer cells left in the tumor and lymph nodes removed by surgery. The researchers also assessed how adding nivolumab to chemotherapy affected the timing and outcomes of surgery and whether the combination of these drugs was safe. Researchers found that people who lived longer without the cancer getting worse or coming back compared with those who took . More people in the group had no cancer cells left in the tumor and lymph nodes removed by surgery. Most people went on to have surgery in both treatment groups; the people who took instead of had less extensive surgeries and were more likely to have good outcomes after less extensive surgeries. did not lead to an increase in the rate of side effects compared with , and side effects were generally mild and manageable. Results from CheckMate 816 support the benefit of using before surgery for people with resectable NSCLC. : NCT02998528 (ClinicalTrials.gov).