Systematic evaluation of the efficacy–effectiveness gap of systemic treatments in metastatic nonsmall cell lung cancer

The divergence between clinical trial results and real-world outcomes is largely unknown for many cancer types. The present study aims overall to assess the efficacy–effectiveness gap (difference between outcomes in clinical trials and the real world) in systemic treatment for metastatic nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC). All patients diagnosed with stage IV NSCLC between 2008 and 2014 within a network of seven Dutch large teaching hospitals (Santeon) were studied. For every patient, an efficacy–effectiveness (EE) factor was calculated by dividing individual patients' overall survival (OS) by the pooled median OS assessed from clinical trials with the respective treatment. From 2989 diagnosed patients, 1214 (41%) started with first-line treatment. For all studied regimens, real-world OS was shorter than OS reported in clinical trials. Overall, the EE factor was 0.77 (95% CI 0.70–0.85; p<0.001). Real-world patients completed their treatment plan less often and proceeded less frequently to further lines of treatment. These parameters together with Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status explained 35% of the variation in EE factor. Survival of patients with metastatic NSCLC treated with chemotherapy or targeted therapy in real-world practice is nearly one-quarter shorter than for patients included in trials. Patients' performance status, earlier discontinuation and fewer subsequent lines of treatment partly explained this difference.