Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) have been shown to improve disease outcomes in advanced stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) recently. Multi-modality treatment including immunotherapy or in combination with radiotherapy or chemotherapy has become the standard of care in first-line treatment of advanced NSCLC patients. Durvalumab was the first immunotherapy validated for adjuvant treatment in stage III NSCLC non-progressing after concomitant radiochemotherapy. Pre-clinical studies showed radiation can change the immune cell population, recruit T lymphocytes to tumors, and prime the innate immune system to enhance tumor cell killing efficacy of systemic immunotherapy. However, in the meantime, adverse sequelae will be induced by both immunotherapy and radiotherapy. Immune-related adverse events may be developed in any organ during treatment period, which will cause interruption or cessation of immunotherapy and thus negatively impact treatment efficacy and impede the benefit of immunotherapy.
Although immunotherapy has made a breakthrough in the treatment of NSCLC, many questions are still unresolved. For example, population stratification for treatment efficacy and toxicity. Understanding the interplay between radiation and immunotherapy and the mechanisms of adverse sequelae of immunotherapy will provide strategies to enhance the potential synergy between radiation and immunotherapy, and to mitigate treatment induced toxicity. Predictive biomarkers (tumor burden, gene mutation, immune signature, inflammation, etc) and pathways involved in the interaction between radiotherapy and immunotherapy are urgently needed for treatment efficacy improvement and toxicity mitigation. Different strategies, such as new targets and schedules for combining radiotherapy, and the sequence of the combination of radiotherapy and immunotherapy also need to be tested in clinical studies.
This Research Topic aims to publish research on efficacy and toxicity studies for immunotherapy and radiation combination treatment for NSCLC, including pre-clinical and clinical studies. We welcome the submission of Original Research, Review, Clinical Trials, Opinion, and Perspective articles in this field but not limited to:
• Discovery and validation of predictive biomarkers for toxicity after the combination of radiation and ICIs in NSCLC
• Novel findings in the mechanisms of interactions between radiation and ICIs
• New preclinical or clinical studies on the combination of radiation and ICIs for NSCLC
Please note: manuscripts consisting solely of bioinformatics, computational analysis, or predictions of public databases which are not accompanied by validation (independent cohort or biological validation in vitro or in vivo) will not be accepted in any of the sections of Frontiers in Oncology.
Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) have been shown to improve disease outcomes in advanced stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) recently. Multi-modality treatment including immunotherapy or in combination with radiotherapy or chemotherapy has become the standard of care in first-line treatment of advanced NSCLC patients. Durvalumab was the first immunotherapy validated for adjuvant treatment in stage III NSCLC non-progressing after concomitant radiochemotherapy. Pre-clinical studies showed radiation can change the immune cell population, recruit T lymphocytes to tumors, and prime the innate immune system to enhance tumor cell killing efficacy of systemic immunotherapy. However, in the meantime, adverse sequelae will be induced by both immunotherapy and radiotherapy. Immune-related adverse events may be developed in any organ during treatment period, which will cause interruption or cessation of immunotherapy and thus negatively impact treatment efficacy and impede the benefit of immunotherapy.
Although immunotherapy has made a breakthrough in the treatment of NSCLC, many questions are still unresolved. For example, population stratification for treatment efficacy and toxicity. Understanding the interplay between radiation and immunotherapy and the mechanisms of adverse sequelae of immunotherapy will provide strategies to enhance the potential synergy between radiation and immunotherapy, and to mitigate treatment induced toxicity. Predictive biomarkers (tumor burden, gene mutation, immune signature, inflammation, etc) and pathways involved in the interaction between radiotherapy and immunotherapy are urgently needed for treatment efficacy improvement and toxicity mitigation. Different strategies, such as new targets and schedules for combining radiotherapy, and the sequence of the combination of radiotherapy and immunotherapy also need to be tested in clinical studies.
This Research Topic aims to publish research on efficacy and toxicity studies for immunotherapy and radiation combination treatment for NSCLC, including pre-clinical and clinical studies. We welcome the submission of Original Research, Review, Clinical Trials, Opinion, and Perspective articles in this field but not limited to:
• Discovery and validation of predictive biomarkers for toxicity after the combination of radiation and ICIs in NSCLC
• Novel findings in the mechanisms of interactions between radiation and ICIs
• New preclinical or clinical studies on the combination of radiation and ICIs for NSCLC
Please note: manuscripts consisting solely of bioinformatics, computational analysis, or predictions of public databases which are not accompanied by validation (independent cohort or biological validation in vitro or in vivo) will not be accepted in any of the sections of Frontiers in Oncology.