Patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who received nivolumab plus a low dose of ipilimumab together with chemotherapy showed improved overall survival compared with NSCLC patients who received chemotherapy alone, according to a recent report released by the drug’s manufacturer.

Nivolumab is a programmed death-1 (PD-1) immune checkpoint inhibitor that has been approved by the FDA for treatment across multiple cancers, including metastatic NSCLC. In the open-label CheckMate -9LA trial, patients with advanced NSCLC received nivolumab in combination with a low dose of ipilimumab and chemotherapy. Ipilimumab , a recombinant, human monoclonal antibody, binds to cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated antigen-4 (CTLA-4) and is approved by the FDA to treat various types of cancer.

NSCLC Cell. Source: Getty Images

“We are excited by the CheckMate -9LA results, which demonstrate the potential of [nivolumab] plus low-dose [ipilimumab] to provide a survival benefit to patients with non-small cell lung cancer in the first-line setting when administered concomitantly with a limited course of chemotherapy,” Fouad Namouni, MD, head of oncology development at Bristol-Myers Squibb, stated in a press release. “These results build on the benefit the combination of [nivolumab] plus [ipilimumab] has previously shown..." 

In the phase 3, open-label, multi-center, CheckMate -9LA trial, patients were randomized to receive first-line treatment consisting of 360 mg of nivolumab every 3 weeks together with 1 mg/kg of ipilimumab every 6 weeks and two cycles of chemotherapy, or four cycles of chemotherapy with the option of maintenance therapy with pretrexmed. Patients received nivolumab plus ipilimumab and chemotherapy for up to 2 years, or until disease progression halted treatment, while patients in the control group received chemotherapy with pemetrexed maintenance therapy as an option until disease progression halted treatment.

The results of the trial showed patients receiving nivolumab plus ipilimumab and chemotherapy had superior overall survival compared with the control group. There was a similar safety profile for the nivolumab plus ipilimumab and chemotherapy intervention compared with the safety profiles of other first-line NSCLC treatments.

A full evaluation of data from the study will be coming in the future, and the results will be presented at an upcoming congress as well as with regulatory authorities.