Daily Medication Pearl: Durvalumab (Imfinzi) for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Author(s):

Saro Arakelians, PharmD

Key Takeaways

Durvalumab is indicated for unresectable, stage III NSCLC, administered biweekly or monthly via injection.
Common adverse events include cough, fatigue, pneumonitis, and upper respiratory tract infections.
It enhances immune responses by blocking PD-L1 interactions with PD-1 and CD80.
AstraZeneca is the manufacturer of Durvalumab, a key treatment in NSCLC management.

Durvalumab is a human immunoglobulin G1 kappa monoclonal antibody that binds to PD-L1 and blocks the interaction of PD-L1 with PD-1 and CD80.

Medication Pearl of the Day: Durvalumab (Imfinzi)

Indication: Imfinzi is a programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) blocking antibody indicated for the treatment of adult patients with unresectable, stage III non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Insight:

Dosing: 10 mg/kg every 2 weeks or 1500 mg every 4 weeks.
Dosage form: Injection 500 mg/10 mL (50 mg/mL) solution in a single-dose vial. Injection 120 mg/2.4 mL (50 mg/mL) solution in a single-dose vial.
Adverse events (AEs): Most common AEs were cough, fatigue, pneumonitis/radiation pneumonitis, upper respiratory tract infections, dyspnea, and rash.
Mechanism of action: Durvalumab is a human immunoglobulin G1 kappa monoclonal antibody that binds to PD-L1 and blocks the interaction of PD-L1 with programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) and CD80 (B7.1). Blockade of PD-L1/PD-1 and PD-L1/CD80 interactions releases the inhibition of immune responses, without inducing antibody dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity.
Manufacturer: AstraZeneca

Sources:

https://www.azpicentral.com/pi.html?product=imfinzi

imfinzi - Google Search

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