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BMC Cancer
Published in: BMC Cancer 1/2023

Open Access 01-12-2023 | Radiotherapy | Research

First-line treatment with TKI plus brain radiotherapy versus TKI alone in EGFR-mutated non-small cell Lung cancer with brain metastases: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Authors: Yaowen Song, Shuiyu Lin, Jun Chen, Jun Dang

Published in: BMC Cancer | Issue 1/2023

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Abstract

Background

It remains uncertain whether first-line treatment with upfront brain radiotherapy (RT) in combined with epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs) is superior to EGFR-TKIs alone for EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer with newly diagnosed brain metastases (BMs). Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis to address this issue.

Methods

We searched PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science databases for eligible studies published until February 28, 2023. The primary outcomes of interest were overall survival (OS) and intracranial progression-free survival (iPFS), reported as hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

Results

Twenty-four retrospective studies with 3184 patients were included. First- or second-generation EGFR-TKIs were used in each study. Upfront brain RT plus EGFR-TKIs significantly prolonged OS (HR = 0.75, 95% CI: 0.64–0.88) and iPFS (HR = 0.61, 95% CI: 0.52–0.72) compared to EGFR-TKIs alone. There were no significant differences in OS and iPFS benefits from the combination therapy between asymptomatic and symptomatic patients, patients with exon 19 and 21 mutations, patients with 1–3 and > 3 BMs, and males and females, respectively (HRs interaction, P > 0.05 for each subgroup comparison).

Conclusions

First-line treatment with upfront brain RT plus EGFR-TKIs is likely to be more effective than EGFR-TKIs alone. The benefits of combination therapy did not appear to be significantly affected by BM-related symptoms, EGFR mutation subtype, number of BMs, or sex.
Appendix
Available only for authorised users
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Metadata
Title
First-line treatment with TKI plus brain radiotherapy versus TKI alone in EGFR-mutated non-small cell Lung cancer with brain metastases: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors
Yaowen Song
Shuiyu Lin
Jun Chen
Jun Dang
Publication date
01-12-2023
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
BMC Cancer / Issue 1/2023
Electronic ISSN: 1471-2407
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12885-023-11548-0

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