New Therapeutic Horizons for Advanced or Metastatic Penile Cancer.

Penile cancer is a rare malignancy with a poor prognosis. Studies with single-agent immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have demonstrated efficacy, but response rates are low. Studies combining ICIs with both chemotherapy and targeted therapy are ongoing. Up to 50% of penile cancer cases are associated with human papillomavirus (HPV). HPV-targeting therapies, such as HPV-targeting vaccines and T-cell receptor therapies, are an area of active investigation. Penile cancer cells also express cell surface antigens that may be targeted by the emerging class of antibody-drug conjugates.

The management of toxicities from immune, targeted and ADCs treatments in patients with urothelial cancer.

Newly approved systemic treatment options for metastatic urothelial cancer (mUC) have diversified treatments and improved responses and survival for chemotherapy refractory disease. These systemic treatments have associated toxicities which need appropriate management for patients to stay on treatment and potentially have longer benefit from treatment. We review the expected toxicities of immune checkpoint inhibitors, FGFR inhibitors such as erdafitinib, and antibody drug conjugates such as enfortumab vedotin and sacituzumab govitecan.

A Case of Metastatic Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma in Complete Remission Using Chemotherapy and Immunotherapy.

Among the various types of cancer, pancreatic cancer is considered to have a particularly grim prognosis. Treatment includes surgery, chemotherapy, or both. While the role of immunotherapy is well-studied in many types of cancer, such is not the case with pancreatic cancer. A 49-year-old female presented to the oncology clinic following a biopsy of a pancreatic mass. CT-guided needle biopsy of the mass demonstrated moderately differentiated pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Positive emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) revealed metastases to the liver. She was started on chemotherapy with FOLFIRINOX (leucovorin calcium, 5-fluorouracil, irinotecan hydrochloride, oxaliplatin) and demonstrated over 60% reduction in the size of liver metastases within three months. PET-CT four months after initiation of chemotherapy revealed no focal avid fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake in the liver, and the pancreatic body mass was stable in size at 3.0 cm with stable standardized uptake value (SUV) max at 2.4, only slightly elevated from 1.9 on the previous scan. Further treatment with chemotherapy was halted after 18 cycles due to side effects. With the patient's tumor being epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) negative, mismatch repair (MMR) negative, 3% tumor cells PD-L1 positive with 10% tumor-associated immune cells positive, treatment with pembrolizumab was started. Follow-up PET-CTs over the next several months confirmed the patient was in complete remission from metastatic pancreatic cancer. At the time of the report, the patient had a durable response of three years. We report a rare case of complete remission of metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma treated with chemotherapy, followed by immunotherapy. With emerging targets for modification of tumor microenvironment, immunotherapy must be further explored in the treatment of pancreatic cancer.

Management of men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer following potent androgen receptor inhibition: a review of novel investigational therapies.

BACKGROUND: Androgen-targeted therapy and chemotherapy are currently the mainstay of treatment in metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). When progression occurs despite these therapeutic strategies, additional FDA-approved treatment options are lacking. However, there is a vast amount of emerging data surrounding novel investigational therapies in this space. METHODS: We reviewed and summarized the body of literature surrounding the current treatment options for mCRPC. Medline and Pubmed as well as abstracts from international congresses were utilized to gather relevant literature surrounding investigational treatment of mCRPC. We highlight the results of recent trials investigating the use of novel strategies to treat mCRPC. RESULTS: Androgen-targeted therapy and chemotherapy will remain foundational in the treatment of mCRPC. However, heavily pretreated patients who have developed resistance may benefit from novel therapeutic strategies. The use of poly(adenosine diphosphate [ADP]-ribose) polymerase inhibitors (PARPi) has now gained FDA approval for patients with homologous recombination repair (HRR) gene mutations. Novel androgen receptor (AR) degraders and the use of radioligand therapy (RLT) with Lu-PSMA-617 (Lu-PSMA) are under investigation. Immune-directed therapies, including programmed death (PD-1) inhibition, bi-specific T-cell engager (BiTE) technology, and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, have shown promise in early phase trials. Further understanding of resistance mechanisms has led to additional therapeutic targets, including targeting the PI3K-Akt-mTOR pathway and enhancer of zester homolog 2 (EZH2). CONCLUSIONS: Based on our review of the literature, exciting new therapeutic strategies exist for the treatment of mCRPC. In particular, PARPi, AR degraders, PSMA-targeted therapies, immune-directed therapies, and agents targeting resistance mechanisms as monotherapy or in combination could improve patient outcomes. Additional data from randomized trials are necessary to understand the efficacy and tolerability of these treatment strategies.

Pembrolizumab-Induced Cold Agglutinin Disease.

BACKGROUND The introduction of immunotherapy in the management of metastatic lung cancer appears to be changing their natural history. Most patients tolerate immunotherapy without any significant adverse events. Nevertheless, a significant number of patients still experience adverse effects. Autoimmune hemolytic anemia has been described as mostly related to warm autoantibodies. The following case report describes cold agglutinin disease with hemolysis secondary to Pembrolizumab therapy for the treatment of metastatic lung cancer. CASE REPORT A 58-year-old woman noted a left neck mass 4 months prior to her presentation. A biopsy confirmed the presence of metastatic adenocarcinoma, consistent with primary lung cancer. Further evaluation revealed the tumor to be PDL-1-positive. She was started on Pembrolizumab, Pemetrexed, and carboplatin chemotherapy regimen. Her CBC was within normal limits when she started therapy, but within 4 weeks hemoglobin dropped to 4.3 g/dL. Further evaluation showed high cryoglobulin levels and a high cold agglutinin titer. Complement C3 DAT was positive. A peripheral smear showed clumps of red cells and the serum IgM was elevated. The diagnosis of CAD was made. She was then started on Rituximab. Imaging showed a significant response, with decreased disease burden. CONCLUSIONS Our case shows a unique presentation of CAD, initially presumed to be myelosuppression secondary to chemotherapy. Instead, a peripheral smear revealed Pembrolizumab to be the cause of cold agglutinin disease. Due to the relatively unknown association between these 2 entities, patient care was delayed. Finally, after initiation of Rituximab therapy, the patient's CBC began to recover.

The Role of Immunotherapy and Radiation Therapy in Tumor Chemosensitivity in Advanced Head and Neck Cancer.

BACKGROUND Cancer is the second leading cause of death internationally, resulting in millions of deaths each year. While treatment in the past has heavily relied on surgery and radiotherapy, chemotherapy and immunotherapy are being increasingly utilized depending on disease presentation. CASE REPORT A 56-year-old male presented to the Emergency Department with a 3-week history of a rapidly enlarging left supraclavicular neck mass. Computed tomography scan revealed a 12×13 cm mass extending from the angle of the mandible to the supraclavicular area. A biopsy confirmed advanced stage squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. The patient was started on a chemotherapy regimen of docetaxel, cisplatin, and 5-fluorouracil (TCF). The tumor progressed through chemotherapy, which was switched to cetuximab; however, this therapy was discontinued after an anaphylactic reaction. Palliative radiation treatment was begun along with pembrolizumab. Pembrolizumab was continued, and after 9 cycles, the patient's cancer was almost in complete remission. Three months later, disease progression was once again noted with pembrolizumab treatment, which was subsequently discontinued. The patient was started on paclitaxel and carboplatin chemotherapy regimen as a last resort, despite failure of prior TCF treatment, and the patient responded, this time with complete remission in 4 months. CONCLUSIONS This case demonstrates a unique outcome in which a patient who previously was resistant to chemotherapy, later responded to chemotherapy after a trial of radiation therapy and immunotherapy. Immunotherapy may have a synergistic effect with radiation therapy and play a role in tumor sensitivity to chemotherapy in head and neck cancer treatment.

A Unique Case of Severe Anemia Secondary to Copper Deficiency in an Adult Patient.

Anemia is a frequently encountered problem in the healthcare system. Common causes of anemia include blood loss, followed by impaired red blood cell production and red blood cell destruction. This case demonstrates the need for cognizance of the less frequent causes of anemia. A 27-year-old male with a history of traumatic brain injury and quadriplegia with chronic respiratory failure on home ventilator support presented to the emergency department with dyspnea and no bowel movements for three days. The patient received nutrition via percutaneous endoscopic gastostromy (PEG) tube. He was hypotensive with a mean arterial pressure (MAP) of 54 mm/Hg. There was no evidence of acute or ongoing blood loss. Initial lab data revealed hyperkalemia (K+ 6.1), severe anemia (Hb 1.5 g/dL), leukopenia (2.53 K/uL), neutropenia (ANC 700), and normal platelets. Peripheral smear revealed leukopenia with absolute neutropenia, marked anemia with anisopoikilocytosis with rare dacrocytes but no evidence of schistocytes. He responded to transfusion with improvement in hemoglobin from 1.5 to 9.1 within 24 hours. There was no evidence of hemolysis or vitamin deficiency. Ferritin and triglyceride levels were ordered to rule out hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH). Ferritin was elevated at 6506 ng/mL and triglycerides were 123 mg/dL. Soluble IL-2 receptor level was sent and found to be significantly elevated; however, this was felt to be more likely secondary to infection and inflammation, as the patient had no other clinical features of HLH, apart from cytopenias. Zinc supplementation was part of his wound care regimen. Copper levels were <10 ug/dL (normal: 70-140). Zinc supplements were stopped, and the patient was started on copper supplementation. At his three month follow-up clinic appointment, his anemia and leukopenia had resolved. Micronutrient deficiency is a potential cause of anemia, especially in a risk population and must be considered, as it is often easily correctible.