Sarcomatoid Lung Carcinoma Successfully Treated With Combined Cytotoxic Chemotherapy and Anti-Programmed Death-Ligand 1 (Anti-PD-L1) Antibodies

Pulmonary sarcomatoid carcinoma is a rare, aggressive subtype of non-small-cell lung cancer with a poor prognosis and no established standard therapy for advanced disease. We report the case of a 68-year-old man with stage IVB pleomorphic carcinoma whose tumor expressed programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) with a tumor proportion score of 25%. The patient received four cycles of first-line therapy combining atezolizumab with carboplatin and paclitaxel. This treatment resulted in a significant partial response, with marked shrinkage of the primary tumor and metastatic lesions. This case suggests that the combination of an anti-PD-L1 antibody and platinum-based chemotherapy is a promising and effective therapeutic strategy for this challenging malignancy.