Crizotinib versus pemetrexed-based chemotherapy in patients with advanced ROS1-rearranged non-small cell lung cancer.

9101 Background: ROS1 rearrangement is an important therapeutic target that occurs in approximately 1-2% of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). It has been shown that ROS1-rearranged patients could benefit from crizotinib treatment. However, the efficacy of crizotinib as compared with pemetrexed-based chemotherapy in such patients is unknown. Methods: Advanced ROS1-rearranged NSCLC patients receiving crizotinib or pemetrexed-based chemotherapy as first-line treatment in Shanghai Chest Hospital between August 2010 and December 2017 were retrospectively reviewed. Clinical characteristics, treatments and survival outcomes data were abstracted. Results: Of 77 patients included, 30 patients (39.0%) received crizotinib and 47 patients (61.0%) received pemetrexed-based chemotherapy as their first-line treatment. The median follow-up was 26.8 months. The objective response rate was significantly better with crizotinib than with pemetrexed-based therapy (86.7% vs 44.7%, P < 0.001). The disease control rate wasc 96.7% with crizotinib, as compared with 85.1% with pemetrexed-based therapy (P = 0.140). The median progression-free survival was significantly longer with crizotinib versus pemetrexed-based therapy (18.4 months [95% confidence interval [CI]: 6.8-30.0] vs 8.6 months [95% CI:7.1-10.2], P < 0.001). No significant difference in overall survival (OS) was observed between the two groups (Not reach vs 28.1 months [95% CI:18.7-38.5], P = 0.173). Six patients (20%) in the crizotinib group switched to pemetrexed-based therapy in subsequent lines, while twenty-nine patients (61.7%) in the chemotherapy group crossed over to receive crizotinib after progression. There was no significant difference in median OS between patients who received crizotinib first and those who received pemetrexed-based treatment prior to crizotinib (38.6 months [95% CI: 0-81.0] vs 32.7 months [95% CI:14.3-51.1], P = 0.890). Conclusions: Crizotinib is superior to pemetrexed-based chemotherapy as an initial treatment for advanced ROS1-rearranged NSCLC patients. The sequence of crizotinib treatment and pemetrexed-based chemotherapy does not influence OS.