"Immunotherapy Effective Even for Elderly Cancer Patients... Active Treatment Should Be Considered"

Yonsei Cancer Hospital Research Team Analyzes Over 17,000 Cancer Patients
No Difference in Treatment Effectiveness for Elderly Patients Aged 65 and Over

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] A study has shown that immune checkpoint inhibitors demonstrate sufficient antitumor effects even in elderly cancer patients.

The research team led by Professor Han-Sang Kim of the Department of Oncology at Yonsei Cancer Center and Professor Myung-Ji Lee of the Department of Biomedical Systems Informatics at Yonsei University College of Medicine analyzed the antitumor effects of immune checkpoint inhibitors in cancer patients aged 65 and older, and on the 12th announced that there was no difference in treatment efficacy compared to the group under 65 years old.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors have been proven effective in various cancer types; however, concerns about so-called 'immunosenescence'?the decline in immune system efficiency in the elderly?have raised doubts about the effectiveness of these drugs in older patients.

The research team collected phase 3 clinical trial results of immune checkpoint inhibitors for 30 major cancer types, including lung cancer, stomach cancer, and head and neck cancer, to analyze their antitumor effects. The efficacy analysis was conducted by dividing a total of 17,476 patients into two groups based on age: 10,119 patients under 65 and 7,357 patients aged 65 or older.

As a result of analyzing the antitumor effects of immune checkpoint inhibitors, it was found that immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment is effective regardless of age. [Data provided by Yonsei Medical Center]

The analysis showed that the antitumor effects of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy were effective regardless of age in both groups. In both the 65 and older group and the under 65 group, patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors had an overall survival period approximately 23% longer compared to conventional chemotherapy such as cytotoxic agents.

Professor Kim stated, “This study confirmed that immune checkpoint inhibitors show sufficient antitumor effects even in elderly cancer patients,” adding, “Rather than delaying or giving up treatment due to age, it is important to assess the patient’s overall health condition and consider active antitumor therapy.”

The study results were published in the latest issue of the international academic journal ESMO Open (European Society for Medical Oncology, IF 6.883).

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