PRISMA-Compliant Systematic Review: Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors in NSCLC
Challenge
A clinical research team required a rigorous synthesis of evidence on immune checkpoint inhibitor efficacy across NSCLC histological subtypes to inform institutional treatment guidelines. The review needed to meet PRISMA 2020 standards and be suitable for submission to a high-impact oncology journal.
Approach
Science Habitat developed a PICO-framed protocol registered with PROSPERO. A comprehensive Boolean search strategy was executed across PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, Scopus, and grey literature sources. Two independent reviewers screened 847 records, with inter-rater reliability assessed using Cohen's kappa. Cochrane RoB 2.0 was applied for quality appraisal of included RCTs. Fixed and random effects meta-analyses were conducted in R, with subgroup analysis by PD-L1 expression level and histological subtype, and publication bias assessed using Egger's test and funnel plot visualization.
Tools & Pipeline
- PROSPERO-registered protocol
- PRISMA 2020 flow diagram
- Comprehensive search strategy (reproducible Boolean strings)
- Data extraction tables and RoB traffic light figures
- Forest plots and funnel plots (300+ DPI, editable)
- Summary of Findings (SoF) tables with GRADE ratings
- Full manuscript + peer review response letter
Outcome
The systematic review was accepted at ESMO Open with minor revisions. Our peer review response addressed all 14 reviewer comments, and the final manuscript was published within the 14-week project timeline. The work has been cited in two subsequent clinical practice guideline updates.