PD-1 inhibitor therapy combined with argon-helium cryoablation is effective against non-small cell lung cancer.

Objective: To evaluate the clinical efficacy of programmed death-1 (PD-1) inhibitor therapy combined with argon-helium cryoablation in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Methods: A total of 108 NSCLC patients were enrolled. The control group included 52 patients who received PD-1 inhibitor monotherapy, while 56 patients received combination therapy with PD-1 inhibitors and argon-helium cryoablation (research group). Treatment efficacy, incidence of adverse events, serum tumor marker levels (carcinoembryonic antigen, cytokeratin fragment 19), and humoral immune function (immunoglobulin (Ig) G, IgM, and IgA), and quality of life (as measured by the Karnofsky Performance Status [KPS]) were compared between the two groups. Independent predictors of treatment response were identified through univariate analysis followed by binary logistic regression. A nomogram was subsequently developed to visualize the risk of treatment failure.

Results: Although the incidence of adverse events was comparable between groups (P>0.05), the research group demonstrated a significantly higher overall response rate (P<0.05). Post-treatment analyses revealed significant reductions in serum tumor markers and increases in immunoglobulin levels and KPS scores in the research group (all P<0.05). Logistic regression identified age ≥55 years (odds ratio [OR]: 2.427) and tumor diameter ≥6.00 cm (OR: 3.394) as independent predictors of poor treatment response (all P<0.05). The nomogram model exhibited moderate discriminative ability, though calibration suggested a tendency to overestimate response rates in the low-risk subgroup.

Conclusion: PD-1 inhibitor therapy combined with argon-helium cryoablation offers a promising and effective treatment strategy for patients with NSCLC.