Aim: The present study evaluated the safety and efficacy of camrelizumab (a programmed death-1 antibody) in combination with microwave ablation (MWA) in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
Materials and methods: A total of 21 patients were prospectively enrolled. MWA was performed in 25 pulmonary lesions during 21 sessions. Camrelizumab was administered 5-7 days after MWA as a dose of 200 mg, which was repeated every 2 weeks until disease progression or intolerable toxicities. The primary endpoints were safety and the objective response rate (ORR). Other endpoints included progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS).
Results: The technical success rate was 100%. No treatment-associated deaths were identified. Major complications, minor complications, and side effects of MWA were observed in 9, 8, and 14 patients, respectively. The main major complications included pneumothorax, pneumonia, hemorrhage, and pleural effusion. The adverse events of camrelizumab included reactive skin capillary hyperplasia (n = 9), hypothyroidism (n = 5), pneumonia (n = 4), fatigue (n = 2), leukopenia (n = 1), and neutropenia (n = 1). Grade 2 and 3 camrelizumab adverse events were identified in eight and three patients, respectively. The ORR was 33.3%, with two patients achieving complete response and five patients achieving partial response. The median PFS was 5.1 months and OS was not reached.
Conclusions: Camrelizumab administration combined with MWA was safe in the treatment of advanced NSCLC, and the combination improved the ORR of camrelizumab alone compared to previous reports.
Keywords: Camrelizumab; PD-1 antibody; lung cancer; microwave ablation; objective response; progression-free survival.