03 Aug , 15:32
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Steroids may reduce the effectiveness of immunotherapy for lung cancer - new study by California scientists
Scientists from the Keck School of Medicine in California have discovered that corticosteroids, widely used to alleviate side effects in patients with non-small cell lung cancer, can significantly reduce the effectiveness of immunotherapy. The results of this important study were published in the prestigious journal Cancer Research Communications (CRC).
A large-scale analysis of data from 277 patients with stage II-IV lung cancer revealed an alarming pattern: patients who took steroids before or during treatment with checkpoint inhibitors (CIs) showed significantly less tumor reduction and lower overall survival compared to patients who did not receive these drugs.
Notably, the negative impact of steroids persisted regardless of disease stage and other clinical factors. The lead author of the study, oncologist and immunologist Fumito Ito, emphasizes that steroids were the decisive factor weakening the therapeutic effect.
Scientists were also able to uncover the biological mechanism behind this phenomenon. Steroids suppress the maturation process of T-cells, which play a key role in immunotherapy by attacking cancer cells. With a lack of mature T-cells, the immune system is unable to effectively fight the tumor. Additionally, corticosteroids mask crucial biomarkers in the blood that doctors use to evaluate treatment success and adjust therapeutic strategy, making timely diagnosis more difficult and slowing the response to ineffective treatment.
Despite the fact that in some cases the use of steroids remains necessary - for example, for brain edema or severe nausea - the study strongly recommends that doctors exercise caution when prescribing them. The data obtained will help medical specialists more accurately assess the risk-benefit ratio and look for alternative methods of symptom control that do not interfere with the normal functioning of the patient's immune system.
