IMFINZI FAQs

Get your questions about IMFINZI answered

Here are answers to some questions about IMFINZI and unresectable Stage 3 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Remember, your doctor is the best resource for answering specific questions about your treatment.

Click on the plus sign to view answers to frequently asked questions.

Here are answers to some questions about IMFINZI and unresectable Stage 3 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Remember, your doctor is the best resource for answering specific questions about your treatment.

Click on the plus sign to view answers to frequently asked questions.

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IMFINZI® (durvalumab) is the first and only approved immunotherapy for people with unresectable Stage 3 NSCLC whose disease has not progressed following concurrent platinum-based chemoradiation therapy (CRT).

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Immunotherapy is a type of cancer treatment that works with the immune system to find and attack cancer. IMFINZI may also cause the immune system to attack healthy cells.

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IMFINZI is an immunotherapy, which means it works with the immune system to help treat unresectable Stage 3 NSCLC after CRT. IMFINZI may also affect healthy cells. IMFINZI may not work for everyone.

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IMFINZI is given as an intravenous (IV) infusion that lasts about 60 minutes. It can be administered every 2 or 4 weeks. Your doctor will determine how often and how long you will receive IMFINZI. You will stop receiving IMFINZI if your cancer grows or spreads or if side effects become too difficult to manage.

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Treatment with IMFINZI may last for up to 12 months or until the disease worsens or side effects become too difficult to manage. Infusions are given every 2 or 4 weeks as determined by your doctor. Your doctor will monitor you regularly for possible side effects, and to see if IMFINZI is working to keep your cancer from growing or spreading.

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You must first complete chemoradiation therapy (CRT) before you are given IMFINZI. IMFINZI is prescribed after CRT if your cancer has not progressed following treatment with CRT.

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While on IMFINZI, you may experience side effects. This is because IMFINZI works with your immune system to treat cancer, which can also affect the way normal organs and tissues work. These problems can sometimes become serious or life-threatening and can lead to death in some cases. You can have more than one of these problems at the same time. These problems may happen anytime during treatment or even after your treatment has ended.

IMFINZI may also cause serious side effects. They include:

  • Lung problems
  • Intestinal problems
  • Liver problems
  • Hormone gland problems
  • Kidney problems
  • Skin problems
  • Pancreas problems
  • Problems in other organs
  • Severe infusion reactions
  • Rejection of a transplanted organ or tissue
  • Complications, including graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), in people who have received a bone marrow (stem cell) transplant that uses donor stem cells (allogeneic)

Getting medical treatment right away may help keep these problems from becoming more serious. Your healthcare provider will check you for these problems during your treatment with IMFINZI. Your healthcare provider may treat you with corticosteroid or hormone replacement medicines. Your healthcare provider may also need to delay or completely stop treatment with IMFINZI if you have severe side effects

The most common side effects of IMFINZI when used alone in adults with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that cannot be removed by surgery include:

  • Cough
  • Feeling tired
  • Inflammation in the lungs
  • Upper respiratory tract infections
  • Shortness of breath
  • Rash

Tell your doctor if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away.

These are not all of the possible side effects of IMFINZI. Please see full Important Safety Information below and Full Prescribing Information including Medication Guide for IMFINZI.

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NSCLC occurs when abnormal lung cells grow and form tumors that can spread to other areas of the body. A Stage 3 NSCLC diagnosis means that the cancer has not spread beyond the lungs and nearby lymph nodes.

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Lung cancer symptoms often go unnoticed until the disease is at an advanced stage. About 30% of NSCLC cases are diagnosed at Stage 3.

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If your doctor tells you your cancer has become unresectable, it means that the cancer cannot be removed with surgery.

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The first step in treatment for unresectable Stage 3 NSCLC is usually chemoradiation therapy (CRT), which is chemotherapy and radiation therapy given together.

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Chemoradiation therapy is a combination of chemotherapy and radiation therapy given together. The two treatments attack cancer in different ways. Chemotherapy attacks all fast-growing cells, including cancer cells. Radiation therapy targets DNA in cancer cells to keep them from growing.

Ask your doctor about treating with IMFINZI after CRTarrow

A clinical trial found that people who received IMFINZI after CRT had more time without their lung cancer growing or spreading compared with people who received placebo.

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PD-L1 is a protein that allows cancer cells to hide from the immune system. IMFINZI works by blocking PD-L1, so your immune system can recognize and attack these cancer cells. IMFINZI may also affect healthy cells.

See how IMFINZI worksarrow

Chemotherapy attacks all fast-growing cells, including cancer cells. Immunotherapy works with the immune system to find and attack cancer. IMFINZI may also affect healthy cells.

See how IMFINZI worksarrowLearn how IMFINZI may be your next step after CRTarrow

Ask your doctor about IMFINZI after CRT

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Important Safety Information

What is the most important information I should know about IMFINZI® (durvalumab)?

IMFINZI is a medicine that may treat certain cancers by working with your immune system. IMFINZI can cause your immune system to attack normal organs and tissues in any area of your body and can affect...

Read full Important Safety Information

What is IMFINZI?

IMFINZI is a prescription medicine used to treat adults with a type of lung cancer called non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). IMFINZI may be used when your NSCLC has not spread outside your chest, cannot be removed by surgery, and has responded or stabilized with initial treatment with chemotherapy that contains...

Important Safety Information

What is the most important information I should know about IMFINZI® (durvalumab)?

IMFINZI is a medicine that may treat certain cancers by working with your immune system. IMFINZI can cause your immune system to attack normal organs and tissues in any area of your body and can affect the way they work. These problems can sometimes become severe or life-threatening and can lead to death. You can have more than one of these problems at the same time. These problems may happen anytime during treatment or even after your treatment has ended.

What is IMFINZI?

IMFINZI is a prescription medicine used to treat adults with a type of lung cancer called non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). IMFINZI may be used when your NSCLC has not spread outside your chest, cannot be removed by surgery, and has responded or stabilized with initial treatment with chemotherapy that contains platinum, given at the same time as radiation therapy.

It is not known if IMFINZI is safe and effective in children.

Call or see your healthcare provider right away if you develop any new or worsening signs or symptoms, including:

Stage 3 NSCLC Lung Icon

Lung problems: cough, shortness of breath, and chest pain

Stage 3 NSCLC Intestinal Icon

Intestinal problems: diarrhea (loose stools) or more frequent bowel movements than usual; stools that are black, tarry, sticky, or have blood or mucus; and severe stomach-area (abdomen) pain or tenderness

Stage 3 NSCLC Liver Icon

Liver problems: yellowing of your skin or the whites of your eyes, severe nausea or vomiting, pain on the right side of your stomach area (abdomen), dark urine (tea colored), and bleeding or bruising more easily than normal

Stage 3 NSCLC Hormone Gland Icon

Hormone gland problems: headaches that will not go away or unusual headaches; eye sensitivity to light; eye problems; rapid heartbeat; increased sweating; extreme tiredness; weight gain or weight loss; feeling more hungry or thirsty than usual; urinating more often than usual; hair loss; feeling cold; constipation; your voice gets deeper; dizziness or fainting; and changes in mood or behavior, such as decreased sex drive, irritability, or forgetfulness

Stage 3 NSCLC Kidney Icon

Kidney problems: decrease in your amount of urine, blood in your urine, swelling of your ankles, and loss of appetite

Stage 3 NSCLC Skin Problem Icon

Skin problems: rash; itching; skin blistering or peeling; painful sores or ulcers in mouth or nose, throat, or genital area; fever or flu-like symptoms; and swollen lymph nodes

Stage 3 NSCLC Pancreas Icon

Pancreas problems: pain in your upper stomach area (abdomen), severe nausea or vomiting, and loss of appetite

Stage 3 NSCLC Symptoms of Immune System

Problems can also happen in other organs and tissues. These are not all of the signs and symptoms of immune system problems that can happen with IMFINZI. Call or see your healthcare provider right away for any new or worsening signs or symptoms, which may include: Chest pain, irregular heartbeats, shortness of breath or swelling of ankles; confusion, sleepiness, memory problems, changes in mood or behavior, stiff neck, balance problems; tingling, numbness or weakness of the arms or legs; double vision, blurry vision, sensitivity to light, eye pain, changes in eye sight; persistent or severe muscle pain or weakness, muscle cramps, joint pain, joint stiffness or swelling; and low red blood cells and bruising

Stage 3 NSCLC Symptoms of Infusion

Infusion reactions that can sometimes be severe or life-threatening. Signs and symptoms of infusion reactions may include: chills or shaking, itching or rash, flushing, shortness of breath or wheezing, dizziness, feel like passing out, fever, and back or neck pain

Stage 3 NSCLC GVHD Signs

Rejection of a transplanted organ or tissue. Your healthcare provider should tell you what signs and symptoms you should report and monitor you depending on the type of organ or tissue transplant that you have had

Stage 3 NSCLC GVHD Signs

Complications, including graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), in people who have received a bone marrow (stem cell) transplant that uses donor stem cells (allogeneic). These complications can be serious and can lead to death. These complications may happen if you underwent transplantation either before or after being treated with IMFINZI. Your healthcare provider will monitor you for these complications

Getting medical treatment right away may help keep these problems from becoming more serious. Your healthcare provider will check you for these problems during your treatment with IMFINZI. Your healthcare provider may treat you with corticosteroid or hormone replacement medicines. Your healthcare provider may also need to delay or completely stop treatment with IMFINZI if you have severe side effects

Before you receive IMFINZI, tell your healthcare provider about all of your medical conditions, including if you:

  • have immune system problems such as Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, or lupus
  • have received an organ or tissue transplant, including corneal transplant
  • have received or plan to receive a stem cell transplant that uses donor stem cells (allogeneic)
  • have received radiation treatment to your chest area
  • have a condition that affects your nervous system, such as myasthenia gravis or Guillain-Barré syndrome
  • are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. IMFINZI can harm your unborn baby
  • Females who are able to become pregnant:
    • Your healthcare provider will give you a pregnancy test before you start treatment with IMFINZI.
    • You should use an effective method of birth control during your treatment and for 3 months after the last dose of IMFINZI. Talk to your healthcare provider about birth control methods that you can use during this time.
    • Tell your healthcare provider right away if you become pregnant or think you may be pregnant during treatment with IMFINZI.
  • are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. It is not known if IMFINZI passes into your breast milk. Do not breastfeed during treatment and for 3 months after the last dose of IMFINZI.

Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.

What are the possible side effects of IMFINZI?

IMFINZI can cause serious side effects (see above).

The most common side effects of IMFINZI when used alone in adults with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that cannot be removed by surgery include cough, feeling tired, inflammation in the lungs, upper respiratory tract infections, shortness of breath, and rash.

Tell your healthcare provider if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away. These are not all the possible side effects of IMFINZI. Ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist for more information.

Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects related to AstraZeneca productsReport side effects related to AstraZeneca products. If you prefer to report these to the FDA, either visit www.FDA.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

What is IMFINZI?

IMFINZI is a prescription medicine used to treat adults with a type of lung cancer called non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). IMFINZI may be used when your NSCLC has not spread outside your chest, cannot be removed by surgery, and has responded or stabilized with initial treatment with chemotherapy that contains platinum, given at the same time as radiation therapy.

It is not known if IMFINZI is safe and effective in children.

Please see Full Prescribing Information including Medication Guide for IMFINZI.

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