Non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is one of the most prevalent cancers and is responsible for a large proportion of all cancer-related deaths. Current treatment options are inadequate, reflecting a substantial unmet clinical need. Increasing knowledge regarding the mechanisms and genetic aberrations underlying tumor development and growth has heralded a new era of therapy in oncology, moving away from indiscriminate cytotoxic chemotherapy toward more finely focused, targeted medicine. The development of small-molecule drugs and monoclonal antibodies directed toward specific components of dysfunctional molecular or immune pathways, and mutated genes specific to particular cancer types, is leading the field to more personalized and less toxic treatment options, many of which have demonstrated greater efficacy and survival benefits than their chemotherapeutic counterparts. Particularly successful examples are agents that interfere with the programmed death 1 (PD-1) pathway, which many tumors can hijack to avoid immune surveillance and editing. Pembrolizumab, a monoclonal antibody directed at PD-1 that blocks the engagement between PD-1 and its ligands, has been explored as a treatment for solid tumors, and demonstrated survival benefits in several studies. The use of PD-1 inhibitors such as nivolumab and pembrolizumab in advanced cancers is widespread, and pembrolizumab is available in more than 60 countries for at least one of the following: advanced melanoma, PD-L1–expressing NSCLC, head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, and adult and pediatric patients with refractory classical Hodgkin’s lymphoma. This work provides a brief overview of the role of pembrolizumab in the treatment of advanced (recurrent/metastatic) NSCLC.

非小细胞肺癌（NSCLC）是最普遍的癌症之一，在所有与癌症相关的死亡中占很大比例。当前的治疗选择不充分，反映出临床需求尚未得到满足。关于肿瘤发展和生长的机制和遗传异常的知识的增加，预示着肿瘤治疗的新时代，从不分皂白的细胞毒性化学疗法转向更加集中的靶向药物。针对功能失调的分子或免疫途径的特定组成部分以及针对特定癌症类型的突变基因的小分子药物和单克隆抗体的开发，正在引领该领域提供更多个性化且毒性更低的治疗选择，与化疗药物相比，其中许多药物已显示出更大的功效和生存优势。特别成功的例子是干扰程序性死亡1（PD-1）途径的药物，许多肿瘤可以劫持该途径以避免免疫监视和编辑。Pembrolizumab是一种针对PD-1的单克隆抗体，可阻断PD-1及其配体之间的结合，已被研究用于治疗实体瘤，并在多项研究中显示出生存获益。PD-1抑制剂如nivolumab和pembrolizumab在晚期癌症中得到广泛使用，并且pembrolizumab在60多个国家/地区可用于以下至少一种：晚期黑素瘤，表达PD-L1的NSCLC，头颈部鳞状细胞癌，以及难治性经典霍奇金淋巴瘤的成人和儿童患者。