06/18/2026
New findings of an Alliance Foundation Trials study show combining immunotherapy and chemotherapy before surgery improves outcomes for some patients with locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer, according to the results of AFT-46/CHIO3 published in Lung Cancer.
“These results are exciting because they give us a new, successful blueprint for treating stage III lung cancer that has traditionally been difficult to manage,” said Linda W. Martin, MD, MPH, lead investigator, primary author of the study and a Professor of Thoracic Surgery at the University of Virginia. “This study shows that combining chemotherapy with immunotherapy can help more patients with lung cancer involving mediastinal nodes undergo complete cancer resection, improving their long term health.”
“To our knowledge, this is the first trial specifically focused lymph node clearance in this population, and the results look very promising,” said David Kozono, MD, PhD, Director of the Alliance Foundation, and Director of Thoracic Radiation Oncology at Mass General Brigham Cancer Center. “The high rates of lymph node clearance and successful surgical resection confirm this approach as an important option for patients with this stage of lung cancer.”
More at https://bit.ly/AFT46
