Limitations of the endoscopic endonasal transcribriform approach.

The endoscopic endonasal transcribriform approach (EETA) has become a useful strategy in the treatment of various anterior skull base pathologies, including meningoencephaloceles, olfactory groove meningiomas, schwannomas, esthesioneuroblastomas, and other sinonasal malignancies. However, not all pathologies are optimally treated through this approach due to tumor size, extent of the lesion, vascular involvement, and the presence of intact olfaction. One must be prepared to use a transcranial approach if the EETA is not favorable. In some patients, a combined approach (transcranial-EETA) may be needed in appropriate cases. Therefore, patient selection is paramount for achieving a successful result with avoidance of complications. For certain tumors, the limitations of the EETA may result in lower rates of gross-total resection, higher rates of cerebrospinal fluid leakage, postoperative impairment of olfaction, and higher complication rates. In this paper, we discuss the limitations of the EETA when considering approach selection to treat anterior skull base lesions.

A novel missense mutation in the NADPH binding domain of CYBB abolishes the NADPH oxidase activity in a male patient with increased susceptibility to infections

Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is a primary immunodeficiency caused by mutations in the five structural genes (CYBB, CYBA, NCF1, NCF2, and NCF4) that typically results in a decrease in function or inability to generate a respiratory burst, leading to defective killing of pathogens, including fungi and intracellular bacteria. Mutations in CYBB, encoding the gp91 phox (also known as NOX2) result in X-linked CGD account for approximately 65% of CGD cases. Here, we aimed the characterization of a novel missense mutation c.1226C > A/p.A409E in the CYBB gene in a patient with X-linked CGD. Relevant clinical data of a male patient whose family was positive for XCGD was reviewed. Oxidative burst and NADPH protein expression was evaluated by flow cytometry, while Genetic analysis was performed by Sanger sequencing. Monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) were evaluated for their capacity for phagocytosis and growth suppression of the intracellular Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis). We thus report the absence of an oxidative burst in the phagocytes of the patient. Flow cytometry evaluation revealed a normal expression of NADPH oxidase components in neutrophils and genetic analysis proved the existence of a novel missense c.1226C > A mutation in the CYBB gene resulting in p.A409E. Further, we have showed that the patient's MDMs were unhindered in their ability to take up mycobacteria normally. Instead, the MDMs failed to control the intracellular proliferation of M. tuberculosis, a phenotype that improved in the presence of recombinant human interferon-gamma (rhIFN-gamma). This work expands the genetic spectrum of X-linked CGD and demonstrates improvement in macrophage function in X91(+)CGD patient by rhIFN-gamma. 

Bone marrow recovery and subsequent chemotherapy following radiolabeled anti-prostate-specific membrane antigen monoclonal antibody j591 in men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

Radioimmunotherapy (RIT) has demonstrated efficacy with acceptable toxicity leading to approval in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, but has been slower to develop for the treatment of advanced solid tumors. Prostate cancer (PC) represents a good candidate for RIT based upon high exposure to circulating antibodies at common disease sites with a specific, highly expressed cell-surface antigen of prostate-specific membrane antigen. Four phase I and II trials utilizing (177)Lu- or (90)Y-J591 have been reported. Long-term toxicity and chemotherapy administration was analyzed. As expected, the only serious toxicity observed was myelosuppression. Grade 4 thrombocytopenia occurred in 33.3% without significant hemorrhage and grade 4 neutropenia occurred in 17.3% with 0.07% febrile neutropenia. Nearly all subjects (97.3%) recovered to grade 0 or 1 platelets and all had complete neutrophil recovery. The majority (81.3%) received chemotherapy at any time, with 61.3% receiving chemotherapy following RIT. Ten subjects underwent bone marrow biopsies at some point in their disease course following RIT for low counts; all had diffuse PC infiltration without evidence of myelodysplasia or leukemia. As expected, myelosuppression occurs following therapeutic doses of RIT for men with metastatic castration-resistant PC. However, toxicity is predictable and self-limited, with the majority of patients who do not refuse able to receive cytotoxic chemotherapy following RIT.

Phase II study of Lutetium-177-labeled anti-prostate-specific membrane antigen monoclonal antibody J591 for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

PURPOSE: To assess the efficacy of a single infusion of radiolabeled anti-prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) monoclonal antibody J591 (lutetium-177; (177)Lu) by prostate-specific antigen (PSA) decline, measurable disease response, and survival. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: In this dual-center phase II study, two cohorts with progressive metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer received one dose of (177)Lu-J591 (15 patients at 65 mCi/m(2), 17 at 70 mCi/m(2)) with radionuclide imaging. Expansion cohort (n = 15) received 70 mCi/m(2) to verify response rate and examine biomarkers. RESULTS: Forty-seven patients who progressed after hormonal therapies (55.3% also received prior chemotherapy) received (177)Lu-J591. A total of 10.6% experienced ≥50% decline in PSA, 36.2% experienced ≥30% decline, and 59.6% experienced any PSA decline following their single treatment. One of 12 with measurable disease experienced a partial radiographic response (8 with stable disease). Sites of prostate cancer metastases were targeted in 44 of 47 (93.6%) as determined by planar imaging. All experienced reversible hematologic toxicity, with grade 4 thrombocytopenia occurring in 46.8% (29.8% received platelet transfusions) without significant hemorrhage. A total of 25.5% experienced grade 4 neutropenia, with one episode of febrile neutropenia. The phase I maximum tolerated dose (70 mCi/m(2)) resulted in more 30% PSA declines (46.9% vs. 13.3%, P = 0.048) and longer survival (21.8 vs. 11.9 months, P = 0.03), but also more grade 4 hematologic toxicity and platelet transfusions. No serious nonhematologic toxicity occurred. Those with poor PSMA imaging were less likely to respond. CONCLUSION: A single dose of (177)Lu-J591 was well tolerated with reversible myelosuppression. Accurate tumor targeting and PSA responses were seen with evidence of dose response. Imaging biomarkers seem promising.

PSMA-targeted dendrimers: a patent evaluation (WO2012078534).

Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) is a cell surface protein expressed primarily in prostate cancer and solid tumor neovasculature. PSMA has been a target for both imaging and therapeutic investigations due to its increased expression in advanced disease and in prostate cancer patients receiving hormonal therapy. The recent approval of new androgen receptor pathway targeted drugs for prostate cancer has sharply increased this interest in creating novel probes to measure this disease-specific biomarker. Monoclonal antibodies and small molecules targeting PSMA, however, have been investigated for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes, with only limited success. In fact, only one agent (monoclonal antibody agent - capromab pendetide) has been FDA-approved for human use. PSMA-targeting dendrimers may provide a targeting method that might maintain the specificity of monoclonal antibodies, achieve high levels of tumor concentration (similar to small molecule antagonist ligands) and avoid accumulation in non-target sites of PSMA expression (such as renal tubules). The current patent application provides theoretical evidence for the advantage of PSMA-targeting dendrimers with in vitro data for PSMA binding, but lacks sufficient preclinical animal binding, dosimetry and toxicology data.

Prostate-specific membrane antigen-based imaging.

Prostate cancer (CaP) is the most common noncutaneous malignancy affecting men in North America. Despite significant efforts, conventional imaging of CaP does not contribute to patient management as much as imaging performed for other common cancers. Given the lack of specificity in conventional imaging techniques, one possible solution is to screen for CaP-specific antigenic targets and generate agents able to specifically bind. Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) is overexpressed in CaP tissue, with low levels of expression in the small intestine, renal tubular cells, and salivary gland. The first clinical agent for targeting PSMA was (111)In-capromab, involving an antibody recognizing the internal domain of PSMA. The second- and third-generation humanized PSMA binding antibodies have the potential to overcome some of the limitations inherent to capromab penditide (i.e., inability to bind to live CaP cells). One example is the humanized monoclonal antibody J591 (Hu mAb J591) that was developed primarily for therapeutic purposes but also has interesting imaging characteristics, including the identification of bone metastases in CaP. The major disadvantage of use of mAb for imaging is slow target recognition and background clearance in an appropriate time frame for diagnostic imaging. Urea-based compounds, such as small molecule inhibitors may also present promising agents for CaP imaging with single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and positron emission tomography (PET). Two such small-molecule inhibitors targeting PSMA, MIP-1072, and MIP-1095 have exhibited high affinity for PSMA. The uptake of (123)I-MIP-1072 and (123)I-MIP-1095 in CaP xenografts have imaged successfully with favorable properties amenable to human trials. While advances in conventional imaging will continue, Ab and small molecule imaging exemplified by PSMA targeting have the greatest potential to improve diagnostic sensitivity and specificity.

Circulating tumor cells from prostate cancer patients interact with E-selectin under physiologic blood flow.

Hematogenous metastasis accounts for the majority of cancer-related deaths, yet the mechanism remains unclear. Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in blood may employ different pathways to cross blood endothelial barrier and establish a metastatic niche. Several studies provide evidence that prostate cancer (PCa) cell tethering and rolling on microvascular endothelium via E-selectin/E-selectin ligand interactions under shear flow theoretically promote extravasation and contribute to the development of metastases. However, it is unknown if CTCs from PCa patients interact with E-selectin expressed on endothelium, initiating a route for tumor metastases. Here we report that CTCs derived from PCa patients showed interactions with E-selectin and E-selectin expressing endothelial cells. To examine E-selectin-mediated interactions of PCa cell lines and CTCs derived from metastatic PCa patients, we used fluorescently-labeled anti-prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA) monoclonal antibody J591-488 which is internalized following cell-surface binding. We employed a microscale flow device consisting of E-selectin-coated microtubes and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) on parallel-plate flow chamber simulating vascular endothelium. We observed that J591-488 did not significantly alter the rolling behavior in PCa cells at shear stresses below 3 dyn/cm(2). CTCs obtained from 31 PCa patient samples showed that CTCs tether and stably interact with E-selectin and E-selectin expressing HUVECs at physiological shear stress. Interestingly, samples collected during disease progression demonstrated significantly more CTC/E-selectin interactions than samples during times of therapeutic response (p=0.016). Analysis of the expression of sialyl Lewis X (sLe(x)) in patient samples showed that a small subset comprising 1.9-18.8% of CTCs possess high sLe(x) expression. Furthermore, E-selectin-mediated interactions between prostate CTCs and HUVECs were diminished in the presence of anti-E-selectin neutralizing antibody. CTC-Endothelial interactions provide a novel insight into potential adhesive mechanisms of prostate CTCs as a means to initiate metastasis.

Isolation and characterization of circulating tumor cells in prostate cancer.

UNLABELLED: Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are tumor cells found in the peripheral blood that putatively originate from established sites of malignancy and likely have metastatic potential. Analysis of CTCs has demonstrated promise as a prognostic marker as well as a source of identifying potential targets for novel therapeutics. Isolation and characterization of these cells for study, however, remain challenging owing to their rarity in comparison with other cellular components of the peripheral blood. Several techniques that exploit the unique biochemical properties of CTCs have been developed to facilitate their isolation. Positive selection of CTCs has been achieved using microfluidic surfaces coated with antibodies against epithelial cell markers or tumor-specific antigens such as EpCAM or prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA). Following isolation, characterization of CTCs may help guide clinical decision making. For instance, molecular and genetic characterization may shed light on the development of chemotherapy resistance and mechanisms of metastasis without the need for a tissue biopsy. This paper will review novel isolation techniques to capture CTCs from patients with advanced prostate cancer, as well as efforts to characterize the CTCs. We will also review how these analyzes can assist in clinical decision making. CONCLUSION: The study of CTCs provides insight into the molecular biology of tumors of prostate origin that will eventually guide the development of tailored therapeutics. These advances are predicated on high yield and accurate isolation techniques that exploit the unique biochemical features of these cells.

Review of salvage therapy for biochemically recurrent prostate cancer: the role of imaging and rationale for systemic salvage targeted anti-prostate-specific membrane antigen radioimmunotherapy.

Despite local therapy with curative intent, approximately 30% of men suffer from biochemical relapse. Though some of these PSA relapses are not life threatening, many men eventually progress to metastatic disease and die of prostate cancer. Local therapy is an option for some men, but many have progression of disease following local salvage attempts. One significant issue in this setting is the lack of reliable imaging biomarkers to guide the use of local salvage therapy, as the likely reason for a low cure rate is the presence of undetected micrometastatic disease outside of the prostate/prostate bed. Androgen deprivation therapy is a cornerstone of therapy in the salvage setting. While subsets may benefit in terms of delay in time to metastatic disease and/or death, research is ongoing to improve salvage systemic therapy. Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) is highly overexpressed by the majority of prostate cancers. While initial methods of exploiting PSMA's high and selective expression were suboptimal, additional work in both imaging and therapeutics is progressing. Salvage therapy and imaging modalities in this setting are briefly reviewed, and the rationale for PSMA-based systemic salvage radioimmunotherapy is described.

The current role of androgen deprivation in patients undergoing dose-escalated external beam radiation therapy for clinically localized prostate cancer.

Purpose. To review existing literature on the role of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) with dose escalated radiation therapy. Methods and Materials. A PubMed search was undertaken to identify relevant articles. Results. Multiple recent studies were identified examining the role of ADT in the current era of radiation dose-escalation. Among the reviewed studies, varying radiation doses and techniques, ADT regimens, and patient selection criteria were utilized. Conflicting results were reported, with some studies demonstrating a benefit of delivering a higher radiation dose with ADT. Other studies failed to show significant benefits with the addition of ADT to dose-escalated RT. Conclusions. The benefit of adding ADT to dose-escalated RT is still uncertain. Prospective randomized trials, several of which are ongoing, are necessary to more adequately examine this issue. In the interim, physicians and patients should continue to utilize the existing data to weigh the risks and benefits of each approach to therapy.

Prostate-specific membrane antigen-based therapeutics.

Prostate cancer (PC) is the most common noncutaneous malignancy affecting men in the US, leading to significant morbidity and mortality. While significant therapeutic advances have been made, available systemic therapeutic options are lacking. Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) is a highly-restricted prostate cell-surface antigen that may be targeted. While initial anti-PSMA monoclonal antibodies were suboptimal, the development of monoclonal antibodies such as J591 which are highly specific for the external domain of PSMA has allowed targeting of viable, intact prostate cancer cells. Radiolabeled J591 has demonstrated accurate and selective tumor targeting, safety, and efficacy. Ongoing studies using anti-PSMA radioimmunotherapy with (177)Lu-J591 seek to improve the therapeutic profile, select optimal candidates with biomarkers, combine with chemotherapy, and prevent or delay the onset of metastatic disease for men with biochemical relapse. Anti-PSMA monoclonal antibody-drug conjugates have also been developed with completed and ongoing early-phase clinical trials. As PSMA is a selective antigen that is highly overexpressed in prostate cancer, anti-PSMA-based immunotherapy has also been studied and utilized in clinical trials.