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Perioperative or neo/adjuvant chemoimmunotherapy versus chemotherapy for resectable non-small cell lung cancer: a systematic review and network meta-analysis

Qiong Zhang, Jia Duan, Yuan-Mei Zhang, Lei Yang, Duo Li

Systematic Reviews, 2025

6,704 participants · 11 citations

Abstract

Lung cancer, particularly non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths globally. Despite surgery being the main treatment for resectable NSCLC, many patients experience postoperative recurrence. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy may shrink tumors and improve surgical outcomes, while adjuvant chemotherapy targets residual disease post-surgery. Recent advancements in immunotherapy have introduced its use in the perioperative phase for resectable NSCLC. This study investigates the relative benefits and potential complications of neoadjuvant, adjuvant, and perioperative immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy compared to chemotherapy alone, focusing on event-free survival (EFS), overall survival (OS), and adverse events (AEs). This systematic review and network meta-analysis followed PRISMA guidelines and was registered with PROSPERO. The authors searched PUBMED, Embase, and Cochrane databases for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) involving patients with resectable NSCLC treated with neoadjuvant/adjuvant immunotherapy or chemotherapy. Statistical analyses were performed using a frequentist network meta-analysis method in R software. From an initial 5902 articles, 13 RCTs involving 6704 patients were included after extensive filtering. PFS: Neoadjuvant and perioperative immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy showed significant benefits compared to chemotherapy alone. OS: Perioperative immunotherapy was notably more effective than adjuvant…

How strong is the evidence?

Evidence Hub reads this as a meta-analysis, done in people. Its evidence level is 1 of 5 (Highest · pooled evidence). Pooled evidence from several studies sits at the top of the evidence pyramid. Reported size: 6,704 participants or records.

How the five levels of evidence work. The level is assigned automatically from the abstract and can be wrong, so check the paper.

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