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Updated: Nov 23, 2025

Predictive Immune Modeling of Solid Tumors
Published on: February 25, 2020
Serum Tumor Marker Dynamics as Predictive Biomarkers in NSCLC Chemo-Immunotherapy and Mono-Immunotherapy Maintenance:
David Lang1,2, Wolfgang Haslinger2, Kaveh Akbari2,3
1Johannes Kepler University Hospital, Department of Pulmonology, Linz, Austria.
Objective:
To evaluate serum tumor markers (STM) as predictive biomarkers in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with chemo-immunotherapy.
Methods:
Patients having received platinum-based chemo-(CHT) and PD-1/PD-L1-directed immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) combination therapy were retrospectively followed. Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9), cytokeratin-19 fragments (CYFRA 21-1) and neuron specific enolase (NSE) were routinely measured at NSCLC diagnosis. The marker with the highest relative elevation was defined "leading STM", its change was assessed between CHT-ICI as well as mono-ICI maintenance initiation and the respective subsequent restaging. Corresponding computed tomography evaluations were analyzed using response evaluation criteria in solid tumors (RECIST). For CHT-ICI combination and subsequent mono-ICI-maintenance therapy, leading STM and RECIST response were evaluated regarding progression-free (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in Kaplan-Meier analyses.
Results:
Among 80 CHT-ICI patients (41% women, mean age 63 years), median PFS was 5 months (M;4,9), median OS was 15M (10,/). PFS was significantly (p=0.042) longer, when the leading STM had decreased at first restaging under CHT-ICI combination therapy (9M (5,12; n=41) vs 5M (3,6; n=16)). In the 54 (67.5%) patients who received subsequent mono-ICI maintenance therapy, STM decrease was similarly associated with significantly (p<0.001) longer PFS (16M (7,/; n=16) vs 3.5M (2,6; n=22)). Patients with radiologically stable or progressive disease and concomitant leading STM decrease had similar PFS in the CHT-ICI combination phase (4M (3,7; n=16) vs 4.5M (2,6; n=14)), but longer PFS in the mono-ICI maintenance setting (13M (7,16; n=10) vs 3M (2,4; n=17)). Median OS was not reached in most subgroups.
Conclusion:
Leading STM dynamics provide predictive biomarker information additional to radiological response evaluation patients receiving CHT-ICI combination therapy, especially in the mono-ICI maintenance setting.
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