Dr. Le on the Emergence of Antibody-Drug Conjugates in NSCLC

Xiuning Le, MD, PhD, assistant professor, Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology, Division of Internal Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, discusses the emergence of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) in non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

In the past 15 years, targeted therapy has revolutionized the treatment of patients with NSCLC who harbor actionable alterations, Le explains. Historically, targeted therapy has consisted of oral small molecule inhibitors that inhibit specific driver oncogenes, such as EGFR mutations and, recently, KRAS G12C mutations.

However, novel approaches such as ADCs directed toward targets expressed on the surface of cancer cells are in clinical development, Le says. ADCs offer a promising strategy to target overexpressed proteins with a chemotherapeutic payload. Although ADCs still fall under the umbrella of precision oncology, they could offer a different targeted option to small molecular inhibitors. Moreover, patients who progress on small molecule inhibitors, such as EGFR inhibitors, could be eligible to receive ADCs, Le concludes.