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I have two questions:
1) Can Opvido be given with chemo? And if so, with first line chemo or second-line or both?
2) Does Opvido take a while for improvements to occur such as several months or can improvement begin immediately as with Tarceva?
My sister's stage IV metastatic to spine and brain NSCLC of neuro endocrine type did not respond to Tarceva at all. She completed four cycles of one first line chemo and is now on 5 out of 6 treatments of Etoposide-Cisplatin. Her cancer responds to this but pain ramps up 2 days before each new cycle. She cannot be off chemo. Doctors are considering Taxotere next as second line, but we are interested in trying Opvido.
Thanks,
Hammer
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Reply # - July 2, 2015, 07:59 AM
Hello, so sorry to hear about
Hello, so sorry to hear about your sister's cancer, folks here know how hard this is.
1) Here in the US, Opdivo is approved for use in lung cancer as monotherapy (by itself) as second line treatment for squamous NSCLC (also for use in melanoma). This means any other use is 'off-label', legal to do, but payment may be a large issue.
2) Improvement can happen soon, but it typically takes a few weeks.
There are studies underway with Opdivo (and other PD1-PD-l! drugs) in combinations with standard chemo drugs, and also for use as a first line therapies, but the results are a ways down the road yet.
These are difficult times for everybody, I wish you, your family and your sister the very best.
Reply # - July 2, 2015, 09:53 PM
Thank you Tom for responding
Thank you Tom for responding to my questions so quickly. I noticed that you are watching closely for the Opdivo approval for NSCLC beyond squamous. I hope that happens soon. We are considering off-label use and just trying to figure out when to try it given that her chemo option is almost over. I was hoping there could be a smooth transition where she could still be on chemo and start the Opdivo. I worry that if she completes the chemo, she goes downhill to fast for the immunotherapy to have a chance. I wish you and your wife the best also.
-Hammer