Outcomes of weight-based vs. fixed dose of Pembrolizumab among patients with non-small cell lung cancer.

Objective: This study aims to assess outcomes among patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who received treatment with pembrolizumab on a weight-based dose (WBD) or fixed-dose (FD) regimen using a non-inferiority (NI) analysis.

Material and methods: This retrospective cohort study included adult patients with NSCLC weighing under 100 kg who received pembrolizumab between 1 January 2015 and 31 December 2020. Patients were grouped into either WBD or FD cohort based on the initial pembrolizumab dose and dosing regimen. The primary effectiveness outcome was overall survival (OS), analyzed using NI analysis with a lower margin of 10% comparing WBD to FD. Safety outcomes were all-cause emergency room visits or hospitalizations and incidence of selected immune-related adverse events (irAEs) and analyzed using NI analysis with an upper margin of 10%. All patients were followed until the end of health plan membership, death, or 30 June 2022, whichever occurred first.

Results: A total of 1413 patients were evaluated. OS was observed in 36.6% of the FD group, and 37.7% in the WBD group (rate difference: 1%, 90% CI: -6%-8%, NI p-value < 0.01). NI was met in all three safety outcomes: proportion of all-cause emergency room visits (rate difference: 1.1%, NI p-value < 0.01); proportion of hospitalizations (rate difference: 2%, NI p-value < 0.01); and composite incidence of irAEs (rate difference: -2.2%, NI p-value = 0.03).

Conclusion: These findings suggest that WBD of pembrolizumab may be as appropriate as FD for the treatment of lung cancer.