Immune checkpoint inhibitors associated with lower risk of developing severe adverse events vs. chemotherapy

A recently published meta-analysis in Annals of Oncology reports on 22 clinical trials conducted on 12,727 patients with advanced solid tumours.  Findings from the joint Canada-U.S. study indicated that patients "treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors were less likely to develop severe adverse events than those receiving chemotherapy.  16.5% of patients developed an adverse event when treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors, compared to 41.1% treated with chemotherapy.  Other adverse events, including fatigue, diarrhea, and acute kidney injury were more prevalent following chemotherapy treatment, while colitis, pneumonitis, and hypothyroidism occurred more frequently after treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors.

To read more about this study, click here.

Study source: Magee DE, Hird AE, Klaassen Z, et al. Adverse event profile for immunotherapy agents compared with chemotherapy in solid organ tumors: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials. Annals of Oncology; Published online 6 January 2020. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annonc.2019.10.008