Real-world utilization of immune checkpoint inhibitors in medicare-eligible patients with triple-negative breast cancer in the United States
- 1Value & Implementation Outcomes Research Oncology, Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA
- 2BARDS RWE Capabilities and Analytics, Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA
- 3Global Clinical Development, Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA
Abstract
Aims: This study aimed to characterize real-world treatment patterns among patients in the United States with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) eligible for pembrolizumab treatment, including patients eligible for Medicare (aged ≥65 years).
Materials and methods: This retrospective study analyzed treatment utilization among patients with TNBC using two United States (US)-based electronic health record (EHR) databases (Flatiron Health Research Database and N-Power Medicine’s Breast Analytical Dataset). Patients were stratified by Medicare insurance status or age ≥65 years. Treatment uptake was analyzed in cohorts of patients with a metastatic diagnosis on or after 1 January 2021, and defined by FDA-approved pembrolizumab indications in TNBC.
Results: Overall, 133 patients with metastatic TNBC (mTNBC) and 392 patients with early-stage TNBC (esTNBC) were included; 33.9–39.1% were Medicare-eligible. Programmed Death-Ligand 1 (PD-(L)1) inhibitors were the most used therapy class across all Medicare-eligible cohorts with TNBC (79.0–85.0%). Use of pembrolizumab-containing regimens was observed across TNBC cohorts (77.0–85.0%). Treatment patterns in Medicare-eligible patients were consistent with the overall population.
Conclusions: This real-world analysis demonstrates high uptake of PD-(L)1 inhibitors, including pembrolizumab, among Medicare-eligible patients with TNBC. These findings provide real-world insights into how regulatory approvals in TNBC have shaped clinical practice in the US.
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BibTeX
@article{hu2026realworld,
title = {{Real-world utilization of immune checkpoint inhibitors in medicare-eligible patients with triple-negative breast cancer in the United States}},
author = {Xiaohan Hu and Amin Haiderali and Yezhou Sun and Wilbur Pan},
journal = {Immunotherapy},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1080/1750743x.2026.2742727},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1080/1750743x.2026.2742727},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Real-world utilization of immune checkpoint inhibitors in medicare-eligible patients with triple-negative breast cancer in the United States
AU - Xiaohan Hu
AU - Amin Haiderali
AU - Yezhou Sun
AU - Wilbur Pan
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/04
JO - Immunotherapy
DO - 10.1080/1750743x.2026.2742727
UR - https://doi.org/10.1080/1750743x.2026.2742727
AB - Aims: This study aimed to characterize real-world treatment patterns among patients in the United States with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) eligible for pembrolizumab treatment, including patients eligible for Medicare (aged ≥65 years). Materials and methods: This retrospective study analyzed treatment utilization among patients with TNBC using two United States (US)-based electronic health record (EHR) databases (Flatiron Health Research Database and N-Power Medicine’s Breast Analytical Dataset). Patients were stratified by Medicare insurance status or age ≥65 years. Treatment uptake was analyzed in cohorts of patients with a metastatic diagnosis on or after 1 January 2021, and defined by FDA-approved pembrolizumab indications in TNBC. Results: Overall, 133 patients with metastatic TNBC (mTNBC) and 392 patients with early-stage TNBC (esTNBC) were included; 33.9–39.1% were Medicare-eligible. Programmed Death-Ligand 1 (PD-(L)1) inhibitors were the most used therapy class across all Medicare-eligible cohorts with TNBC (79.0–85.0%). Use of pembrolizumab-containing regimens was observed across TNBC cohorts (77.0–85.0%). Treatment patterns in Medicare-eligible patients were consistent with the overall population. Conclusions: This real-world analysis demonstrates high uptake of PD-(L)1 inhibitors, including pembrolizumab, among Medicare-eligible patients with TNBC. These findings provide real-world insights into how regulatory approvals in TNBC have shaped clinical practice in the US.
SN - 1750-743X
SN - 1750-7448
ER -