Dr. Saltman on the Use of the DetermaIO Assay to Inform Immunotherapy Use in Advanced-Stage NSCLC

David L. Saltman, MD, PhD, medical oncologist, British Columbia (BC) Cancer Agency, discusses the use of the 27-gene Determa immuno-oncology (IO) assay to inform use of single-agent immunotherapy in patients with advanced-stage non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Patients in 2 Canadian cohort studies who received the DetermaIO assay had an ECOG performance status between 0 and 2, Saltman says. Among the small number of patients who had an ECOG performance status of 2, those who had positive DetermaIO scores were more likely to respond to immunotherapy and to have improved progression-free survival compared with patients who had negative DetermaIO scores, Saltman explains.

Historically, up to 40% of patients with NSCLC have an ECOG performance status of 2, and past studies have suggested that patients with an ECOG performance status of 2 or higher are less likely to respond to immunotherapy, Saltman adds. These patients have typically been excluded from clinical trials in NSCLC, Saltman concludes.