Oops, you're using an old version of your browser so some of the features on this page may not be displaying properly.

MINIMAL Requirements: Google Chrome 24+Mozilla Firefox 20+Internet Explorer 11Opera 15–18Apple Safari 7SeaMonkey 2.15-2.23

Poster Display session

436P - Demographics, clinical characteristics and treatment of lung cancer in a developing country: A pilot study in Malaysia

Date

28 Mar 2025

Session

Poster Display session

Presenters

Wen Xuan Lee

Citation

Journal of Thoracic Oncology (2025) 20 (3): S241-S255. 10.1016/S1556-0864(25)00632-X

Authors

W.X. Lee1, W.F. Lim2, C.J. Vellan2, C.M.Y. Foo2, C. Jyeyi2, X.N. Cheah2, K.S. Kow2, C.N.B. Lai2, T.P. Lau3, C.L. Wong2

Author affiliations

  • 1 Sunway University, Bandar Sunway/MY
  • 2 Sunway Medical Centre, Petaling Jaya, Selangor/MY
  • 3 Sunway University, Petaling Jaya, Selangor/MY

Resources

Login to get immediate access to this content.

If you do not have an ESMO account, please create one for free.

Abstract 436P

Background

Lung cancer (LC) is the third most common cancer in Malaysia with a 5-year survival rate of 11%. To date, there is limited comprehensive integration of demographic, clinical, and treatment data within the Malaysian population due to limited resources. This pilot study aims to examine these parameters in a single-center tertiary care private hospital in Malaysia.

Methods

A retrospective study was conducted on 330 LC patients aged between 56 and 75 years old at Sunway Medical Centre from 2019 to 2023. Data on demographics, clinical characteristics, genomic profiles and treatments were analyzed.

Results

In the cohort, 306 (93%) were diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), predominantly adenocarcinoma (76%), with the majority (78%) being Chinese patients. Genomic testing identified actionable mutations in several genes in 198 (65%) NSCLC patients, including EGFR, TP53, ALK, KRAS, PIK3CA, HER2, ROS1, CTNNB1, RET and MET genes. Our cohort exhibited a prevalence of EGFR mutation at 57%, significantly higher than the 10%–20% observed in Western populations, underscoring the importance of EGFR-targeted therapies in our population. Among the 306 NSCLC patients, 222 underwent PD-L1 testing, with PD-L1 expression detected in 142 (64%). The distribution of PD-L1 positivity between EGFR-mutant and wild-type patients was similar, with each group comprising 50% of the PD-L1-positive cases. Out of the 57 treated patients who were EGFR- and PD-L1-positive, EGFR-targeted therapies was the standard of care for the majority (88%). Advanced-stage NSCLC was observed in 232 (76%) patients, exhibiting a significantly longer treatment delay of 17 days, in contrast to 9 days for early-stage cases (p < 0.05). Immunotherapy use increased from 15% in 2019 to 35% in 2023, primarily for advanced cases.

Conclusions

This pilot study provides important and interesting preliminary insights into the clinical, genomic and treatment landscape of LC in a tertiary care private institution in Malaysia. Further studies are urgently warranted in order to examine the molecular pathogenesis and treatment of LC in our population and to address the challenges arising from the overall LC management in Malaysia in accordance with international guidelines.

Legal entity responsible for the study

Sunway Medical Centre.

Funding

Sunway Medical Cnetre.

Disclosure

All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.

This site uses cookies. Some of these cookies are essential, while others help us improve your experience by providing insights into how the site is being used.

For more detailed information on the cookies we use, please check our Privacy Policy.

Customise settings
  • Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and you can only disable them by changing your browser preferences.