Primary tumor resection of non‐small cell lung cancer patients with ipsilateral pleural dissemination (M1a) in the era of targeted therapy

BACKGROUND: Non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with ipsilateral pleural dissemination (M1a) are generally contraindicated for surgery. Recently, several studies have demonstrated that these patients might benefit from primary tumor resection (PTR). However, whether PTR is beneficial for driver oncogene‐positive patients treated with targeted therapy, remains unclear. Here, we investigated the effects of PTR on survival in the era of targeted therapy. METHODS: In total, 105 NSCLC patients with ipsilateral pleural dissemination were identified. The mode of systemic treatment was assessed in this study. Survival analysis was performed with the Kaplan‐Meier method and Cox proportional hazards regression. The overall survival (OS) of patients with or without PTR was compared between propensity score‐matched groups (caliper: 0.02). RESULTS: In the entire cohort, PTR was associated with improved OS in both unmatched (median survival time [MST]: 50.0 vs. 29.6 months, P = 0.019) and matched (MST: 50.0 vs. 34.4 months, P = 0.052) cohorts. Multivariate regression models showed that surgery was an independent favorable prognostic factor for OS. A total of 70 patients underwent genetic testing, and targeted therapies, such as EGFR‐TKIs or ALK‐TKIs, were used in the driver oncogene‐positive patients. Subgroup analysis showed that PTR did not improve OS in the targeted therapy group (MST: 57.1 months vs. 50.4 months, P = 0.840). However, surgery significantly prolonged survival in the nontargeted therapy group (MST: 39.8 vs. 14.2 months, P = 0.002). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study indicated that PTR could prolong OS in stage IV NSCLC patients with ipsilateral pleural dissemination, especially in patients who are not candidates for targeted therapy. KEY POINTS: Non‐small cell lung cancer patients with ipsilateral pleural dissemination can benefit from primary tumor resection. Primary tumor resection could prolong overall survival (OS) in non‐small cell lung cancer patients with ipsilateral pleural dissemination who are not candidates for targeted therapy.