Efficacy and safety of immunotherapy for metastatic renal cell carcinoma: A retrospective study

Aim. To evaluate the efficacy and safety of immune checkpoint inhibitors in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) in the Russian patient population. Materials and methods. This retrospective study included 231 patients (157 males and 74 females) aged 44 to 86 years (median 64.56±8.09) who underwent examination and treatment at Moscow City Hospital named after S.S. Yudin and Moscow Center for Rehabilitation Treatment. Results. The median follow-up was 16.6 months (13.38-18.61). The effectiveness of therapy was evaluated in all patients included in the study. Objective response (complete regression + partial regression) was achieved in 45 (19.5%) patients. Disease control (objective response + stabilization) was reported in 186 (80.5%) subjects. Median of overall survival in patients with metastatic RCC was 15.62 months (95% confidence interval [CI] 12.89-17.75): in the 1st line group, 13.18 months (95% CI 11.21-17.75), and in the 2nd and subsequent lines group, 16.72 months (95% CI 13.41-20.19). Grade 1-2 immune-mediated adverse events were reported in 81.8% (n=189) of patients, of which 97 (78.9%) received 1st line immunotherapy and 92 (85.2%) received 2nd and subsequent lines. Conclusion. RCC immunotherapy in the Russian population is associated with high rates of objective response and disease control in the first line of treatment (19.5 and 80.5%, respectively). This treatment method is typically associated with a small number of grade 3-4 immune-mediated adverse events (3.03% according to our data), which indicates an acceptable safety profile and is comparable with the data from foreign studies.