Patient-Reported Adverse Events and Early Treatment Discontinuation Among Patients With Multiple Myeloma.

Importance: There is substantial interest in capturing cancer treatment tolerability from the patient's perspective using patient-reported outcomes (PROs). Objective: To examine whether a PRO question, item 5 from the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General General Physical Wellbeing Scale (GP5), was associated with early treatment discontinuation (ETD) due to adverse events. Design, Setting, and Participants: This prospective survey study was conducted from February to April 2023. Among participants in the ECOG-ACRIN E1A11 trial (a phase 3, parallel design trial conducted between 2013 and 2019), patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma were randomized to receive bortezomib (VRd) or carfilzomib (KRd) plus lenalidomide and dexamethasone as induction therapy. The GP5 item was administered at baseline (pretreatment) and at 1 month, 2.8 months, and 5.5 months postbaseline. Eligible participants included patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma treated at community oncology practices or academic medical centers in the US. Exposures: GP5 response options were "very much," "quite a bit," "somewhat," "a little bit," and "not at all." Responses at each assessment while undergoing treatment (1 month, 2.8 months, and 5.5 months) were categorized as high adverse event bother (ie, "very much," and "quite a bit") and low adverse event bother (ie, "somewhat," "a little bit," or "not at all"). In addition, change from baseline to each assessment while undergoing treatment was calculated and categorized as worsening by 1 response category and 2 or more response categories. Main Outcome and Measure: ETD due to adverse events (yes vs no) was analyzed using logistic regression adjusting for treatment group, performance status, gender, race, and disease stage. Results: Of the 1087 participants in the original trial, 1058 (mean [SD] age 64 [9] years; 531 receiving VrD [50.2%]; 527 receiving KRd [49.8%]) responded to item GP5 and were included in the secondary analysis. A small proportion (142 patients [13.4%]) discontinued treatment early due to AEs. For those with high adverse-effect bother, GP5 while undergoing treatment was associated with ETD at 1 month (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.20; 95% CI, 1.25-3.89), 2.8 months (aOR, 3.41; 95% CI, 2.01-5.80), and 5.5 months (aOR, 4.66; 95% CI, 1.69-12.83). Worsening by 2 or more response categories on the GP5 was associated with ETD at 2.8 months (aOR, 3.02; 95% CI, 1.64-5.54) and 5.5 months (aOR, 5.49; 95% CI, 1.45-20.76). Conclusions and Relevance: In this survey study of the E1A11 trial, worse GP5 response was associated with ETD. These findings suggest that simple assessment of adverse-effect bother while receiving treatment is an efficient way to indicate treatment tolerability and ETD risk.

The effect of neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage on smoking status, quit attempts, and receipt of cessation support among adults with cancer: Results from nine ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group trials.

BACKGROUND: Tobacco use is associated with adverse outcomes among patients diagnosed with cancer. Socioeconomic determinants influence access and utilization of tobacco treatment; little is known about the relationship between neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage (NSD) and tobacco assessment, assistance, and cessation among patients diagnosed with cancer. METHODS: A modified Cancer Patient Tobacco Use Questionnaire (C-TUQ) was administered to patients enrolled in nine ECOG-ACRIN clinical trials. We examined associations of NSD with (1) smoking status, (2) receiving tobacco cessation assessment and support, and (3) cessation behaviors. NSD was classified by tertiles of the Area Deprivation Index. Associations between NSD and tobacco variables were evaluated using logistic regression. RESULTS: A total of 740 patients completing the C-TUQ were 70% male, 94% White, 3% Hispanic, mean age 58.8 years. Cancer diagnoses included leukemia 263 (36%), lymphoma 141 (19%), prostate 131 (18%), breast 79 (11%), melanoma 69 (9%), myeloma 53 (7%), and head and neck 4 (0.5%). A total of 402 (54%) never smoked, 257 (35%) had formerly smoked, and 81 (11%) were currently smoking. Patients in high disadvantaged neighborhoods were approximately four times more likely to report current smoking (odds ratio [OR], 3.57; 95% CI, 1.69-7.54; p = .0009), and more likely to report being asked about smoking (OR, 4.24; 95% CI, 1.64-10.98; p = .0029), but less likely to report receiving counseling (OR, 0.11; 95% CI, 0.02-0.58; p = .0086) versus those in the least disadvantaged neighborhoods. CONCLUSIONS: Greater neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage was associated with smoking but less cessation support. Increased cessation support in cancer care is needed, particularly for patients from disadvantaged neighborhoods.

Importance of Low- and Moderate-Grade Adverse Events in Patients' Treatment Experience and Treatment Discontinuation: An Analysis of the E1912 Trial.

PURPOSE: Despite defined grades of 1 to 5 for adverse events (AEs) on the basis of Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events criteria, mild (G1) and moderate (G2) AEs are often not reported in phase III trials. This under-reporting may inhibit our ability to understand patient toxicity burden. We analyze the relationship between the grades of AEs experienced with patient side-effect bother and treatment discontinuation. METHODS: We analyzed a phase III Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group-American College of Radiology Imaging Network trial with comprehensive AE data. The Likert response Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-GP5 item, "I am bothered by side effects of treatment" was used to define side-effect bother. Bayesian mixed models were used to assess the impact of G1 and G2 AE counts on patient side-effect bother and treatment discontinuation. AEs were further analyzed on the basis of symptomatology (symptomatic or asymptomatic). The results are given as odds ratios (ORs) and 95% credible interval (CrI). RESULTS: Each additional G1 and G2 AEs experienced during a treatment cycle increased the odds of increased self-reported patient side-effect bother by 13% (95% CrI, 1.06 to 1.21) and 35% (95% CrI, 1.19 to 1.54), respectively. Furthermore, only AEs defined as symptomatic were associated with increased side-effect bother, with asymptomatic AEs showing no association regardless of grade. Count of G2 AEs increased the odds of treatment discontinuation by 59% (95% CrI, 1.32 to 1.95), with symptomatic G2 AEs showing a stronger association (OR, 1.75; 95% CrI, 1.28 to 2.39) relative to asymptomatic G2 AEs (OR, 1.45; 95% CrI, 1.12 to 1.89). CONCLUSION: Low- and moderate-grade AEs are related to increased odds of increased patient side-effect bother and treatment discontinuation, with symptomatic AEs demonstrating greater magnitude of association than asymptomatic. Our findings suggest that limiting AE capture to grade 3+ misses important contributors to treatment side-effect bother and discontinuation.

Cigarette and Alternative Tobacco Product Use among Adult Cancer Survivors Enrolled in 9 ECOG-ACRIN Clinical Trials.

BACKGROUND: While cigarette smoking has declined among the U.S. general population, sale and use of non-cigarette alternative tobacco products (ATP; e.g., e-cigarettes, cigars) and dual use of cigarettes/ATPs are rising. Little is known about ATP use patterns in cancer survivors enrolled in clinical trials. We investigated prevalence of tobacco product use, and factors associated with past 30-day use, among patients with cancer in national trials. METHODS: Cancer survivors (N = 756) enrolled in 9 ECOG-ACRIN clinical trials (2017-2021) completed a modified Cancer Patient Tobacco Use Questionnaire (C-TUQ) which assessed baseline cigarette and ATP use since cancer diagnosis and in the past 30 days. RESULTS: Patients were on average 59 years old, 70% male, and the mean time since cancer diagnosis was 26 months. Since diagnosis, cigarettes (21%) were the most common tobacco product used, followed by smokeless tobacco use (5%), cigars (4%), and e-cigarettes (2%). In the past 30 days, 12% of patients reported smoking cigarettes, 4% cigars, 4% using smokeless tobacco, and 2% e-cigarettes. Since cancer diagnosis, 5.5% of the sample reported multiple tobacco product use, and 3.0% reported multiple product use in the past 30 days. Males (vs. females; OR 4.33; P = 0 < 0.01) and individuals not living with another person who smokes (vs. living with; OR, 8.07; P = 0 < 0.01) were more likely to use ATPs only versus cigarettes only in the past 30 days. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with cancer, cigarettes were the most prevalent tobacco product reported. IMPACT: Regardless, ATPs and multiple tobacco product use should be routinely assessed in cancer care settings.

A phase II study of sapanisertib (TAK-228) a mTORC1/2 inhibitor in rapalog-resistant advanced pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PNET): ECOG-ACRIN EA2161.

This was a two-stage phase II trial of a mTORC1/2 inhibitor (mTORC: mammalian target of rapamycin complex) Sapanisertib (TAK228) in patients with rapalog-resistant pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PNETs) (NCT02893930). Approved rapalogs such as everolimus inhibit mTORC1 and have limited clinical activity, possibly due to compensatory feedback loops. Sapanisertib addresses the potential for incomplete inhibition of the mTOR pathway through targeting of both mTORC1 and mTORC2, and thus to reverse resistance to earlier rapamycin analogues. In stage 1, patients received sapanisertib 3 mg by mouth once daily on a continuous dosing schedule in 28-day cycle. This trial adopted a two-stage design with the primary objective of evaluating objective tumor response. The first stage would recruit 13 patients in order to accrue 12 eligible and treated patients. If among the 12 eligible patients at least 1 patient had an objective response to therapy, the study would move to the second stage of accrual where 25 eligible and treated patients would be enrolled. This study activated on February 1, 2017, the required pre-determined number of patients (n = 13) had entered by November 5, 2018 for the first stage response evaluation. The accrual of this trial was formally terminated on December 27, 2019 as no response had been observed after the first stage accrual. Treatment-related grade 3 adverse events were reported in eight (61%) patients with hyperglycemia being the most frequent, in three patients (23%). Other toxicities noted in the trial included fatigue, rash diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting. The median PFS was 5.19 months (95% CI [3.84, 9.30]) and the median OS was 20.44 months (95% CI [5.65, 22.54]). Due to the lack of responses in Stage 1 of the study, the study did not proceed to stage 2. Thus the potential to reverse resistance was not evident.

Examining allostatic load, neighborhood socioeconomic status, symptom burden and mortality in multiple myeloma patients.

The objective of this study is to examine the association between neighborhood socioeconomic status (nSES) and baseline allostatic load (AL) and clinical trial endpoints in patients enrolled in the E1A11 therapeutic trial in multiple myeloma (MM). Study endpoints were symptom burden (pain, fatigue, and bother) at baseline and 5.5 months, non-completion of induction therapy, overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS). Multivariable logistic and Cox regression examined associations between nSES, AL and patient outcomes. A 1-unit increase in baseline AL was associated with greater odds of high fatigue at baseline (adjusted OR [95% CI] = 1.21 [1.08-1.36]) and a worse OS (adjusted hazard ratio, [95% CI] = 1.21 [1.06-1.37]). High nSES was associated with worse baseline bother (middle OR = 4.22 [1.11-16.09] and high 4.49 [1.16-17.43]) compared to low nSES. There was no association between AL or nSES and symptom burden at 5.5 months, non-completion of induction therapy or PFS. Additionally, there was no association between nSES and OS. AL may have utility as a predictive marker for OS among patients with MM and may allow individualization of treatment. Future studies should standardize and validate AL patients with MM.

A randomized study of genetic education versus usual care in tumor profiling for advanced cancer in the ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group (EAQ152).

BACKGROUND: Enthusiasm for precision oncology may obscure the psychosocial and ethical considerations associated with the implementation of tumor genetic sequencing. METHODS: Patients with advanced cancer undergoing tumor-only genetic sequencing in the National Cancer Institute Molecular Analysis for Therapy Choice (MATCH) trial were randomized to a web-based genetic education intervention or usual care. The primary outcomes were knowledge, anxiety, depression, and cancer-specific distress collected at baseline (T0), posteducation (T1) and after results (T2). Two-sided, 2-sample t tests and univariate and multivariable generalized linear models were used. RESULTS: Five hundred ninety-four patients (80% from NCI Community Oncology Research Program sites) were randomized to the web intervention (n = 293) or usual care (n = 301) before the receipt of results. Patients in the intervention arm had greater increases in knowledge (P for T1-T0 < .0001; P for T2-T0 = .003), but there were no significant differences in distress outcomes. In unadjusted moderator analyses, there was a decrease in cancer-specific distress among women (T0-T1) in the intervention arm but not among men. Patients with lower health literacy in the intervention arm had greater increases in cancer-specific distress and less decline in general anxiety (T0-T1) and greater increases in depression (T0-T2) in comparison with those receiving usual care. CONCLUSIONS: Web-based genetic education before tumor-only sequencing results increases patient understanding and reduces distress in women. Refinements to the intervention could benefit low-literacy groups and men.

Tolerability of bevacizumab and chemotherapy in a phase 3 clinical trial with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative breast cancer: A trajectory analysis of adverse events.

BACKGROUND: E5103 was a study designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of bevacizumab. It was a negative trial for the end points of invasive disease-free survival and overall survival. The current work examines the tolerability of bevacizumab and other medication exposures with respect to clinical outcomes and patient-reported outcomes (PROs). METHODS: Adverse events (AEs) collected from the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events were summarized to form an AE profile at each treatment cycle. All-grade and high-grade events were separately analyzed. The change in the AE profile over the treatment cycle was delineated as distinct AE trajectory clusters. AE-related and any-reason early treatment discontinuations were treated as clinical outcome measures. PROs were measured with the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Breast + Lymphedema. The relationships between the AE trajectory and early treatment discontinuation as well as PROs were analyzed. RESULTS: More than half of all AEs (57.5%) were low-grade. A cluster of patients with broad and mixed AE (all-grade) trajectory grades was significantly associated with any-reason early treatment discontinuation (odds ratio [OR], 2.87; P = .01) as well as AE-related discontinuation (OR, 4.14; P = .001). This cluster had the highest count of all-grade AEs per cycle in comparison with other clusters. Another cluster of patients with primary neuropathic AEs in their trajectories had poorer physical well-being in comparison with a trajectory of no or few AEs (P < .01). A high-grade AE trajectory did not predict discontinuations. CONCLUSIONS: A sustained and cumulative burden of across-the-board toxicities, which were not necessarily all recognized as high-grade AEs, contributed to early treatment discontinuation. Patients with neuropathic all-grade AEs may require additional attention for preventing deterioration in their physical well-being.

CNS involvement in AML at diagnosis is rare and does not affect response or survival: data from 11 ECOG-ACRIN trials.

Central nervous system (CNS) involvement in patients with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is rare, and systematic data regarding outcome are scarce. This retrospective study summarized data from 11 consecutive Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group-American College of Radiology Imaging Network (ECOG-ACRIN) clinical trials for patients with newly diagnosed AML. In all, 3240 patients with AML were analyzed, and 36 (1.11%) were found to have CNS involvement at diagnosis. The incidence of CNS disease among the 5 studies with per protocol mandatory lumbar puncture (LP) was similar to the incidence among studies in which LP was performed at the discretion of the investigator (0.86% vs 1.41%; P = .18). There was no significant difference in the rate of complete remission (CR) among patients with CNS involvement and those with other extramedullary disease (EMD) sites or those with no EMD (52.8% vs 59.3%-60%). The median overall survival (OS) for patients who were CNS positive, who had other EMD, or who had no EMD was 11.4, 11.3, and 12.7 months, respectively. There was no difference in OS among patients with CNS involvement, those with other EMD (hazard ratio [HR], 0.96; adjusted P = .84), and those with no EMD (HR, 1.19; adjusted P = .44). In conclusion, the reported incidence of CNS involvement in patients with newly diagnosed AML is low (1.1%), irrespective of whether an LP is mandatory or not. The presence of CNS disease at diagnosis in and of itself does not seem to portend a poor prognosis for achieving an initial CR or for OS.

Chemotherapy and radiotherapy in locally advanced head and neck cancer: an individual patient data network meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Randomised, controlled trials and meta-analyses have shown the survival benefit of concomitant chemoradiotherapy or hyperfractionated radiotherapy in the treatment of locally advanced head and neck cancer. However, the relative efficacy of these treatments is unknown. We aimed to determine whether one treatment was superior to the other. METHODS: We did a frequentist network meta-analysis based on individual patient data of meta-analyses evaluating the role of chemotherapy (Meta-Analysis of Chemotherapy in Head and Neck Cancer [MACH-NC]) and of altered fractionation radiotherapy (Meta-Analysis of Radiotherapy in Carcinomas of Head and Neck [MARCH]). Randomised, controlled trials that enrolled patients with non-metastatic head and neck squamous cell cancer between Jan 1, 1980, and Dec 31, 2016, were included. We used a two-step random-effects approach, and the log-rank test, stratified by trial to compare treatments, with locoregional therapy as the reference. Overall survival was the primary endpoint. The global Cochran Q statistic was used to assess homogeneity and consistency and P score to rank treatments (higher scores indicate more effective therapies). FINDINGS: 115 randomised, controlled trials, which enrolled patients between Jan 1, 1980, and April 30, 2012, yielded 154 comparisons (28 978 patients with 19 253 deaths and 20 579 progression events). Treatments were grouped into 16 modalities, for which 35 types of direct comparisons were available. Median follow-up based on all trials was 6·6 years (IQR 5·0-9·4). Hyperfractionated radiotherapy with concomitant chemotherapy (HFCRT) was ranked as the best treatment for overall survival (P score 97%; hazard ratio 0·63 [95% CI 0·51-0·77] compared with locoregional therapy). The hazard ratio of HFCRT compared with locoregional therapy with concomitant chemoradiotherapy with platinum-based chemotherapy (CLRTP) was 0·82 (95% CI 0·66-1·01) for overall survival. The superiority of HFCRT was robust to sensitivity analyses. Three other modalities of treatment had a better P score, but not a significantly better HR, for overall survival than CLRTP (P score 78%): induction chemotherapy with taxane, cisplatin, and fluorouracil followed by locoregional therapy (ICTaxPF-LRT; 89%), accelerated radiotherapy with concomitant chemotherapy (82%), and ICTaxPF followed by CLRT (80%). INTERPRETATION: The results of this network meta-analysis suggest that further intensifying chemoradiotherapy, using HFCRT or ICTaxPF-CLRT, could improve outcomes over chemoradiotherapy for the treatment of locally advanced head and neck cancer. FUNDINGS: French Institut National du Cancer, French Ligue Nationale Contre le Cancer, and Fondation ARC.

Meta-analysis of chemotherapy in head and neck cancer (MACH-NC): An update on 107 randomized trials and 19,805 patients, on behalf of MACH-NC Group.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The Meta-Analysis of Chemotherapy in squamous cell Head and Neck Cancer (MACH-NC) demonstrated that concomitant chemotherapy (CT) improved overall survival (OS) in patients without distant metastasis. We report the updated results. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Published or unpublished randomized trials including patients with non-metastatic carcinoma randomized between 1965 and 2016 and comparing curative loco-regional treatment (LRT) to LRT + CT or adding another timing of CT to LRT + CT (main question), or comparing induction CT + radiotherapy to radiotherapy + concomitant (or alternating) CT (secondary question) were eligible. Individual patient data were collected and combined using a fixed-effect model. OS was the main endpoint. RESULTS: For the main question, 101 trials (18951 patients, median follow-up of 6.5 years) were analyzed. For both questions, there were 16 new (2767 patients) and 11 updated trials. Around 90% of the patients had stage III or IV disease. Interaction between treatment effect on OS and the timing of CT was significant (p < 0.0001), the benefit being limited to concomitant CT (HR: 0.83, 95%CI [0.79; 0.86]; 5(10)-year absolute benefit of 6.5% (3.6%)). Efficacy decreased as patients age increased (p_trend = 0.03). OS was not increased by the addition of induction (HR = 0.96 [0.90; 1.01]) or adjuvant CT (1.02 [0.92; 1.13]). Efficacy of induction CT decreased with poorer performance status (p_trend = 0.03). For the secondary question, eight trials (1214 patients) confirmed the superiority of concomitant CT on OS (HR = 0.84 [0.74; 0.95], p = 0.005). CONCLUSION: The update of MACH-NC confirms the benefit and superiority of the addition of concomitant CT for non-metastatic head and neck cancer.

Tumor Genomic Profiling Practices and Perceptions: A Survey of Physicians Participating in the NCI-MATCH Trial.

PURPOSE: To identify factors that may influence physician participation in tumor profiling studies and to assess the routine use of tumor profiling in clinical practice. METHODS: Physicians in the National Cancer Institute-Molecular Analysis for Therapy Choice (NCI-MATCH) were invited to participate in an electronic survey consisting of 73 questions related to participation in genomic profiling studies, tumor profiling practices and education during usual patient care, and physician background and practice characteristics. RESULTS: The survey response rate was 8.9% (171 surveys returned of 1,931 sent). A majority of respondents practiced in academic medical centers (AMCs). Participation in NCI-MATCH increased workload and cost but resulted in increased professional satisfaction, confidence in treatment recommendation, and subsequent use of tumor profiling. Barriers to patient participation included length of wait time for results and lack of a therapeutic option from the testing. Physicians who worked in AMCs reported a higher use of tumor profiling than did those who worked in non-AMC settings (43% v 18%; P = .0009). Access to a molecular tumor board was perceived as valuable by 56%. The study identified a need for educational materials to guide both physicians and patients in the field of genomic profiling. CONCLUSION: Physicians who participate in NCI-MATCH perceive value to patient treatment that outweighs the additional effort required; survey results help identify barriers that may limit participation. The current findings have implications for the design of future genomic and other profiling studies.

Validation of brief symptom indexes among patients with recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck: A trial of the ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group (E1302).

BACKGROUND: Patients with advanced head and neck cancer have identified pain, fatigue, and difficulties swallowing, breathing, and communicating as high-priority disease-related symptoms. The Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Head and Neck Symptom Index-10 (FHNSI-10) assesses these symptoms. We sought to validate the FHNSI-10, another brief symptom index (FHNSI-7), and individual symptom endpoints representing these high-rated priority disease symptoms among patients with recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN). METHODS: Patients (N = 239) were enrolled in a phase III randomized clinical trial (E1302) and completed the FHNSI-10 at multiple time points. We assessed the internal consistencies and test-retest reliabilities of the FHNSI-10 and FHNSI-7 scores, and the known-groups validity, predictive criterion validity, and responsiveness-to-change of the symptom indexes and individual symptom endpoint scores. RESULTS: The FHNSI-10 and FHNSI-7 indexes showed satisfactory internal consistencies (Cronbach's alpha coefficient range 0.60-0.75) and acceptable test-retest reliabilities (intraclass correlation coefficients = 0.75 and 0.74, respectively). The FHNSI-10, FHNSI-7, and the pain, fatigue, swallowing, and breathing symptom scores showed evidence of known-groups validity by performance status at baseline. The FHNSI-10, FHNSI-7, and the pain, fatigue, and breathing symptom scores at baseline showed evidence of predictive criterion validity for overall survival, but not time-to-progression (TTP). Changes in the symptom indexes and individual symptom scores were not associated with changes in performance status over 4 weeks, though most patients had stable performance status. CONCLUSIONS: There is initial evidence of validity for the FHNSI-10 and FHNSI-7 indexes and selected individual symptom endpoints as brief disease-related symptom assessments for patients with recurrent or metastatic SCCHN.

Phase II Study of Immunotherapy With Tecemotide and Bevacizumab After Chemoradiation in Patients With Unresectable Stage III Non-Squamous Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer (NS-NSCLC): A Trial of the ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group (E6508).

INTRODUCTION: Although chemoradiotherapy (CRT) is the standard of care for patients with unresectable stage III non-small-cell lung cancer (LA-NSCLC), most patients relapse. Tecemotide is a MUC1 antigen-specific cancer immunotherapy vaccine. Bevacizumab improves survival in advanced nonsquamous (NS)-NSCLC and has a role in immune modulation. This phase II trial tested the combination of tecemotide and bevacizumab following CRT in patients with LA-NSCLC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Subjects with stage III NS-NSCLC suitable for CRT received carboplatin/paclitaxel weekly + 66 Gy followed by 2 cycles of consolidation carboplatin/paclitaxel ≤ 4 weeks of completion of CRT (Step 1). Patients with partial response/stable disease after consolidation therapy were registered onto step 2, which was 6 weekly tecemotide injections followed by every 6 weekly injections and bevacizumab every 3 weeks for up to 34 doses. The primary endpoint was to determine the safety of this regimen. RESULTS: Seventy patients were enrolled; 68 patients (median age, 63 years; 56% male; 57% stage IIIA) initiated therapy, but only 39 patients completed CRT and consolidation therapy per protocol, primarily owing to disease progression or toxicity. Thirty-three patients (median age, 61 years; 58% male; 61% stage IIIA) were registered to step 2 (tecemotide + bevacizumab). The median number of step 2 cycles received was 11 (range, 2-25). Step 2 worst toxicity included grade 3, N = 9; grade 4, N = 1; and grade 5, N = 1. Grade 5 toxicity in step 2 was esophageal perforation attributed to bevacizumab. Among the treated and eligible patients (n = 32) who were treated on step 2, the median overall survival was 42.7 months (95% confidence interval, 21.7-63.3 months), and the median progression-free survival was 14.9 months (95% confidence interval, 11.0-20.9 months) from step 1 registration. CONCLUSIONS: This cooperative group trial met its endpoint, demonstrating tolerability of bevacizumab + tecemotide after CRT and consolidation. In this selected group of patients, the median progression-free survival and overall survival are encouraging. Given that consolidation immunotherapy is now a standard of care following CRT in patients with LA-NSCLC, these results support a role for continued investigation of antiangiogenic and immunotherapy combinations in LA-NSCLC.

Testing Symptom Severity Thresholds and Potential Alerts for Clinical Intervention in Patients With Cancer Undergoing Chemotherapy.

PURPOSE: Symptom monitoring is attracting attention as a way to improve adherence to cancer therapy, reduce treatment-related toxicities, and possibly improve overall survival. How reporting thresholds affect symptom alert generation and clinical outcomes is poorly understood. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We analyzed data from 38 US health care institutions collected for the prospective Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group-American College of Radiology Imaging Network E2Z02 Symptom Outcomes and Practice Patterns study. Participants were outpatients receiving chemotherapy for breast (n = 642), colorectal (n = 486), or lung cancer (n = 340) who rated symptom severity using the MD Anderson Symptom Inventory at 2 assessment points 1 month apart. Percentages of patients with pain, dyspnea, fatigue, or distress at different thresholds (score of 4-7 on a 0-10 scale) were compared. The percentage of patients whose performance status had worsened at follow-up was used to estimate risk for missing clinically important symptom data by using higher severity thresholds. RESULTS: At the guideline-recommended threshold of ≥ 4, suprathreshold rates were 60% for any of the 4 symptoms at the initial survey; performance status worsened at follow-up for 27% of all patients with any symptom rated ≥ 4 at the initiate survey. When the threshold was increased to ≥ 7, approximately half of patients (51%) with worsened performance status were not identified. CONCLUSION: The burden to clinicians from an alert threshold of ≥ 4 (per many current guidelines) would be substantial. However, setting higher alert thresholds may miss a large percentage of patients who need clinical intervention. These results may inform resource planning when implementing electronic symptom screening at an institutional or practice level.

PTEN loss is associated with resistance to cetuximab in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

INTRODUCTION: Cetuximab, a monoclonal antibody to the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), extends survival in combination with standard therapy in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). However, as effects are modest, and patients experience side effects, a biomarker to predict resistance and personalize therapy is needed. Activation of signaling pathways downstream from receptor tyrosine kinases predicts resistance to such therapies in other cancers. The most common abnormalities downstream from EGFR in HNSCC are in the PI3K pathway, activated via loss of expression of the regulator PTEN, or via PI3K mutation. We studied whether PTEN and/or PI3K abnormalities predict resistance to cetuximab. METHODS: Tumor PTEN and PIK3CA/PI3K p110α were analyzed in samples from subjects treated on two trials of cetuximab-based therapy for patients with metastatic or recurrent HNSCC: E5397, a randomized trial of cisplatin plus placebo versus cisplatin plus cetuximab; and NCI-8070, a randomized trial of cetuximab plus sorafenib versus cetuximab. In situ quantification of PTEN and PI3K p110 α was performed using the AQUA™ method of quantitative immunofluorescence. PI3KCA hot spot mutations were determined with BEAMing. RESULTS: For E5397, in multivariable analysis, PTEN expressing/PIK3CA WT patients tended to improve PFS with cetuximab compared to placebo (N = 48; HR = 0.54, Wald p = 0.0502). High PTEN expression was significantly associated with superior PFS among patients treated on NCI-8070 (N = 37; HR = 0.35, p = 0.008). CONCLUSION: Loss of PTEN expression may be associated with lack of benefit from cetuximab. This analysis is limited by small sample size, and PTEN as a potential predictive biomarker merits validation in larger sample sets.

Double-blind, randomized phase 3 trial of low-dose 13-cis retinoic acid in the prevention of second primaries in head and neck cancer: Long-term follow-up of a trial of the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group-ACRIN Cancer Research Group (C0590).

BACKGROUND: 13-Cis retinoic acid (13-CRA) is a synthetic vitamin A derivative. High-dose 13-CRA in patients with squamous cell cancers of the head and neck (SCCHNs) reduces the incidence of second primary tumors (SPTs). The authors report long-term results from a phase 3 randomized trial that compared treatment with low-dose 13-CRA versus placebo for patients who had early stage SCCHN, with a focus on the development of SPTs and overall survival (OS). METHODS: In total, 176 patients who received treatment for stage I/II SCCHN were randomized to receive either low-dose 13-CRA (weight-based dose of 7.5 mg or 10 mg) or placebo for 2 years. A competing-risk approach and the log-rank test were used to compare the time to SPT and OS, respectively, between groups. RESULTS: 13-CRA neither significantly reduced the cumulative incidence of SPT (P = .61) nor improved the time to SPT (hazard ratio [HR] for 13-CRA/placebo; 0.86; P = .61). Despite limited power, there was a trend toward improved OS for the 13-CRA arm (HR, 0.75; P = .14), particularly among patients whose index tumor was surgically excised (N = 26; HR, 0.50; P = .057) and among women (N = 39; HR, 0.44; P = .065) and never/former smokers (N = 129; HR, 0.61; P = .055), with a median follow-up of 16 years. The main 13-CRA related toxicities were dry skin and cheilitis. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment with low-dose 13-CRA for 2 years did not decrease the incidence of SPT; subset analysis indicates a potential survival advantage among patients who are women and never/former smokers. More targeted interventions based on clinical risk factors and molecular characterization of tumors may yield greater success in future prevention trials. Cancer 2017;123:4653-4662. © 2017 American Cancer Society.

Determinants of fatal bleeding during induction therapy for acute promyelocytic leukemia in the ATRA era.

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is commonly complicated by a complex coagulopathy. Uncertainty remains as to which markers of bleeding risk are independent predictors. Drawing from 5 large clinical trials that included all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) as part of induction, we assessed known determinants of bleeding at baseline and evaluated them as potential predictors of hemorrhagic death (HD) in the first 30 days of treatment. The studies included were ALLG APML3 (single arm of ATRA + idarubicin ± prednisone), ALLG APML4 (single arm of ATRA + idarubicin + arsenic trioxide + prednisone), CALGB C9710 (single arm of ATRA + cytarabine + daunorubicin), Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group-American College of Radiology Imaging Network (ECOG-ACRIN) E2491 (intergroup I0129, consisting of daunorubicin + cytarabine vs ATRA), and SWOG S0521 (single-arm induction of ATRA + cytarabine + daunorubicin). A total of 1009 patients were included in the original trials, of which 995 had sufficient data to be included in our multivariate analysis. In this final cohort, there were 37 HD cases during the first 30 days following induction, for an estimated cumulative incidence of 3.7% (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.6% to 5.0%). Using multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression, the hazard ratio of HD in the first 30 days was 2.17 (95% CI, 0.84-5.62) for an ECOG performance status of 3-4 vs 0-2 and 5.20 (95% CI, 2.70-10.02) for a white blood cell count of ≥20 000/µL vs <20 000/µL. In this large cohort of APL patients, high white blood cell count emerged as an independent predictor of early HD.

Telomere Length Recovery: A Strong Predictor of Overall Survival in Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia.

Telomeres are the capping ends of chromosomes that protect the loss of genetic material and prevent chromosomal instability. In human tissue-specific stem/progenitor cells, telomere length (TL) is maintained by the telomerase complex, which consists of a reverse transcriptase catalytic subunit (TERT) and an RNA template (TERC). Very short telomeres and loss-of-function mutations in the TERT and TERC genes have been reported in acute myeloid leukemia, but the role of telomeres in acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) has not been well established. We report the results for a large cohort of 187 PML/RARα-positive APL patients. No germline mutations in the TERT or TERC genes were identified. Codon 279 and 1062 TERT polymorphisms were present at a frequency similar to that in the general population. TL measured in blood or marrow mononuclear cells at diagnosis was significantly shorter in the APL patients than in healthy volunteers, and shorter telomeres at diagnosis were significantly associated with high-risk disease. For patients who achieved complete remission, the median increase in TL from diagnosis to remission (delta TL) was 2.0 kilobase (kb), and we found delta TL to be the most powerful predictor of overall survival when compared with well-established risk factors for poor outcomes in APL.

Extramedullary Disease in Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia Is Common but Lacks Independent Significance: Analysis of Patients in ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group Trials, 1980-2008.

Purpose Extramedullary disease (EMD) at diagnosis in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) has been recognized for decades. Reported herein are results from a large study of patients with AML who were treated in consecutive ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group frontline clinical trials in an attempt to define the incidence and clinical implications of EMD. Methods Patients with newly diagnosed AML, age 15 years and older, who were treated in 11 clinical trials, were studied to identify EMD, as defined by physical examination, laboratory findings, and imaging results. Results Of the 3,522 patients enrolled, 282 were excluded, including patients with acute promyelocytic leukemia, incorrect diagnosis, or no adequate assessment of EMD at baseline. The overall incidence of EMD was 23.7%. The sites involved were: lymph nodes (11.5%), spleen (7.3%), liver (5.3%), skin (4.5%), gingiva (4.4%), and CNS (1.1%). Most patients (65.3%) had only one site of EMD, 20.9% had two sites, 9.5% had three sites, and 3.4% had four sites. The median overall survival was 1.035 years. In univariable analysis, the presence of any EMD ( P = .005), skin involvement ( P = .002), spleen ( P < .001), and liver ( P < .001), but not CNS ( P = .34), nodal involvement ( P = .94), and gingival hypertrophy ( P = .24), was associated with a shorter overall survival. In contrast, in multivariable analysis, adjusted for known prognostic factors such as cytogenetic risk and WBC count, neither the presence of EMD nor the number of specific sites of EMD were independently prognostic. Conclusion This large study demonstrates that EMD at any site is common but is not an independent prognostic factor. Treatment decisions for patients with EMD should be made on the basis of recognized AML prognostic factors, irrespective of the presence of EMD.