Precision immuno-oncology involves the development of personalized cancer treatments that are influenced by the unique nature of an individual’s DNA, immune cells, and their tumor’s molecular characterization. Biological sex influences immunity; females typically mount stronger innate and adaptive immune responses than males. Though more research is warranted, we continue to observe an enhanced benefit for females with lung cancer when treated with combination chemoimmunotherapy in contrast to the preferred approach of utilizing immunotherapy alone in men. Despite the observed sex differences in response to treatments, women remain underrepresented in oncology clinical trials, largely as a result of gender-biased misconceptions. Such exclusion has resulted in the development of less efficacious treatment guidelines and clinical recommendations and has created a knowledge gap in regard to immunotherapy-related survivorship issues such as fertility. To develop a more precise approach to care and overcome the exclusion of women from clinical trials, flexible trial schedules, multilingual communication strategies, financial, and transportation assistance for participants should be adopted. The impact of intersectionality and other determinants of health that affect the diagnosis, treatment, and outcomes in women must also be considered in order to develop a comprehensive understanding of the unique impact of immunotherapy in all women with lung cancer.
精准免疫肿瘤学致力于开发个性化癌症疗法，其治疗方案需综合考虑个体DNA特性、免疫细胞特征及肿瘤分子表征。生物学性别对免疫系统具有显著影响：女性通常比男性产生更强的先天性与适应性免疫应答。尽管仍需更多研究佐证，我们持续观察到女性肺癌患者在联合化疗免疫治疗中获益更为显著，而男性患者则更适宜采用单一免疫疗法。尽管治疗反应存在明显的性别差异，女性在肿瘤学临床试验中的代表性仍然不足，这主要源于性别偏见导致的认知误区。这种排除现象导致现有治疗指南和临床建议的疗效受限，并在免疫治疗相关生存问题（如生育能力）方面形成知识空白。为构建更精准的医疗方案并改善临床试验中女性参与不足的现状，应采用灵活试验日程、多语言沟通策略，并为参与者提供经济与交通支持。同时必须考量交叉性及影响女性诊断、治疗与预后的其他健康决定因素，从而全面理解免疫疗法对所有女性肺癌患者的独特影响。
Precision Immuno-Oncology in NSCLC through Gender Equity Lenses
肿瘤(癌症)患者之家