The introduction of therapies that specifically target molecular drivers such as epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations have revolutionized the treatment of non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with adenocarcinoma histology.1 These therapies include first- (erlotinib, gefitinib), second- (afatinib, dacomitinib), and third-generation (osimertinib) EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs), as well as agents targeting other molecular drivers such as ALK, ROS1, and BRAF.2 However, progress in the treatment of squamous cell carcinoma (SqCC) of the lung has lagged behind owing to a high degree of molecular heterogeneity and a lack of predominant targetable mutations in SqCC tumors.3,4 Currently, potential first-line options for SqCC of the lung include: pembrolizumab plus carboplatin and paclitaxel/nab-paclitaxel irrespective of programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) level5, 6, 7; pembrolizumab monotherapy in patients with PD-L1 tumor proportion score (TPS) ≥ 1%;5,8 nivolumab plus ipilimumab (PD-L1 TPS ≥1%)9,10; nivolumab plus ipilimumab and chemotherapy;11 atezolizumab monotherapy in patients with high PD-L1 expression;12 or combination chemotherapy.13 Although the recent introduction of immune checkpoint inhibitors into routine clinical practice has improved outcomes in patients with SqCC of the lung.
Reference link- https://www.clinical-lung-cancer.com/article/S1525-7304(21)00029-2/fulltext
