OBJECTIVES: non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a common and lethal cancer. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is a frequent mutation in NSCLC associated with a high clinical and economic burden for healthcare systems. There is an evidence need on characterizing treatment patterns and unmet needs in LATAM to support decision-making. The aim of this study is to describe treatment patterns of advanced EGFR+ NSCLC patients in four Latin American countries (Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, and Mexico).

METHODS: a pragmatic literature review was conducted to identify evidence on treatment patterns, local guidelines, and resource use for EGFR+ NSCLC. After that, 40 double-blinded, semi-structured, online interviews (10 per country) were conducted with key opinion leaders to collect information on treatment patterns and healthcare resource utilization (HCRU) for advanced EGFR+ NSCLC across different treatment lines. The individual values were consolidated for the analysis.

RESULTS: osimertinib was the preferred first-line option for advanced EGFR+ NSCLC (31,2 – 76,9%) in all countries, followed by gefitinib, erlotinib and afatinib. Upon disease progression with osimertinib, a wide range of therapeutic options have been reported, but those were mostly comprised of chemotherapy associated, or not, with immunotherapy. Targeted-therapies were not as frequent in subsequent lines in these countries, as in first-line. Regarding biomarker diagnosis, next-generation sequencing (NGS) has been reported as the most used technology in Brazil (84,4%) and Colombia (72,5%) while PCR was most recurrent in Argentina (51%) and Mexico (81%), all primarily funded by industry-sponsored programs.

CONCLUSIONS: information on the use of targeted-therapies in first and second-line treatment for the management of EGFR+ NSCLC is critical for decision makers, due to the high impact on health outcomes and impact on the patients' quality of life. Increased access to new targeted-therapies in both first and subsequent lines, as well as NGS technology are a relevant unmet need in EGFR+ NSCLC.