Single-center phase 2 trial of autologous CIK cell therapy plus toripalimab with or without chemotherapy for aNSCLC

A phase 2 study at Shanghai Jiao Tong University (China) evaluated the combination of autologous cytokine-induced killer (CIK) cell therapy with toripalimab with (arm A) or without (arm B) chemotherapy as first-line option for PD-L1 positive advanced non-small cell lung cancer (aNSCLC). Median progression-free survival was 20.6 months in arm A and 6.0 months in arm B, whereas median overall survival was not reached in arm A and was 17.0 months in arm B. Overall response rate was 47.4% in arm A and 60.0% in arm B. There were no new safety concerns. The authors conclude that the first-line combination of CIK cells and toripalimab showed activity for PD-L1 positive aNSCLC, whereas addition of chemotherapy may further improve outcomes.