What Is on the Horizon for Novel Immunotherapies in Lung Cancer?

Programmed death (ligand) 1 checkpoint inhibitors have become standard treatment in patients with non-small cell lung cancer. Recently, combinations of nivolumab and ipilimumab have entered the clinic based on regulatory approval. Oftentimes, these checkpoint inhibitors are given in conjunction with chemotherapy. Through increased understanding of checkpoint evasion by cancer cells, many promising studies using combination therapies have continued to develop that aim to attack cancer cells by eliciting immunogenic responses through different modalities. Novel approaches include (1) using vaccines to trigger immune response, (2) combining multiple checkpoint inhibitors, (3) targeting inflammatory responses, (4) utilizing multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitors, (5) employing agonists of T-cell stimulators, and (6) applying specific biomarker antagonists to treat lung cancer patients. Herein, we discuss several studies that aim to answer what lies ahead in lung cancer treatment.