Jean Klastersky, MD, PhD of Institut Jules Bordet, Brussels, Belgium summarises key messages from the MASCC 2016 session focused on immune checkpoint inhibitors. Patient’s predispositions to severe reactions have to be considered. Prof Klastersky mentions that patients should be stratified, so that clinicians can pay more attention to some of them and make decisions based on their clinical experience. Many of the side effects, including pulmonary and GI, can be mimicked by other causes, so a differential diagnosis is required. The take home message is that adverse effects of immune checkpoint inhibitors are quite common, often mild, but occasionally life threatening, and should be treated early. Recorded at the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer (MASCC) and International Society of Ocular Oncology (ISOO) 2016 Annual Meeting on Supportive Care in Cancer held in Adelaide, Australia.
