Dynamic Changes of Peripheral NK Cells Predict Outcome in Patients with PD-L1 Positive Non-small-cell Lung Cancer Undergoing Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors as Second-line Therapy

Abstract

We evaluated immune cell frequencies in peripheral blood samples of 41 NSCLC patients before and after second-line therapy with anti-PD-1/PD-L1 agents. Changes in lymphocyte subsets and their correlation with clinical response, progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) were analyzed. We observed an increase in median values of all lymphocyte subsets, being significant only for NK cells. A correlation was retrieved between higher post-treatment NK cell level and clinical benefit. On multivariate analysis, PD-L1 tumor proportion score ≥1% and higher post-treatment NK cell counts were predictive of longer PFS and OS. Co-presence of these factors was characterized by longer survival.

Keywords:

• PD-L1
• non-small-cell lung cancer
• peripheral lymphocyte subpopulations
• immune checkpoint inhibitors
• immunophenotype

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the article.

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are openly available in “figshare” at http://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.14812779.