Improved overall survival in patients developing endocrine toxicity during treatment with nivolumab for advanced non-small cell lung cancer in a prospective study.

PURPOSE: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICPIs) disrupting PD-1/PD-L1 axis have revolutionized the management of advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Some studies identified the development of endocrine toxicity as predictor of better survival in cancer patients treated with ICPIs. The aim of study was to evaluate survival and new onset of immune-related endocrine adverse events (irAEs) in patients treated with nivolumab for advanced NSCLC. METHODS: In a prospective study, 73 patients with previously treated advanced NSCLC received nivolumab in monotherapy. Blood samples were collected at each cycle to monitor thyroid autoimmunity, thyroid, adrenal and somatotroph axes, while thyroid morphology was evaluated by ultrasonography. RESULTS: An impaired thyroid function was recorded in 23.4% of patients (n = 15). Eight patients developed asymptomatic transient thyrotoxicosis (ATT) evolving to hypothyroidism in 50% of cases. In addition, seven patients developed overt hypothyroidism without ATT and with negative autoantibodies. Patients who developed hypothyroidism proved to have better overall survival (OS) as compared with non-developers at both univariate (p = 0.021) and multivariate analyses (p = 0.023). The survival curve of patients with reduced IGF-I at baseline, or displaying its reduction during the follow-up, showed significantly reduced median survival compared to patients with normal/high IGF-I levels (p = 0.031). CONCLUSIONS: Thyroid function abnormalities are the major irAEs in patients treated with nivolumab, and hypothyroidism onset is associated with prolonged survival. Our findings indicate that the development of hypothyroidism is a positive predictive biomarker of nivolumab antitumor efficacy in patients with NSCLC. Low IGF-I levels could represent a negative prognostic factor during nivolumab therapy.

Clinical utility of circulating tumor DNA sequencing with a large panel: a National Center for Precision Medicine (PRISM) study.

BACKGROUND: Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) sequencing is a promising approach for tailoring therapy in patients with cancer. We report hereby the results from a prospective study where we investigated the impact of comprehensive molecular profiling of ctDNA in patients with advanced solid tumors. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Genomic analysis was performed using the FoundationOne Liquid CDx Assay [324 genes, tumor mutational burden (TMB), microsatellite instability status]. Each individual genomic report was reviewed and discussed weekly by a multidisciplinary tumor board (MTB). Actionable targets were classified by ESMO Scale for Clinical Actionability of Molecular Targets (ESCAT) tier leading to molecular-based treatment suggestions wherever it was possible. RESULTS: Between December 2020 and November 2021, 1772 patients with metastatic solid tumors underwent molecular profiling. Median time to assay results was 12 days. Results were contributive for 1658 patients (94%). At least one actionable target was detected in 1059 patients (64%) with a total of 1825 actionable alterations including alteration of the DNA damage repair response pathway (n = 336, 18%), high TMB (>16 mutations/Mb; n = 243, 13%), PIK3CA mutations (n = 150, 8%), ERBB family pathway alterations (n = 127, 7%), PTEN alterations (n = 95, 5%), FGFR alterations (n = 67, 4%) and MET activations (n = 13, 0.7%). The MTB recommended a matched therapy for 597 patients (56%) with a total of 819 therapeutic orientations: clinical trials (n = 639, 78%), off-label/compassionate use (n = 81, 10%), approved drug (n = 51, 6%), and early access program (n = 48, 6%). In total, 122 patients (21%) were treated. Among the assessable patients (n = 107), 4 (4%) had complete response, 35 (33%) had partial response, 27 (25%) had stable disease, and 41 (38%) a progressive disease as best response. The median progression-free survival and median overall survival were 4.7 months (95% confidence interval 2.7-6.7 months) and 8.3 months (95% confidence interval 4.7-11.9 months) respectively. CONCLUSIONS: ctDNA sequencing with a large panel is an efficient approach to match patients with advanced cancer with targeted therapies.

Impact of COVID-19 on social media as perceived by the oncology community: results from a survey in collaboration with the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) and the OncoAlert Network.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted all aspects of modern-day oncology, including how stakeholders communicate through social media. We surveyed oncology stakeholders in order to assess their attitudes pertaining to social media and how it has been affected during the pandemic. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A 40-item survey was distributed to stakeholders from 8 July to 22 July 2020 and was promoted through the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) and the OncoAlert Network. RESULTS: One thousand and seventy-six physicians and stakeholders took part in the survey. In total, 57.3% of respondents were medical oncologists, 50.6% aged <40 years, 50.8% of female gender and mostly practicing in Europe (51.5%). More than 90% of respondents considered social media a useful tool for distributing scientific information and for education. Most used social media to stay up to date on cancer care in general (62.5%) and cancer care during COVID-19 (61%) given the constant flow of information. Respondents also used social media to interact with other oncologists (78.8%) and with patients (34.4%). Overall, 61.1% of respondents were satisfied with the role that social media was playing during the COVID-19 pandemic. On the other hand, 41.1% of respondents reported trouble in discriminating between credible and less credible information and 30% stated social networks were a source of stress. For this reason, one-third of respondents reduced its use during the COVID-19 pandemic. Regarding meeting attendance, a total of 59.1% of responding physicians preferred in-person meetings to virtual ones, and 51.8% agreed that virtual meetings and social distancing could hamper effective collaboration. CONCLUSION: Social media has a useful role in supporting cancer care and professional engagement in oncology. Although one-third of respondents reported reduced use of social media due to stress during the COVID-19 pandemic, the majority found social media useful to keep up to date and were satisfied with the role social media was playing during the pandemic.

Resistin is associated with overall survival in non-small cell lung cancer patients during nivolumab treatment.

PURPOSE: Since the role of resistin was evaluated only in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) not treated with immunotherapy, we aimed to evaluate levels of resistin during immunotherapy (nivolumab) and its prognostic role with regard to OS. METHODS/PATIENTS: From a cohort of 78 patients with advanced NSCLC enrolled in a prospective study at Ospedale Policlinico San Martino in Genoa (Italy), 43 patients have been considered for this sub-analysis because of the availability of samples. Before and during nivolumab administration, clinical information and blood samples were collected and resistin, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-8, MMP-9, and myeloperoxidase were evaluated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). RESULTS: Median age was 71 with a prevalence of males and former smokers. Median resistin levels presented a peak at cycle 2 and then dropped down until the last cycle. Resistin correlated with all neutrophil degranulation products at cycle 1 (except for MMP-9) and at cycle 2 as well as with white blood cells and neutrophils. By a ROC curve analysis, a resistin value at cycle 2 of 19 ng/mL was tested as the best cut-off point for OS. Kaplan-Meier analysis demonstrated that patients above the resistin cut-off experienced a reduced OS (median OS 242.5 vs. 470 days, p = 0.0073), as confirmed by Cox proportional hazards regression analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Resistin levels > 19 ng/mL at the time of the second cycle of nivolumab treatment independently predict a reduced OS in patients with advanced NSCLC.

The role of CEA, CYFRA21-1 and NSE in monitoring tumor response to Nivolumab in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients.

BACKGROUND: CEA, CYFRA21-1 and NSE are tumor markers used for monitoring the response to chemotherapy in advanced adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and small-cell lung cancer, respectively. Their role in cancer immunotherapy needs to be elucidated. METHODS: Patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) were treated with nivolumab 3 mg/kg every 2 weeks within the Italian Nivolumab Expanded Access Program. Blood samples were collected at baseline, at each cycle up to cycle 5 and then every two cycles until patient's withdrawn from the study. All patients underwent a CT-scan after every 4 cycles of treatment and responses were classified according to RECIST 1.1. The biomarkers serum levels were measured with a chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay for CEA and with an immuno radiometric assay for CYFRA21-1 and NSE. The markers values at baseline and after 4 cycles were used to analyze the relationship between their variation over baseline and the tumor response, evaluated as disease control rate (DCR: CR + PR + SD), and survival (PFS and OS). RESULTS: A total of 70 patients were evaluable for the analysis. Overall, a disease control was obtained in 24 patients (35.8%, 4 PR + 20 SD). After 4 cycles of nivolumab a CEA or CYFRA21-1 reduction ≥ 20% over the baseline was significantly associated with DCR (CEA, p = 0.021; CYFRA21-1, p < 0.001), PFS (CEA, p = 0.028; CYFRA21-1, p < 0.001) and OS (CEA, p = 0.026; CYFRA21-1, p = 0.019). Multivariate analysis confirmed the ability of CYFRA21-1 reduction ≥ 20% to predict DCR (p = 0.002) and PFS (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: The reduction in serum level of CYFRA21-1 or CEA might be a reliable biomarker to predict immunotherapy efficacy in NSCLC patients. NSE was not significant for monitoring the efficacy of nivolumab.