Combining Immunotherapy With Radiation Oncology in NSCLC

Commentary
Video

Terrence T. Sio, MD, MS, emphasizes multidisciplinary collaboration for treating patients with NSCLC who may require more than 1 type of therapy.

In a conversation with CancerNetwork®, Terence T. Sio, MD, MS, highlighted radiation oncology treatment decision-making strategies for patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), including for those who may be eligible to receive immunotherapy.

According to Sio, a professor of radiation oncology at Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona, it is crucial to consider potential toxicities, such as pneumonia and factors such as tumor size when administering radiation therapy to patients with NSCLC. Additionally, he emphasized multidisciplinary collaboration across different departments at his institution to optimize treatment courses for those who may require more than 1 type of therapy.


Transcript:

There is a lot of very good biology that is now being used for helping our patients and getting targeted [treatment] for that cancer. These are very specific treatments that may involve targets such as EGFR or KRAS mutations. There are now also new advances on the horizon [involving] combining immunotherapy, too.

These medications, and how the treatments are needed to be used for our patients, make a difference in terms of the decisions that we may make as a radiation oncologist for our [patients with] lung cancer. Depending on how big the tumor may be and the number of lung and heart tissues that will be exposed to radiation therapy, it is important to balance the risks. How likely is it for an injury like pneumonia or what we call radiation-induced pneumonitis to happen in this setting? It is very important [to have] multidisciplinary treatment and consultation with our surgeons and our medical oncologists. At our institutions, tumor boards are being held at regular intervals weekly. There are a lot of cross disciplinary discussions among different doctors to make sure that we're providing the best method for helping our patients who will very likely need more than 1 treatment, or [more than] 1 doctor's care if they have stage III non–small cell lung cancer.

Recent Videos
Barriers to access and financial toxicities are challenges that must be addressed for CAR T-cell therapies in LBCL, according to Jose Sandoval Sus, MD.
Fixed treatment durations with bispecific antibodies followed by observation may help in mitigating infection-related AEs, according to Shebli Atrash, MD.
Epistemic closure, broad-scale distribution, and insurance companies are the 3 largest obstacles to implementing new peritoneal surface malignancy care guidelines into practice.
Shebli Atrash, MD, stated that MRD should be considered carefully as an end point, given potential recurrence despite MRD negativity.
“This is something where this is written by the trainees, for the trainees, and, of course, for all the other clinicians who take care of patients,” said Kiran Turaga, MD, MPH.
“Everyone—patients, doctors—we all want the same thing. We want [patients] to live longer,” said Kiran Turaga, MD, MPH, on patients with peritoneal surface malignancies.
Data from the phase 3 DeLLphi-304 trial at ASCO 2025 revealed a survival advantage with tarlatamab vs chemotherapy in second-line ES-SCLC.
The new peritoneal surface malignancy care guidelines had clinicians gather from every disease state to show increased representation.
Related Content
Explicating Early-Line Treatment Considerations for EGFR-Mutant NSCLC

Explicating Early-Line Treatment Considerations for EGFR-Mutant NSCLC

Roman Fabbricatore
August 4th 2025
Article

Following the approval of dato-DXd in untreated EGFR-mutant NSCLC, Jacob Sands, MD, discussed next steps for improving outcomes for this disease.

Jacob Sands, MD, discussed considerations for EGFR-mutant non–small cell lung cancer following the approval of dato-DXd in this disease.

Integrating Dato-DXd Into Early-Line EGFR-Mutant NSCLC Management

Jacob Sands, MD
August 4th 2025
Podcast

Jacob Sands, MD, discussed considerations for EGFR-mutant non–small cell lung cancer following the approval of dato-DXd in this disease.

The treatment combination elicited partial responses in 80% of patients with squamous NSCLC and 46% in nonsquamous NSCLC.

IMM2510/AXN-2510 Combo Yields Preliminary Responses in Advanced NSCLC

Tim Cortese
July 31st 2025
Article

The treatment combination elicited partial responses in 80% of patients with squamous NSCLC and 46% in nonsquamous NSCLC.

Stephen Liu, MD, and Joshua Sabari, MD, discuss the most intriguing non–small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer breakthroughs from the meeting.

Practice-Changing Lung Cancer Data From the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting

Stephen V. Liu, MD;Joshua K. Sabari, MD
June 23rd 2025
Podcast

Stephen Liu, MD; and Joshua Sabari, MD, discuss the most intriguing non–small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer breakthroughs from the meeting.

Support for the regulatory decision follows data from a phase 1/2a clinical trial assessing the agent in EGFR-mutant NSCLC at the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting.

DB-1310 Earns FDA Fast Track Designation in EGFR-Mutant Nonsquamous NSCLC

Roman Fabbricatore
July 23rd 2025
Article

Support for the regulatory decision follows data from a phase 1/2a clinical trial assessing the agent in EGFR-mutant NSCLC at the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting.

Investigators will present updated findings from the phase 3 FLAURA2 trial at a future medical meeting.

Osimertinib Combo Significantly Prolongs Survival in Advanced EGFR+ NSCLC

Russ Conroy
July 22nd 2025
Article

Investigators will present updated findings from the phase 3 FLAURA2 trial at a future medical meeting.