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Pembrolizumab is currently the drug for the first-line treatment of stage-IV non-small cell lung cancer. The objective of this study is to measure the effectiveness of pembrolizumab as a first-line treatment and to analyze its safety in real clinical practice.This was a retrospective study that included patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer who had received pembrolizumab as a first-line treatment between 1 June 2018 and 31 January 2021. Variables related to the patients, treatment, and drug's efficacy and safety were collected.A total of 50 patients were analyzed. The median real-world progression-free survival and real-world overall survival of those who received pembrolizumab in monotherapy were 10.5 months (95% CI: 2.3–18.6) and 18.9 months (95% CI: 16.9–20.8), respectively. The median real-world progression-free survival and real-world overall survival of those who received the drug with chemotherapy was 7.9 months (95% CI: 4.1–11.7) and 13.3 months (95% CI: 0.0–27), respectively. Mostly digestive (48.3%) and endocrine (41.4%) immune-related adverse events were detected among the patients who received pembrolizumab in monotherapy, whereas mostly digestive immune-related adverse events (85.7%) and hematological toxicities (71.5%) were observed in those treated with pembrolizumab plus chemotherapy.Pembrolizumab has proven its effectiveness in terms of increasing real-world progression-free survival and real-world overall survival in real clinical practice. The main adverse events were digestive toxicities with pembrolizumab in monotherapy and with chemotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Adalimumab is a biological therapy used to treat different chronic inflammatory diseases. At present, there is an increasing number of adalimumab biosimilars. To assume the acceptability of interchangeability between reference adalimumab and biosimilars, there should be evidence about efficacy and safety of this switching. Regulation of this practice falls under the authority of individual European Union Member States. The aim of this study is to systematically review the evidence on the efficacy, safety and immunogenicity of switching between reference adalimumab and biosimilars in different chronic immune‐mediated inflammatory diseases. Methods: Studies presenting data about switching between reference adalimumab and biosimilars were identified by sensitive search strategies in Medline and EMBASE from 1 January 2004 to 30 June 2021. Results: A total of 471 references were obtained and 21 finally included in the analysis (total number of patients switching: 2802). Eight different adalimumab biosimilars were tested after receiving reference adalimumab. Eight articles included rheumatoid arthritis (RA), one miscellaneous rheumatic disease, six psoriasis (PSO) and six inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients. Overall, the efficacy results in the switching groups were comparable to those obtained in the arms of continuous biosimilar and continuous reference adalimumab. There were no significant differences in treatment emergent adverse events, anti‐drug or neutralising antibodies among the three groups. Conclusions: Switching between reference adalimumab and biosimilars has no impact on efficacy, safety and immunogenicity in patients with RA, PSO and IBD. This finding was consistent for the different adalimumab biosimilars analysed. These conclusions could probably be extended to other rheumatic diseases such as psoriatic arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What is known and objective: Initial treatment recommendations of COVID‐19 were based on the use of antimicrobial drugs and immunomodulators. Although information on drug interactions was available for other pathologies, there was little evidence in the treatment of COVID‐19. The objective of this study was to analyse the potential drug‐drug interactions (pDDIs) derived from the medication used in COVID‐19 patients in the first pandemic wave and to evaluate the real consequences of such interactions in clinical practice. Methods: Cohort, retrospective and single‐centre study carried out in a third‐level hospital. Adult patients, admitted with suspected COVID‐19, that received at least one dose of hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir/ritonavir, interferon beta 1‐b or tocilizumab and with any pDDIs according to "Liverpool Drug Interaction Group" between March and May 2020 were included. The possible consequences of pDDIs at the QTc interval level or any other adverse event according to the patient's medical record were analysed. A descriptive analysis was carried out to assess possible factors that may affect the QTc interval prolongation. Results and discussion: Two hundred and eighteen (62.3%) patients of a total of 350 patients admitted with COVID‐19 had at least one pDDI. There were 598 pDDIs. Thirty‐eight pDDIs (6.3%) were categorized as not recommended or contraindicated. The mean value difference between baseline and pDDI posterior ECG was 412.3 ms ± 25.8 ms vs. 426.3 ms ± 26.7 ms; p < 0.001. Seven patients (5.7%) had a clinically significant alteration of QTc. A total of 44 non‐cardiological events (7.3%) with a possible connection to a pDDI were detected. What is new and conclusion: The number of pDDIs in patients admitted for COVID‐19 in the first pandemic wave was remarkably high. However, clinical consequences occurred in a low percentage of patients. Interactions involving medications that would be contraindicated for concomitant administration are rare. Knowledge of these pDDIs and their consequences could help to establish appropriate therapeutic strategies in patients with COVID‐19 or other diseases with these treatments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) was created to unify the diagnosis of malnutrition worldwide. The main objective of this work is to evaluate the validity of the GLIM criteria for diagnosing malnutrition in a population over 65 years of age living in a nursing home. In addition, the order of importance of the GLIM criteria for diagnosing malnutrition was also analyzed., Material and Methods: a cross-sectional study was carried out with 130 older adults institutionalized in a nursing home. To study the validity of the GLIM criteria, sensitivity and specificity were calculated and a Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve was calculated using the MNA questionnaire as the reference diagnostic method. A Lasso regression model was used to determine the order of importance of the criteria., Results: according to GLIM and MNA the prevalence of malnutrition was 26.2 % and 18.5 %, respectively. The GLIM criteria were found to have a sensitivity of 100 %, a specificity of 91 % and a very good level of precision (AUC = 0.95). The order of importance of the criteria from highest to lowest are loss of muscle mass, weight loss, presence of inflammation, low BMI and decreased nutrient intake or assimilation., Conclusions: the GLIM criteria presented a satisfactory level of validity and are therefore an acceptable method to diagnose malnutrition in institutionalized older adults.