Lizza Hendriks, MD, PhD, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands, talks on treatment options for brain metastases in non-small cell lung cancer NSCLC. Despite improvements in therapy, the majority of patients with NSCLC present with metastatic disease either at baseline or during the course of disease. The percentage of patients with asymptomatic brain metastasis is increasing, however, uncertainty surrounds treatment options for this patient population. There is limited clinical trial data for patients with asymptomatic brain metastasis, with the majority of clinical trials excluding patients with untreated brain metastasis. A single-arm Phase II trial investigated pembrolizumab in patients with PD-L1-positive NSCLC and untreated brain metastasis whereby many patients demonstrated a dissociated response. Dr Hendriks emphasizes the necessity of screening for brain metastasis to prevent the development of symptomatic brain metastasis later in disease course and the need to investigate treatment sequencing if the patient does not respond to immunotherapy in future clinical trials. This interview took place during the virtual European Lung Cancer Congress 2022.
