KEYNOTE trials demonstrate improved survival with pembrolizumab in elderly patients

Photo credit: Rita Elena Serda A study recently presented at the European Lung Cancer Congress (ELCC, 10–13 April 2019, Geneva, Spain) has demonstrated significantly improved overall survival (OS) in elderly patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have been treated with pembrolizumab (Keytruda®) compared to those given chemotherapy.The study collated information from three randomized controlled trials of pembrolizumab monotherapy vs standard chemotherapy for PD-L1–positive advanced NSCLC patients (KEYNOTE-010, -024 and -042). The trials included 264 elderly patients aged ≥75 years. All of the patients had PD-L1 tumour proportion scores (PD-L1 TPS) of 1% or higher and half of the elderly...