The KEYNOTE-024 clinical trial showed promising results for pembrolizumab in the first-line of treatment of advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, the profile of patients in real-world practice differs from those included in this clinical trial. Here, an observational single-center retrospective study was performed through a comparative analysis of clinical outcomes after pembrolizumab therapy according to the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Stage Performance Status (ECOG PS). Moreover, univariate and multivariate analyses were carried out to detect prognostic factors. In our cohort, 63.7% of patients had an ECOG PS of 0-1. Regarding response rate, 31.8% of patients had a partial response (PR), 19.3% had stable disease (SD) and 23.9% had progression disease. On the other hand, patients with ECOG PS ≥ 2 showed a significantly lower rate of PR and SD to pembrolizumab than patients with a PS of 0-1. The rate of response, median overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were significantly higher in patients with ECOG PS 0-1 than in those with ECOG PS ≥ 2. In the current study, we found ECOG PS as the only independent predictor of OS and PFS. Due to the ECOG PS scale being a subjective parameter, other tools are needed to identify treatment effectiveness to each patient.
Keywords: Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status (ECOG PS); non-small-cell lung cancer; pembrolizumab.