Immunotherapy rechallenge after progression in non-small cell lung cancer: A systematic review and network meta-analysis

To determine whether immunotherapy can be continued in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) after initial immunotherapy. This study aimed to explore whether patients could benefit from immunotherapy after progression and identify the optimal treatment regimen. The included studies were classified into two groups based on whether patients continued immunotherapy rechallenge after disease progression: the immunotherapy rechallenge group and the non-immunotherapy group. The progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) of patients in both groups were analyzed. Patients in the immunotherapy rechallenge group showed a significant advantage in PFS (HR: 0.65, <i>p</i> = 0.004) and OS (HR: 0.69, <i>p</i> = 0.013). In the analysis of different treatment regimens in the immunotherapy rechallenge group, immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) + antiangiogenic therapy achieved the best PFS. These findings elucidate the role of ICI-based treatment strategies in patients with advanced NSCLC and are expected to supplement lung cancer immunotherapy guidelines.