Development of thrombocytopenia is associated with improved survival in patients treated with immunotherapy

Authors

Hussein A. Assi

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

8-2020

Abstract

Background:

Immune-related adverse events are associated with efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs). We hypothesize that immune-mediated thrombocytopenia could be a biomarker for response to ICIs.

Materials & methods:

This retrospective study included 215 patients with metastatic malignancies treated with ICIs. Patients were stratified by nadir platelet count. Outcomes of interest were progression-free survival and overall survival.

Results:

On multivariate analysis, grade 1 thrombocytopenia was positively associated with overall survival compared with patients who did not develop thrombocytopenia (hazard ratio [HR]= 0.28 [95% CI: 0.13–0.60]; p = 0.001), while grade 2–4 thrombocytopenia was not (HR= 0.36 [95% CI: 0.13–1.04]; p = 0.060). There was no association between degree of thrombocytopenia and progression-free survival.

Conclusion:

Follow-up studies are warranted to substantiate the predictive significance of thrombocytopenia in patients receiving ICIs.

Recommended Citation

Assi, H. A., Asch, A. S., Machiorlatti, M., Vesely, S. K., & Ibrahimi, S. (2020). Development of thrombocytopenia is associated with improved survival in patients treated with immunotherapy. Future science OA, 6(7), FSO581. https://doi.org/10.2144/fsoa-2020-0021

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Publication Title

Future Science OA

DOI

10.2144/fsoa-2020-0021

Academic Level

faculty

Mentor/PI Department

Population Health and Biostatistics