Multicenter retrospective study of first-line chemotherapy with or without immune checkpoint inhibitors for unresectable thymic carcinoma

Thymic carcinoma (TC) has a poor prognosis. A multicenter retrospective study in China investigated first-line chemotherapy with or without immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) for unresectable TC. The ORR was 50.0% in the chemotherapy alone group and 76.9% in the chemotherapy plus ICIs group. The median PFS was 8.8 versus 34.9 months (p<0.001) and the median OS was 41.8 months versus not reached (p=0,025). Immune-related adverse events were seen in 44% of patients in the chemotherapy plus ICIs group, but grade 3 irAEs only in 5%. The authors conclude that the efficacy of chemotherapy plus ICIs was superior to chemotherapy alone, with manageable irAEs.