Advances and challenges in immunotherapy of small cell lung cancer

Hanfei Guo; Lingyu Li; Jiuwei Cui

doi:10.21147/j.issn.1000-9604.2020.01.13

Advances and challenges in immunotherapy of small cell lung cancer

Chin J Cancer Res. 2020 Feb;32(1):115-128. doi: 10.21147/j.issn.1000-9604.2020.01.13.

Authors

Hanfei Guo¹, Lingyu Li¹, Jiuwei Cui¹

Affiliation

¹ Cancer Center, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun 130021, China.

PMID: 32194311
PMCID: PMC7072020
DOI: 10.21147/j.issn.1000-9604.2020.01.13

Abstract

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a highly lethal disease, characterized by early metastasis and rapid growth, and no effective treatment after relapse. Etoposide-platinum (EP) combination has been the backbone therapy of SCLC over the past 30 years. It is extremely urgent and important to seek new therapies for SCLC. In the past 5 years, immunotherapy, such as immune checkpoint inhibitors programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1), cytotoxic T lymphocyte associatedprotein-4 (CTLA-4), has made remarkable achievements in the treatment of patients with SCLC, and it has become the first-line option for the treatment of some patients. Some traditional chemotherapeutic drugs or targeted drugs, such as alkylating agent temozolomide and transcription inhibitor lurbinectedin, have been found to have immunomodulatory effects and are expected to become new immunotherapeutic agents. In this study, we aimed to review the efficacy of new treatments for SCLC and discuss the current challenges and application prospect in the treatment of SCLC patients.

Keywords: Small cell lung cancer (SCLC); immune checkpoint inhibitors; immunotherapy.