USE OF IMMUNOTHERAPY FOR TREATMENT OF LUNG ADENOCARCINOMA: PROGRESS AND FUTURE PERSPECTIVES (Atena Editora)

Abstract

Lung adenocarcinoma is a subtype of non-small cell lung cancer with rapid progression and poor prognosis. In the last two decades, immunotherapy has shown promise in the treatment of this type of neoplasia. A bibliographic review was used, in which scientific articles in English and Portuguese published between 2020 and 2023 in the databases: Scielo, Lilacs and Pubmed were searched, with the descriptors Lung adenocarcinoma, Immunotherapy and Treatment. 102 articles were found, 32 abstracts were read, and 5 articles were selected for the preparation of the work. Immunotherapy aims to stimulate the immune system itself to generate a response against cancer cells and provide an antitumor environment. Checkpoint inhibitors have been used exclusively or combined with other therapeutic forms for the treatment of lung adenocarcinoma. The most studied and in clinical use are T lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 (CTLA-4) and programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) or its ligand (PD-L1). The use of anti-PD-1 and anti-PD-L1 antibodies in lung cancer has shown a 10 to 30% response and an improvement in progression-free survival. There are two PD-1 inhibitors to be used for the treatment of adenocarcinoma ̧ nivolumab and pembrolizumab, and two PD-L1 inhibitors: durvalumab and atezolizumab. The latter was approved by ANVISA in 2019 and proved to be effective for the treatment of patients with metastatic non-small cell non-squamous cell lung adenocarcinoma. Combination therapy with atezolizumab increased survival by approximately seven months. Thus, it becomes evident that the use of immunotherapy for the treatment of lung adenocarcinoma, especially in metastatic cases, is a promising therapeutic option. In addition to having fewer side effects and weakening the patient's immune system to a lesser extent.