Long-term control by immune checkpoint inhibitors in a lung cancer patient with chronic kidney disease

Immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy has brought about a revolutionary advance in the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Not a few patients with NSCLC have comorbid diseases. In patients who already have impaired renal function, particular attention must be paid to renal toxicity, a rare immune-related adverse events. Although there have been some case reports of ICI therapy for patients with advanced NSCLC undergoing hemodialysis, information on ICI therapy in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) is limited.

We show herein a case with a successfully treated 75-year-old male patient with CKD and advanced NSCLC. His estimated glomerular filtration rate at the start of anticancer treatment was 40 mL/min/1.73 m2. Nivolumab and ipilimumab were administered, considering both the expectation of therapeutic efficacy and the avoidance of side effects. Ipilimumab was discontinued 1 year after the start of the treatment, and nivolumab was also terminated 2 years after the initiation of the treatment due to thyroid dysfunction as immune-related adverse event. Without worsening of CKD, the patient was able to control NSCLC with two immune checkpoint inhibitors for ≥ 3 years.

Nivolumab and ipilimumab regimen might become one of the options for NSCLC patients with CKD. This report could provide some suggestions for the treatment of future patients who might experience a similar course of the therapy.