Real-world experience with neoadjuvant chemoimmunotherapy in resectable NSCLC: A single academic institution experience.
e20074 Background: Neoadjuvant chemoimmunotherapy has led to significant improvements in outcomes for patients with resectable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), resulting in higher rates of pathological response and improved survival, especially in stage IIIRegarding this, we designed our real-world analysis to investigate outcomes in sigle institution center. Methods: We conducted a single-center, retrospective, real-world analysis of patients with resectable NSCLC who received neoadjuvant chemoimmunotherapy, focusing on pathological response and nodal downstaging. Results: From March 2023 to December 2025, 59 patients with resectable NSCLC completed two to four cycles of neoadjuvant chemoimmunotherapy before surgical evaluation. The median age was 66 years (range, 59-70), and 54% were male. The objective response rate was 97% per RECIST 1.1. Most patients were stage III (IIIA, 53%; IIIB, 24%). Adenocarcinoma was present in 64% (38/59), and squamous cell carcinoma in 29% (17/59). The median time to surgery was 9 weeks (range, 7-12). Pathological assessment of the primary tumor showed complete pathological response in 43% and major pathological response in another 18%. Notably, 15 patients (30%) showed a complete pathological response in both the primary tumor and lymph nodes. Among those with baseline lymph node involvement, 58% experienced nodal downstaging after neoadjuvant chemoimmunotherapy, with 50% achieving complete nodal clearance (ypN0). Additionally, 38% of cN2 patients were downstaged to ypN0. Grade 3 toxicities occurred in 7% of patients (4/59). Conclusions: Pathological response and nodal downstaging are being established as clinically meaningful surrogates for long-term outcomes in patients with resectable NSCLC treated with neoadjuvant chemoimmunotherapy. In our real-world cohort, this approach resulted in high rates of both pathological response and nodal downstaging. Further follow – up is needed to investigate tese finding on event-free survival and overall survival.
Authors
- Ivana Lukić Franolić
- Lidija Ljubičić (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2493-4847)
- Marko Jakopović (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4815-7512)
- Ana Mataić (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9118-464X)
- Dorian Hiršl
- M Samaržija
- Fran Seiwerth
- Sandra Karabatić (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8919-2517)
- Lela Bitar
- Maja Hrabak Paar
- Goran Madzarac
Institutions
- University Hospital Centre Zagreb (HR)
- University of Zagreb (HR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Journal of Clinical Oncology
- Published
- 2026-05-28
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1200/jco.2026.44.16_suppl.e20074
- Primary Topic
- Lung Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00