This was a retrospective study performed at three institutions. Patients were eligible if they had advanced ALK-positive NSCLC refractory to one or more second-generation ALK TKI(s) and had received platinum/pemetrexed-based chemotherapy. Among 58 patients eligible for this study, 37 had scans evaluable for response with measurable disease at baseline. The confirmed objective response rate to platinum/pemetrexed-based chemotherapy was 29.7% (11 of 37 patients; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 15.9% – 47.0%), with median duration of response of 6.4 months (95% CI: 1.6 months – not reached). The median progression-free survival for the entire cohort was 4.3 months (95% CI: 2.9 – 5.8 months). Progression-free survival was longer in patients who received platinum/pemetrexed in combination with an ALK TKI compared to those who received platinum/pemetrexed alone (6.8 months vs. 3.2 months, respectively; hazard ratio ¼ 0.33; p ¼ 0.025). Platinum/pemetrexed-based chemotherapy shows modest efficacy in ALK-positive NSCLC after failure of second-generation ALK TKIs. The activity may be higher if administered with an ALK TKI, suggesting a potential role for continued ALK inhibition. READ ARTICLE
Journal of Thoracic Oncology DOI: 10.1016/j.jtho.2019.10.014
Authors: Jessica J. Lin, Adam J. Schoenfeld, Viola W. Zhu, Beow Y. Yeap, ScD, Emily Chin, BA, Marguerite Rooney, BA, Andrew J. Plodkowski, Subba R. Digumarthy, Ibiayi Dagogo-Jack, Justin F. Gainor, Sai-Hong Ignatius Ou, Gregory J. Riely, Alice T. Shaw