Correct immunohistochemical detection of PD-L1 has become important with the development of a plethora of anti-PD1 or PD-L1 antibodies for treatment of many cancer types. During the last year NordiQC has completed many internal tests and pilot runs (the latest in February 2017). On this page we will release validated data from internal and external projects in addition to the NordiQC runs to fascilitate implementation of PD-L1 assays in clinical pathology laboratories.
In the beginning of 2017, the first run (C1) of the new "Companion Diagnostic Module" was perfomed by invited laboratories. C1 module focused on PD-L1 expression in NSCLCs to guide immune therapy as first and second line treatment. 68 labs participated in this run, where a pass rate of 50% was obtained. Laboratory Developed (LD) assays provided a very low number of optimal results. Click on this link to see the full report (link). The Companion Diagnostic Module is now open for all participants and PD-L1 will be offered on biannual basis (at present PD-L1 expression in NSCLC). If you wish to participate in this module (run C1x, deadline 21. May 2017), please click this link (register). C1x is an extra run performed in between run C1 and C2 due to the very low pass rate observed in run C1.
Timeline for C1x
1st May - Homepage open for protocol submission
21st May - Deadline for protocol submission
1st June - Circulation of slides
23rd June - Deadline for return of staining slides
10th July - Publication of results
Recommended protocols for PD-L1 staining are available on the NordiQC homepage (protocols). At the moment, only protocols for Companion / Complementary PD-L1 assays are available, since the run C1 did not reveal any confident LD assays providing optimal and accurate PD-L1 IHC results. Intensive internal and external testing is taking place at the moment to develop LD assays for the most commonly used IHC platforms. Results will be published in peer-reviewed articles and on our homepage.