Quality of life under treatment with the immune checkpoint inhibitors ipilimumab and nivolumab in melanoma patients. Real-world data from a prospective observational study at the Skin Cancer Center Kiel.

PURPOSE: Combined immunotherapy (ipilimumab + nivolumab) has improved survival in stage IV melanoma patients, making Health-related Quality of Life (HrQoL) crucial due to potential immune-related adverse events (irAEs). Previous studies treated HrQoL as secondary/explorative endpoint, and no specific HrQoL questionnaire for melanoma patients on immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy exists. This study aimed to gather specific HrQoL data during combined ICI therapy, tracking changes during and after treatment, and examining associations with gender, irAEs, and treatment response. METHODS: 35 melanoma patients (22 males, 13 females) undergoing combined ICI were surveyed using the Short-form 36 questionnaire (SF-36), the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire - Deutsch (IBDQ-D), and the distress thermometer (DT). HrQoL was evaluated during treatment, after six months, and at the onset of autoimmune colitis. RESULTS: irAEs occurred in 51.4% of patients, with colitis being the most common (26.1%). 45.7% had progressive disease. SF-36 showed stable HrQoL during treatment and follow-up. Women had worse HrQoL on the physical component scale than men (p = 0.019). Patients with progression showed worse HrQoL over time in physical (p = 0.015) and mental health scales (p = 0.04). IBDQ-D showed constant HrQoL throughout treatment and follow-up. Distress on DT remained constant, with women reporting higher levels of distress. CONCLUSION: HrQoL remained stable during and after therapy. Female gender and disease progression negatively impacted HrQoL. The development of irAEs was not associated with HrQoL, though this may not apply to severe irAEs like colitis, which were not assessed.

Influence of adjuvant therapies on organ-specific recurrence of cutaneous melanoma: A multicenter study on 1383 patients of the prospective DeCOG registry ADOReg.

This study investigated whether adjuvant treatments in stage III cutaneous melanoma (CM) influenced patterns of recurrence. Patients with primary (n = 1033) or relapsed CM (n = 350) who received adjuvant therapies with Nivolumab (N), Pembrolizumab (P), or Dabrafenib and Trametinib (D + T) were extracted from the prospective multicenter real-world skin cancer registry ADOReg. Endpoints were progression-free survival (PFS), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS), organ-specific DMFS, and overall survival (OS). For primary cases, D + T indicated an improved PFS (1- and 2-year PFS: 90.9%; 82.7%) as compared to P (81.0%, 73.9%; p = .0208), or N (83.8%, 75.2%; p = .0539). BRAF-mutated(mut) CM demonstrated significantly lower PFS (p = .0022) and decreased DMFS (p = .0580) when treated with immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) instead of D + T. Besides, NRAS-mut CM tended to perform worse than wt CM upon ICI (PFS: p = .1349; DMFS: p = .0540). OS was similar between the groups. Relapsed cases showed decreased PFS, DMFS, and OS in comparison to primary (all: p < .001), without significant differences between the subgroups. Organ-specific DMFS was significantly altered for primary cases with bone (p = .0367) or brain metastases (p = .0202). In relapsed CM, the frequency of liver (D + T: 1.5%; P: 12%; N: 9%) and LN metastases (D + T: 1.5%; P: 12%; N: 10.2%) was significantly lower with adjuvant D + T than ICI. NRAS-mut CM showed increased recurrence in primary and relapsed cases. These data show that adjuvant D + T is superior to ICI in primary BRAF-mut CM.

Optimizing immune checkpoint blockade in metastatic uveal melanoma: exploring the association of overall survival and the occurrence of adverse events.

Introduction: Despite recent advancements in the treatment of metastatic uveal melanoma (UM), the availability of further treatment options remains limited and the prognosis continues to be poor in many cases. In addition to tebentafusp, immune checkpoint blockade (ICB, PD-1 (+/-) CTLA-4 antibodies) is commonly used for metastatic UM, in particular in HLA-A 02:01-negative patients. However, ICB comes at the cost of potentially severe immune-related adverse events (irAE). Thus, the selection of patient groups that are more likely to benefit from ICB is desirable. Methods: In this analysis, 194 patients with metastatic UM undergoing ICB were included. Patients were recruited from German skin cancer sites and the ADOReg registry. To investigate the association of irAE occurrence with treatment response, progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) two cohorts were compared: patients without irAE or grade 1/2 irAE (n=137) and patients with grade 3/4 irAE (n=57). Results: In the entire population, the median OS was 16.4 months, and the median PFS was 2.8 months. Patients with grade 3/4 irAE showed more favorable survival than patients without or grade 1/2 irAE (p=0.0071). IrAE occurred in 44.7% (87/194), and severe irAE in 29.4% (57/194) of patients. Interestingly, irColitis and irHepatitis were significantly associated with longer OS (p=0.0031 and p=0.011, respectively). Conclusions: This data may indicate an association between irAE and favorable survival outcomes in patients with metastatic UM undergoing ICB treatment and suggests that a reduced tolerance to tumor antigens could be linked to reduced tolerance to self-antigens.

Preferences of physicians for treatment-related toxicity vs. recurrence in melanoma (GERMELATOX-A): the doctors' perspective.

INTRODUCTION: Adjuvant treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors, such as PD1-antibodies (ICI) ± CTLA4-antibodies (cICI) or targeted therapy with BRAF/MEK inhibitors (TT), has shown a significant improvement in disease-free survival (DFS) for high-risk melanoma patients. However, due to specific side effects, the choice of treatment is often influenced by the risk of toxicity. Therefore, the role of physicians in treatment decisions of patients is crucial. This study investigated for the first time in a multicenter setting the attitudes and preferences of dermatooncologists in Germany and Switzerland regarding adjuvant treatment with (c)ICI and TT. METHODS: In the GERMELATOX-A study, 108 physicians (median age: 32 yrs, 67.6% female) from 11 skin cancer centers were surveyed to rate typical side effect scenarios of (c)ICI and TT treatments and then compared to patients' ratings evaluated in a previous analysis from the same centers. The scenarios described mild-to-moderate or severe toxicity and included melanoma relapse leading to death. The physicians were asked about the level of side effects they would tolerate in exchange for a reduction in melanoma relapse and an increase in survival at 5 years. RESULTS: The preferences of physicians and patients revealed significant differences regarding adjuvant melanoma treatment with (c)ICI and TT (p < 0.05). Compared to patients, physicians tend to value a melanoma relapse less severe, according to a visual analog scale. They were also less threatened by all scenarios of side effects during adjuvant treatment with (c)ICI or TT, compared to patients. Physicians required lower risk reductions for disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) for both ICI and TT and their drug-related side effects to accept these treatments. In case of severe side effects, physicians required similar 5-year DFS rates for ICI and TT (60-65%), while patients needed a 15% improvement of 5-year DFS for ICI compared to TT (80%/65%). For survival, physicians expected an OS improvement of + 10% for all three treatment modalities, whereas patients required a higher increase: + 18-22% for ICI and + 15% for TT. CONCLUSION: Our study highlights the importance of understanding the patient's perspective and a potential difference to the doctor's view when making decisions about adjuvant melanoma treatment with (c)ICI and TT, especially as these treatments are increasingly being implemented in earlier stages.

Association of antibiotic treatment with survival outcomes in treatment-naïve melanoma patients receiving immune checkpoint blockade.

PURPOSE: The interaction of gut microbiome and immune system is being studied with increasing interest. Disturbing factors, such as antibiotics may impact the immune system via gut and interfere with tumor response to immune checkpoint blockade (ICB). METHODS: In this multicenter retrospective cohort study exclusively treatment-naïve patients with cutaneous or mucosal melanoma treated with first-line anti-PD-1 based ICB for advanced, non-resectable disease between 06/2013 and 09/2018 were included. Progression-free (PFS), and overall survival (OS) according to antibiotic exposure (within 60 days prior to ICB and after the start of ICB vs. no antibiotic exposure) were analyzed. To account for immortal time bias, data from patients with antibiotics during ICB were analyzed separately in the time periods before and after start of antibiotics. RESULTS: Among 578 patients with first-line anti-PD1 based ICB, 7% of patients received antibiotics within 60 days prior to ICB and 19% after starting ICB. Antibiotic exposure prior to ICB was associated with worse PFS (adjusted HR 1.75 [95% CI 1.22-2.52]) and OS (adjusted HR 1.64 [95% CI 1.04-2.58]) by multivariate analysis adjusting for potential confounders. The use of antibiotics after the start of ICB had no effect on either PFS (adjusted HR 1.19; 95% CI 0.89-1.60) or OS (adjusted HR 1.08; 95% CI 0.75-1.57). CONCLUSIONS: Antibiotic exposure within 60 days prior to ICB seems to be associated with worse PFS and OS in melanoma patients receiving first-line anti-PD1 based therapy, whereas antibiotics after the start of ICB do not appear to affect PFS or OS.

The side effect registry immuno-oncology (SERIO) - A tool for systematic analysis of immunotherapy-induced side effects.

BACKGROUND: Immunotherapies such as immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) are effective in multiple tumor entities but induce a plethora of side effects. Comprehensive real-world analyses are essential to identify new signals, characterize diagnostic features, enable risk assessment, determine pathomechanisms, assess effectiveness of side effect management and compare tumor outcomes. METHODS: The international online `Side-Effect Registry Immuno-Oncology´ (SERIO; www.serio-registry.org) collects rare, complex, and severe immunotherapy-induced side effects across all tumor entities with a strong focus on ICI-induced immune-related adverse events (irAE). The relational database management system (RDMS) contains structured data on patient and tumor characteristics, type of immunotherapy, treatment of side effects, and outcome of tumor and irAE. Data are captured within 25 organ modules including new modules for immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome (ICANS) for CAR-T-cell therapies and cytokine release syndrome (CRS) for bispecific antibodies. Information on biological samples is gathered. RESULTS: A total of 1398 irAE cases have been documented by 58 centers from 13 countries in patients with 17 tumor types. IrAEs were induced by nine different immunotherapies including tebentafusp and CAR-T cell therapies, and resulted, among others, in neurological (7.6%), pulmonary (4.0%), and cardiac toxicities (2.9%). 50.0% of all irAEs were graded severe or life-threatening and 23.0% of patients received second-line therapy for steroid-refractory or steroid-dependent irAE. SERIO has contributed to 44 original publications on topics ranging from irMyocarditis to irEncephalitis to long-term persistent sequelae of immunotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: A reliable evidence base is crucial for decision-making in rare, complex or therapy-refractory irAE. SERIO can help optimize side effect management and thereby reduce morbidity and mortality induced by immunotherapy.

Effectiveness, safety and utilization of cobimetinib and vemurafenib in patients with BRAF V600 mutant melanoma with and without cerebral metastasis under real-world conditions in Germany: the non-interventional study coveNIS.

Cobimetinib/vemurafenib combination therapy is approved for treatment of adults with unresectable or metastatic BRAF V600 mutated malignant melanoma (mM). The non-interventional post-authorisation safety study coveNIS collected real-world data on cobimetinib/vemurafenib treatment focussing on overall survival (OS), safety and utilization. MM patients with brain metastases are usually excluded from clinical studies. coveNIS observed 2 cohorts: mM patients without (Cohort A) and with cerebral metastases (Cohort B), aiming to close the data gap for the latter population. A direct comparison of the 2 cohorts was not intended. The primary effectiveness objective was OS; the safety objective was the incidence of all and of serious adverse events (AEs). Secondary objectives included progression-free survival (PFS), time to development of cerebral metastasis (Cohort A) and time to central nervous system relapse (Cohort B). All statistical analyses were descriptive. Between 2017 and 2021, 95 patients were included (Cohort A: 54, Cohort B: 41 patients) at 32 sites in Germany. Median OS was 21.6 months in Cohort A, 7.4 months in Cohort B. Median PFS was 6.9 months in Cohort A, 5.2 months in Cohort B. The proportion of patients experiencing any AEs was 83.3% (Cohort A) and 87.8% (Cohort B). The two most common AEs in Cohort A were 'diarrhoea' (37%), 'vomiting' (20.4%) and 'pyrexia' (20.4%); in Cohort B 'diarrhoea' (36.6%) and 'fatigue' (22%). In conclusion, the OS rates in Cohort A and Cohort B of coveNIS are in line with the OS data from other trials with BRAF/MEK inhibitors for mM. No new safety signals were observed.

Treatment management for BRAF-mutant melanoma patients with tumor recurrence on adjuvant therapy: a multicenter study from the prospective skin cancer registry ADOREG.

BACKGROUND: Adjuvant therapy with immune-checkpoint inhibitors (CPI) or BRAF/MEK-directed targeted therapy (TT) improves recurrence-free survival (RFS) for patients with advanced, BRAFV600-mutant (BRAFmut) resected melanoma. However, 40% of these patients will develop distant metastases (DM) within 5 years, which require systemic therapy. Little data exist to guide the choice of upfront adjuvant therapy or treatment management upon DM. This study evaluated the efficacy of subsequent treatments following tumor recurrence upon upfront adjuvant therapy. METHODS: For this multicenter cohort study, we identified 515 BRAFmut patients with resected stage III melanoma who were treated with PD-1 inhibitors (anti-PD1) or TT in the adjuvant setting. Disease characteristics, treatment regimens, details on tumor recurrence, subsequent treatment management, and survival outcomes were collected within the prospective, real-world skin cancer registry ADOReg. Primary endpoints included progression-free survival (PFS) following DM and best tumor response to first-line (1L) treatments. RESULTS: Among 515 eligible patients, 273 patients received adjuvant anti-PD1 and 242 adjuvant TT. At a median follow-up of 21 months, 54.6% of anti-PD1 patients and 36.4% of TT patients recurred, while 39.6% (anti-PD1) and 29.3% (TT) developed DM. Risk of recurrence was significantly reduced in patients treated with TT compared with anti-PD1 (adjusted HR 0.52; 95% CI 0.40 to 0.68, p<0.001). Likewise, median RFS was significantly longer in TT-treated patients (31 vs 17 months, p<0.001). Patients who received TT as second adjuvant treatment upon locoregional recurrence had a longer RFS2 as compared with adjuvant CPI (41 vs 6 months, p=0.009). Patients who recurred at distant sites following adjuvant TT showed favorable response rates (42.9%) after switching to 1L ipilimumab+nivolumab (ipi+nivo). Patients with DM during adjuvant anti-PD1 achieved response rates of 58.7% after switching to 1L TT and 35.3% for 1L ipi+nivo. Overall, median PFS was significantly longer in patients who switched treatments for stage IV disease (median PFS 9 vs 5 months, p=0.004). CONCLUSIONS: BRAFmut melanoma patients who developed DM upon upfront adjuvant therapy achieve favorable tumor control and prolonged PFS after switching treatment modalities in the first-line setting of stage IV disease. Patients with locoregional recurrence benefit from complete resection of recurrence followed by a second adjuvant treatment with TT.

Preferences of German and Swiss melanoma patients for toxicities versus melanoma recurrence during adjuvant treatment (GERMELATOX-A-trial).

PURPOSE: Adjuvant treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors like PD1-antibodies (ICI) ± CTLA4-antibodies (cICI) or targeted therapy with BRAF/MEK inhibitors (TT) in high-risk melanoma patients demonstrate a significant improvement in disease-free survival (DFS). Due to specific side effects, the choice of treatment is very often driven by the risk for toxicity. This study addressed for the first time in a multicenter setting the attitudes and preferences of melanoma patients for adjuvant treatment with (c)ICI and TT. METHODS: In this study ("GERMELATOX-A"), 136 low-risk melanoma patients from 11 skin cancer centers were asked to rate side effect scenarios typical for each (c)ICI and TT with mild-to-moderate or severe toxicity and melanoma recurrence leading to cancer death. We asked patients about the reduction in melanoma relapse and the survival increase at 5 years they would require to tolerate defined side-effects. RESULTS: By VAS, patients on average valued melanoma relapse worse than all scenarios of side-effects during treatment with (c)ICI or TT. In case of severe side effects, patients required a 15% higher rate of DFS at 5 years for (c)ICI (80%) compared to TT (65%). For survival, patients required an increase of 5-10% for melanoma survival during (c)ICI (85%/80%) compared to TT (75%). CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrated a pronounced variation of patient preferences for toxicity and outcomes and a clear preference for TT. As adjuvant melanoma treatment with (c)ICI and TT will be increasingly implemented in earlier stages, precise knowledge of the patient perspective can be helpful for decision making.

BRAF inhibitor cessation prior to disease progression in metastatic melanoma: Long-term outcomes.

BACKGROUND: BRAF mutant melanoma treated with BRAF ± MEK inhibitor (targeted therapy) has a high response rate; however, most patients progress (PD). Some patients have durable response, but it is unknown whether treatment can be discontinued in these patients. We describe the recurrence risk, progression patterns, response to subsequent treatment, and survival of patients with advanced melanoma who ceased targeted therapy prior to PD. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Ninety-four patients who ceased targeted therapy without progression were identified retrospectively from 11 centres: 45 were male; 81 V600E; 88 stage IV. Fifty-nine were treated with BRAF + MEK inhibitor, and 35 were treated with BRAF inhibitor alone. Median treatment duration was 29.6 months (range 0.36-77.9). At cessation, 67 were in complete response, 21 in partial response, and 2 stable disease. RESULTS: After median follow-up from cessation of 42.9 months (range 0.0-88.7), 36 (38%) progressed; median time to progression was 4.7 months (range 0.7-56.9); 30 (83%) were asymptomatic and 7 (19%) had new brain metastases. Progression rates did not differ by best response: 34% for complete response and 43% for partial response (P = 0.65). Treatment duration was strongly associated with risk of progression: Median treatment duration was 18.3 (range 0.85-65.7) months for those who progressed and 34.6 (range 0.36-77.9) months for those who did not (P = 0.0004). Twenty-two received further targeted therapy with 15 (68%) responses. CONCLUSION: Risk of progression after cessation of targeted therapy is strongly associated with treatment duration. Response to retreatment with targeted therapy is high.

Health-related quality of life (EuroQol 5D-5L) in patients with autoimmunity in the context of immunotherapy: A large dataset comprising cancer patients after cessation of checkpoint inhibitor therapy and patients with autoimmune diseases.

This dataset contains demographic, clinical, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) data from 2905 patients including 200 cancer patients after immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) cessation and 2705 patients with a wide variety of autoimmune diseases. Within this multicenter, cross-sectional survey study data were collected questionnaire-based in cancer patients (ICI-patients) ≥ 18 years of age who had received at least one dose of ICI with ≥ 12 weeks since ICI discontinuation. Patients with autoimmune diseases (AI-patients) were ≥ 18 years, had at least one autoimmune disease and had never received ICI. ICI-patients were recruited in three skin cancer centers and via support groups. AI-patients were recruited in an outpatient clinic for internal medicine and via support groups. Specific questionnaires for ICI-patients/AI-patients were provided paper-based for patients from outpatient clinics and online for patients from support groups. Both questionnaires contained sections with demographic information, clinical data, and the standardized patient-reported outcome measure EuroQol 5D-5L (EQ-5D-5L) to assess HRQoL. Clinical data focused on autoimmunity and therapy of autoimmunity in (1) ICI-patients referring to particularly persistent immune-related adverse events (persistent irAEs) and in (2) AI-patients referring to respective autoimmune diseases. Additionally, specific items on cancer and cancer therapy were included in ICI-patients, and AI-patients were asked about the presence of acute exacerbations of autoimmune diseases. This dataset contains the raw data for ICI-patients and AI-patients, analyzed data on patient demographics, clinical characteristics and HRQoL scores among ICI-patients with/without persistent irAEs and among AI-patients. The data provide a basis for further investigations within the cohort of ICI-patients after ICI cessation and/or for AI-patients with different autoimmune diseases with regard to HRQoL, autoimmunity and therapy of autoimmunity.

Dataset of a retrospective multicenter cohort study on characteristics of immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced encephalitis and comparison with HSV-1 and anti-LGI1 encephalitis.

Over the past decade, cancer immunotherapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has significantly improved the outcome of many malignancies. However, with the broad use of ICIs, neurological immune related adverse events (irAE) are increasingly recognized. ICI-induced encephalitis (ICI-iE) is a particularly severe irAE, often leading to treatment termination, long-term sequalae or death. Despite its high morbidity and mortality, data on clinical features and diagnostic criteria are limited. We aimed to define clinical, radiologic and laboratory characteristics of ICI-iE and identify factors that discriminate it from anti-leucine-rich glioma-inactivated (anti-LGI)-1 encephalitis and herpes simplex virus (HSV)-1 encephalitis - two alternative causes of encephalitis - to increase the awareness of ICI-iE and improve its diagnosis and management. To that end, we retrospectively collected 30 cases of ICI-iE that were reported to the Side Effect Registry Immuno-Oncology (SERIO) and 46 cases of anti-LGI1 encephalitis or herpes simplex virus (HSV)-1 encephalitis that presented to a large German neurological referral center (Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin) between January 2015 and September 2021. Signs and symptoms, imaging and electroencephalogram features, laboratory findings and outcome measures were assessed using standardized case report forms as well as patients' medical records and compared between the groups. The data reported here represents the largest primary cohort of patients with ICI-iE to date and the first comparison with other types of encephalitis. As all three disorders - ICI-iE, HSV-1 encephalitis and anti-LGI1 encephalitis - are rare neurological entities, this dataset can be used as a reference in future clinical studies on ICI-induced neurotoxicity, neurological autoimmune disorders, and central nervous system infections.

Persistent immune-related adverse events after cessation of checkpoint inhibitor therapy: Prevalence and impact on patients' health-related quality of life.

BACKGROUND: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) may induce persistent immune-related adverse events (irAEs). We investigated persistent irAEs and implications on patients' lives compared to non-ICI-induced autoimmune diseases (AIs). METHODS: The multicentre, cross-sectional study comprised 200 patients with cancer ≥12 weeks after ICI cessation (ICI-patients) and 2705 patients with AIs (AI-patients), recruited in German outpatient clinics and support groups. The prevalence of persistent irAEs subdivided in long-term (12 weeks to <12 months) and chronic irAEs (≥12 months) since ICI discontinuation, health-related quality of life (HRQoL) using the EuroQol 5D-5L (EQ-Index/VAS score), and burden of autoimmune symptoms and respective therapies were assessed. RESULTS: Long-term/chronic irAEs occurred in 51.9%/35.5% of outpatient ICI-patients, including arthralgia (16.7%/16.1%), myalgia (13.0%/14.0%), hypothyroidism (11.1%/10.8%), xerostomia (7.4%/8.6%), vitiligo (13.0%/7.5%) and hypophysitis (9.3%/7.5%). ICI-patients with long-term/chronic irAEs reported clinically significantly reduced HRQoL compared to ICI-patients without long-term/chronic irAEs (EQ-Index score: 0.767/0.752 versus 0.920/0.923, p < 0.001/0.001; EQ-VAS score: 52.2/52.0 versus 63.6/74.7, p =/< 0.040/0.001). Multiple linear regression analyses confirmed clinically significant reductions in HRQoL scores by chronic irAEs (EQ-Index/VAS score: -0.163/-23.4, p < 0.001/0.001). HRQoL, burden of autoimmune symptoms and burden of respective therapies in ICI-patients with chronic irAEs were similar to AI-patients with non-exacerbated AIs. Patients with chronic irAEs felt inadequately informed about side-effects compared to patients without chronic irAEs (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Persistent irAEs impose a significant burden on patients after ICI cessation. Especially in early tumour stages, risk-benefit ratios must be carefully evaluated, and patients need to be informed about potential long-term sequelae.

Characteristics of immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced encephalitis and comparison with HSV-1 and anti-LGI1 encephalitis: A retrospective multicentre cohort study.

AIM: Immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced encephalitis (ICI-iE) is a rare but life-threatening toxicity of immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment. We aim to identify the characteristics of ICI-iE and describe factors that discriminate it from herpes simplex virus (HSV)-1 encephalitis and anti-leucine-rich glioma-inactivated 1 (anti-LGI1) encephalitis, as two alternative entities of encephalitis. METHODS: In this retrospective multicentre cohort study, we collected patients with ICI-iE reported to the Side Effect Registry Immuno-Oncology from January 2015 to September 2021 and compared their clinical features and outcome with 46 consecutive patients with HSV-1 or anti-LGI1 encephalitis who were treated at a German neurological referral centre. RESULTS: Thirty cases of ICI-iE, 25 cases of HSV-1 encephalitis and 21 cases of anti-LGI1 encephalitis were included. Clinical presentation of ICI-iE was highly variable and resembled that of HSV-1 encephalitis, while impairment of consciousness (66% vs. 5%, p = .007), confusion (83% vs. 43%; p = .02), disorientation (83% vs. 29%; p = .007) and aphasia (43% vs. 0%; p = .007) were more common in ICI-iE than in anti-LGI1 encephalitis. Antineuronal antibodies (17/18, 94%) and MRI (18/30, 60%) were mostly negative in ICI-iE, but cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) showed pleocytosis and/or elevated protein levels in almost all patients (28/29, 97%). Three patients (10%) died of ICI-iE. Early immunosuppressive treatment was associated with better outcome (r = 0.43). CONCLUSIONS: ICI-iE is a heterogeneous entity without specific clinical features. CSF analysis has the highest diagnostic value, as it reveals inflammatory changes in most patients and enables the exclusion of infection. Early treatment of ICI-iE is essential to prevent sequelae and death.

Efficacy of anti-PD-1 and ipilimumab alone or in combination in acral melanoma.

BACKGROUND: Acral melanoma is a rare melanoma subtype with poor prognosis. Importantly, these patients were not identified as a specific subgroup in the landmark melanoma trials involving ipilimumab and the anti-programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) agents nivolumab and pembrolizumab. There is therefore an absence of prospective clinical trial evidence regarding the efficacy of checkpoint inhibitors (CPIs) in this population. Acral melanoma has lower tumor mutation burden (TMB) than other cutaneous sites, and primary site is associated with differences in TMB. However the impact of this on the effectiveness of immune CPIs is unknown. We examined the efficacy of CPIs in acral melanoma, including by primary site. METHODS: Patients with unresectable stage III/IV acral melanoma treated with CPI (anti-PD-1 and/or ipilimumab) were studied. Multivariable logistic and Cox regression analyses were conducted. Primary outcome was objective response rate (ORR); secondary outcomes were progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). RESULTS: In total, 325 patients were included: 234 (72%) plantar, 69 (21%) subungual and 22 (7%) palmar primary sites. First CPI included: 184 (57%) anti-PD-1, 59 (18%) anti-PD-1/ipilimumab combination and 82 (25%) ipilimumab. ORR was significantly higher with initial anti-PD-1/ipilimumab compared with anti-PD-1 (43% vs 26%, HR 2.14, p=0.0004) and significantly lower with ipilimumab (15% vs 26%, HR 0.49, p=0.0016). Landmark PFS at 1 year was highest for anti-PD-1/ipilimumab at 34% (95% CI 24% to 49%), compared with 26% (95% CI 20% to 33%) with anti-PD-1 and 10% (95% CI 5% to 19%) with ipilimumab. Despite a trend for increased PFS, anti-PD-1/ipilimumab combination did not significantly improve PFS (HR 0.85, p=0.35) or OS over anti-PD-1 (HR 1.30, p=0.16), potentially due to subsequent therapies and high rates of acquired resistance. No outcome differences were found between primary sites. CONCLUSION: While the ORR to anti-PD-1/ipilimumab was significantly higher than anti-PD-1 and PFS numerically higher, in this retrospective cohort this benefit did not translate to improved OS. Future trials should specifically include patients with acral melanoma, to help determine the optimal management of this important melanoma subtype.

Real-World Therapy with Pembrolizumab: Outcomes and Surrogate Endpoints for Predicting Survival in Advanced Melanoma Patients in Germany.

Knowledge on the real-world characteristics and outcomes of pembrolizumab-treated advanced melanoma patients in Germany and on the value of different real-world endpoints as surrogates for overall survival (OS) is limited. A sample of 664 pembrolizumab-treated patients with advanced melanoma from the German registry ADOReg was used. We examined OS, real-world progression-free survival (rwPFS), real-world time to next treatment (rwTtNT), and real-world time on treatment (rwToT). Spearman's rank and iterative multiple imputation (IMI)-based correlation coefficients were computed between the OS and the rwPFS, rwTtNT, and rwToT and reported for the first line of therapy and the overall sample. The median OS was 30.5 (95%CI 25.0-35.4) months, the rwPFS was 3.9 months (95%CI 3.5-4.9), the rwTtNT was 10.7 months (95%CI 9.0-12.9), and the rwToT was 6.2 months (95%CI 5.1-6.8). The rwTtNT showed the highest correlation with the OS based on the IMI (rIMI = 0.83), Spearman rank correlations (rs = 0.74), followed by the rwToT (rIMI = 0.74 and rs = 0.65) and rwPFS (rIMI = 0.69 and rs = 0.56). The estimates for the outcomes and correlations were similar for the overall sample and those in first-line therapy. The median OS was higher compared to recent real-world studies, supporting the effectiveness of pembrolizumab in regular clinical practice. The rwTtNT may be a valuable OS surrogate, considering the highest correlation was observed with the OS among the investigated real-world endpoints.

Genetic characterization of advanced conjunctival melanoma and response to systemic treatment.

BACKGROUND: Conjunctival melanoma is a rare type of ocular melanoma, which is prone to local recurrence and metastasis and can lead to patient death. Novel therapeutic strategies have revolutionized cutaneous melanoma management. The efficacy of these therapies in conjunctival melanoma, however, has not been evaluated in larger patient cohorts. METHODS: In this multi-center retrospective cohort study with additional screening of the ADOREG database, data were collected from 34 patients with metastatic conjunctival melanoma who received targeted therapy (TT) (BRAF ± MEK inhibitors) or immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) (anti-PD-1 ± anti-CTLA4). In 15 cases, tissue was available for targeted next-generation-sequencing (611 genes) and RNA sequencing. Driver mutations, tumor mutational burden, copy number variations and inflammatory/IFNγ gene expression signatures were determined. RESULTS: Genetic characterization identified frequent BRAF (46.7%, 7/15), NRAS (26.7%, 4/15), NF1 (20%, 3/15), and TERT promoter (46.7%, 7/15) mutations. UV associated C>T and CC>TT mutations were common. Median follow-up time after start of first TT or ICI therapy was 13.2 months. In 26 patients receiving first-line ICI, estimated one-year progression-free survival (PFS) rate was 42.0%, PFS and overall survival (OS) 6.2 and 18.0 months, respectively. First-line TT was given to 8 patients, estimated one-year PFS rate was 54.7%, median PFS and OS 12.6 and 29.1 months, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings support the role of UV irradiation in conjunctival melanoma and the genetic similarity with cutaneous melanoma. Conjunctival melanoma patients with advanced disease benefit from both targeted therapies (BRAF ± MEK inhibitors) and immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Immune Checkpoint Blockade for Metastatic Uveal Melanoma: Re-Induction following Resistance or Toxicity.

Re-induction with immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) needs to be considered in many patients with uveal melanoma (UM) due to limited systemic treatment options. Here, we provide hitherto the first analysis of ICB re-induction in UM. A total of 177 patients with metastatic UM treated with ICB were included from German skin cancer centers and the German national skin cancer registry (ADOReg). To investigate the impact of ICB re-induction, two cohorts were compared: patients who received at least one ICB re-induction (cohort A, n = 52) versus those who received only one treatment line of ICB (cohort B, n = 125). In cohort A, a transient benefit of overall survival (OS) was observed at 6 and 12 months after the treatment start of ICB. There was no significant difference in OS between both groups (p = 0.1) with a median OS of 16.2 months (cohort A, 95% CI: 11.1-23.8) versus 9.4 months (cohort B, 95% CI: 6.1-14.9). Patients receiving re-induction of ICB (cohort A) had similar response rates compared to those receiving ICB once. Re-induction of ICB may yield a clinical benefit for a small subgroup of patients even after resistance or development of toxicities.