Serum interleukin-6 levels at the start of the second course of atezolizumab plus bevacizumab therapy predict therapeutic efficacy in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: a multicenter analysis.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Serum interleukin-6 (IL-6) before the administration of atezolizumab plus bevacizumab (Atez + Bev) is a prognostic biomarker in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treated with Atez + Bev. We previously revealed that the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and serum chemokine levels during treatment with Atez + Bev were more useful as prognostic biomarkers. Therefore, we examined the predictive ability of serum IL-6 for the efficacy of Atez + Bev in patients with HCC. METHODS: We enrolled 94 patients with HCC who received treatment with Atez + Bev. Initial responses were assessed through dynamic computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging. The levels of IL-6 in serum were measured before and at the initiation of the second course of Atez + Bev. Subsequently, the relationship of IL-6 levels with treatment efficacy was evaluated. RESULTS: IL-6 levels at the initiation of the second course tended to be higher in patients with progressive disease versus those with non-progressive disease in the initial evaluation (P = 0.054). Moreover, the cutoff value (7.4 pg/mL) was useful in stratifying patients by overall survival (i.e. low vs high: not reached vs 21.4 months, respectively, P = 0.001) and progression-free survival (low vs high: 11.9 vs 5.2 months, respectively, P = 0.004). This result was reproduced in patients with HCC who received Atez + Bev as first-line therapy. In the multivariate analyses, IL-6 levels at the initiation of the second course were independent predictive factors for progression-free and overall survival. CONCLUSIONS: Serum levels of IL-6 at the initiation of the second course of treatment may predict Atez + Bev efficacy and prognosis in HCC.

Clinical Impact of Proton Pump Inhibitor and Potassium-Competitive Acid Blocker for Predicting the Curability of Endoscopic Resection in Ulcerative Early Gastric Cancer.

INTRODUCTION: Endoscopic diagnosis is essential for predicting the curability of early gastric cancer (EGC; R0 resection) before treatment, but the relationship between ulcerative lesions and clinical outcomes remains unclear. We aimed to investigate the effect of proton pump inhibitor (PPI) or potassium-competitive acid blocker (P-CAB) on the morphological changes of ulcerative EGCs and its relevance to the clinical outcomes. METHODS: Altogether, 143 patients with differentiated ulcerative EGC that were resected by endoscopic submucosal dissection were retrospectively identified and divided into the following two cohorts depending on their PPI/P-CAB administration status: PPI/P-CAB (n = 76) and non-PPI/P-CAB (n = 67) cohorts. Furthermore, in each cohort, the patients were further divided into the improved and unimproved subgroups based on the ulcerative changes. RESULTS: In the PPI/P-CAB cohort, the deep submucosal invasion and lymphovascular invasion rates were significantly higher in the unimproved subgroup than in the improved subgroup, resulting in a significantly lower R0 resection rate. Contrarily, no significant differences were found between the two subgroups in the non-PPI/P-CAB cohort. The significance of PPI/P-CAB administration was observed only in the ulcerative EGCs with open-type atrophy (R0 resection rate; improved vs. unimproved, 90.9% vs. 48.0%, p = 0.001). When the finding of improved ulcer with PPI/P-CAB administration was used as the indication of endoscopic resection in ulcerative EGCs with open-type atrophy, high sensitivity (78.9%) and accuracy (76.3%) rates for the curability were observed, which were higher than those of conventional endoscopic diagnosis alone (p = 0.021). CONCLUSION: PPI or P-CAB administration might contribute to the potential selection of ulcerative EGCs, enabling endoscopic curative resection.

The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio at the start of the second course during atezolizumab plus bevacizumab therapy predicts therapeutic efficacy in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: A multicenter analysis.

AIM: Atezolizumab plus bevacizumab (Atez/Bev) therapy is expected to have good therapeutic efficacy for patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the clinical indicators that predict therapeutic efficacy have not been established. We retrospectively investigated whether the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) during Atez/Bev therapy could predict therapeutic efficacy. METHOD: In total, 110 patients with HCC were enrolled; they were treated with Atez/Bev therapy and evaluated for their initial response by dynamic CT or MRI at least once between October 2020 and July 2022. RESULTS: Of the 110 patients with HCC at the initial evaluation, two (2%) showed a complete response (CR), 22 (20%) partial response (PR), 62 (56%) stable disease (SD), and 24 (21%) progressive disease (PD). The NLR at the start of the second course (NLR-2c) increased from CR + PR to SD to PD. There was no significant association between the baseline NLR and the initial therapeutic response. Patients with CR + PR had lower NLR-2c values than those with SD + PD (p < 0.001) and the optimal cut-off value of NLR-2c was 1.97. Patients with NLR-2c <1.97 had better overall survival and progression-free survival (PFS) than those with NLR-2c ≥1.97 (p = 0.005 for overall survival; p < 0.001 for PFS). A multivariate analysis showed that female sex, higher PIVKA-II levels at baseline, and higher values of NLR-2c were significantly associated with poorer PFS. CONCLUSIONS: The NLR-2c value predicts the initial therapeutic response and prognosis of patients with HCC treated with Atez/Bev therapy.

BRAF K601E-mutated metastatic colorectal cancer in response to combination therapy with encorafenib, binimetinib, and cetuximab: A case report.

BACKGROUND: BRAF mutation has been recognized as a negative prognostic marker for metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC), but these data are from common BRAF V600E-mutated mCRC. Combination therapy of BRAF inhibitor and anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) antibody has been approved for BRAF V600E-mutated mCRC. However, BRAF non-V600 mutations are rare mutations, and their clinical behavior is not understood. Moreover, the BRAF K601E mutation is extremely rare in mCRC, and there have been no reports on its specific treatment. CASE SUMMARY: Herein, we report the case of a 59-year-old female with super aggressive mCRC with multiple metastases, which extended to whole body including mediastinal to abdominal lymph nodes, bones, pleura, and peritoneum. The companion diagnostics of tumor tissues showed RAS/BRAF wild-type without microsatellite instability. She received chemotherapy with mFOLFOX6 (oxaliplatin plus infusional 5-fluorouracil [5-FU] and leucovorin) plus panitumumab, following FOLFIRI (irinotecan plus infusional 5-FU and leucovorin) plus ramucirumab. For the next regimen selection, a comprehensive genomic profiling panel was performed and revealed a BRAF K601E mutation, which was not covered in the initial companion diagnostics. After disease progression, a combination of encorafenib, binimetinib, and cetuximab was selected as third-line chemotherapy. The serum levels of tumor markers were immediately decreased accompanied by improvements in pleural effusion and ascites. However, the disease progressed again, and best supportive care was done instead. CONCLUSION: This case offers novel insights into the clinical behaviors of BRAF non-V600E-mCRC, potentially advancing personalized therapy for rare and aggressive cases.

Serum CXCL10 levels at the start of the second course of atezolizumab plus bevacizumab therapy predict therapeutic efficacy in patients with advanced BCLC stage C hepatocellular carcinoma: A multicenter analysis.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Relationships of serum C-C motif chemokine ligand 5 (CCL5) and C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 10 (CXCL10) levels with hot immune features have been reported in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Therefore, we examined the utility of their levels for predicting the efficacy of atezolizumab plus bevacizumab (Atez/Bev) in patients with HCC. DESIGN: In total, 98 patients with HCC treated with Atez/Bev were enrolled, and their initial responses were evaluated at least once via dynamic computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging. Serum CCL5 and CXCL10 levels were assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay before treatment and at the start of the second course of Atez/Bev therapy, and their relationships with treatment efficacy were determined. RESULTS: No analyzed factor was associated with the initial therapeutic response. Among the 56 patients with Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) stage C, serum CXCL10 levels at the beginning of course two (CXCL10-2c) tended to be higher in responders than in non-responders in the initial evaluation, and its optimal cutoff level of 690 pg/mL could be used to stratify patients regarding overall survival (OS; high vs. low: not reached vs. 17.6 months, p = 0.034) and progression-free survival (high vs. low: 13.6 vs. 5.1 months, p = 0.014). In multivariate analysis, high CXCL10 levels and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratios at the start of course two and Child-Pugh stage A at baseline were independent predictive factors of improved OS. CONCLUSIONS: Serum CXCL10-2c levels were predictive of Atez/Bev efficacy in patients with BCLC stage C HCC.