Consensus recommendations on the management of toxicity associated with CD3×CD20 bispecific antibody therapy.

ABSTRACT: Bispecific antibodies (BsAb) that target CD3 and CD20 represent a new milestone in the treatment of patients with B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. These drugs have demonstrated remarkable single-agent activity in patients with heavily pretreated disease, and 3 drugs have so far received regulatory approvals in various countries. However, BsAbs can potentially lead to severe toxicity associated with T-cell activation, particularly cytokine release syndrome (CRS). The anticipated widespread use of these off-the-shelf products poses challenges for implementation and highlights the need for guidance in anticipating, mitigating, and managing adverse events. In clinical trials, guidance for the evaluation and treatment of CRS and neurotoxicity associated with BsAb therapy has been modeled after algorithms originally created for chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies and other immune effector therapies, yet notable differences in timing, quality, and severity exist between the toxicities of BsAbs and CAR T-cell therapies. We therefore convened an international panel of academic and community practice physicians, advanced practitioners, registered nurses, and pharmacists with experience using CD3×CD20 BsAbs in clinical trial and off-trial settings to provide comprehensive, consensus-based recommendations specific to the assessment and management of CD3×CD20 BsAb-related toxicities.

Outcomes of limited stage primary bone diffuse large B-cell lymphoma in the rituximab era: a multicenter, retrospective study.

Primary bone diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is a rare variant of extranodal non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) historically treated with induction chemotherapy followed by consolidative radiation therapy (RT). It remains unknown whether RT confers additional benefit following rituximab-based chemoimmunotherapy (CIT) induction in patients with limited-stage disease. We conducted a multicenter retrospective analysis of patients treated between 2005 and 2019 using rituximab-based CIT regimens with or without consolidative RT to discern whether consolidative RT adds benefit in patients with stage I-II disease that could be encompassed in one radiation field. A total of 112 patients were included: 78 received CIT and radiation (RT group), and 34 received CIT alone (no RT group). The OS at 10 years was 77.9% in the RT group and 89.0% in the no RT group (p = 0.42). The RFS at 10 years was 73.5% in the RT group and 80.3% in the no RT group (p = 0.88). Neither improved OS nor RFS was associated with the addition of consolidative RT. Subgroup analysis of patients only achieving a partial response after CIT suggests that these patients may benefit from consolidative RT.

Carfilzomib or bortezomib in combination with lenalidomide and dexamethasone for patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma without intention for immediate autologous stem-cell transplantation (ENDURANCE): a multicentre, open-label, phase 3, randomised, controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Bortezomib, lenalidomide, and dexamethasone (VRd) is a standard therapy for newly diagnosed multiple myeloma. Carfilzomib, a next-generation proteasome inhibitor, in combination with lenalidomide and dexamethasone (KRd), has shown promising efficacy in phase 2 trials and might improve outcomes compared with VRd. We aimed to assess whether the KRd regimen is superior to the VRd regimen in the treatment of newly diagnosed multiple myeloma in patients who were not being considered for immediate autologous stem-cell transplantation (ASCT). METHODS: In this multicentre, open-label, phase 3, randomised controlled trial (the ENDURANCE trial; E1A11), we recruited patients aged 18 years or older with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma who were ineligible for, or did not intend to have, immediate ASCT. Participants were recruited from 272 community oncology practices or academic medical centres in the USA. Key inclusion criteria were the absence of high-risk multiple myeloma and an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0-2. Enrolled patients were randomly assigned (1:1) centrally by use of permuted blocks to receive induction therapy with either the VRd regimen or the KRd regimen for 36 weeks. Patients who completed induction therapy were then randomly assigned (1:1) a second time to either indefinite maintenance or 2 years of maintenance with lenalidomide. Randomisation was stratified by intent for ASCT at disease progression for the first randomisation and by the induction therapy received for the second randomisation. Allocation was not masked to investigators or patients. For 12 cycles of 3 weeks, patients in the VRd group received 1·3 mg/m2 of bortezomib subcutaneously or intravenously on days 1, 4, 8, and 11 of cycles 1-8, and day 1 and day 8 of cycles nine to twelve, 25 mg of oral lenalidomide on days 1-14, and 20 mg of oral dexamethasone on days 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, and 12. For nine cycles of 4 weeks, patients in the KRd group received 36 mg/m2 of intravenous carfilzomib on days 1, 2, 8, 9, 15, and 16, 25 mg of oral lenalidomide on days 1-21, and 40 mg of oral dexamethasone on days 1, 8, 15, and 22. The coprimary endpoints were progression-free survival in the induction phase, and overall survival in the maintenance phase. The primary analysis was done in the intention-to-treat population and safety was assessed in patients who received at least one dose of their assigned treatment. The trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT01863550. Study recruitment is complete, and follow-up of the maintenance phase is ongoing. FINDINGS: Between Dec 6, 2013, and Feb 6, 2019, 1087 patients were enrolled and randomly assigned to either the VRd regimen (n=542) or the KRd regimen (n=545). At a median follow-up of 9 months (IQR 5-23), at a second planned interim analysis, the median progression-free survival was 34·6 months (95% CI 28·8-37·8) in the KRd group and 34·4 months (30·1-not estimable) in the VRd group (hazard ratio [HR] 1·04, 95% CI 0·83-1·31; p=0·74). Median overall survival has not been reached in either group. The most common grade 3-4 treatment-related non-haematological adverse events included fatigue (34 [6%] of 527 patients in the VRd group vs 29 [6%] of 526 in the KRd group), hyperglycaemia (23 [4%] vs 34 [6%]), diarrhoea (23 [5%] vs 16 [3%]), peripheral neuropathy (44 [8%] vs four [<1%]), dyspnoea (nine [2%] vs 38 [7%]), and thromboembolic events (11 [2%] vs 26 [5%]). Treatment-related deaths occurred in two patients (<1%) in the VRd group (one cardiotoxicity and one secondary cancer) and 11 (2%) in the KRd group (four cardiotoxicity, two acute kidney failure, one liver toxicity, two respiratory failure, one thromboembolic event, and one sudden death). INTERPRETATION: The KRd regimen did not improve progression-free survival compared with the VRd regimen in patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma, and had more toxicity. The VRd triplet regimen remains the standard of care for induction therapy for patients with standard-risk and intermediate-risk newly diagnosed multiple myeloma, and is a suitable treatment backbone for the development of combinations of four drugs. FUNDING: US National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, and Amgen.

Sequential treatment failures in response to BRAF/MEK and immune checkpoint inhibitors mediated by MAP2K2 and B2M mutations in melanoma.

Although the treatment of metastatic melanoma has been significantly improved by both anti-BRAF/MEK and checkpoint immunotherapies, resistance to these treatment modalities remains a substantial clinical problem. Multiple clinical studies are addressing the optimal sequencing of these agents in larger patient cohorts, but successful long-term individualized treatment will likely require the elucidation of resistance mechanisms from post-progression samples. Here, we describe a patient with BRAF-V600E-positive metastatic melanoma who was sequentially treated with BRAF/MEK inhibitors (dabrafenib/trametinib) and checkpoint inhibitor immunotherapy (nivolumab, followed by pembrolizumab). After the emergence of resistance, whole exome sequencing was performed, implicating MAP2K2 and B2M mutations in loss of response to anti-BRAF/MEK and anti-PD1 therapies, respectively.

A US Registry-Based Assessment of Use and Impact of Chemotherapy in Stage I HER2-Positive Breast Cancer.

Background: Despite the paucity of evidence supporting chemotherapy in the treatment of node-negative, HER2-positive breast cancer measuring <2 cm, use of trastuzumab-based chemotherapy has increased over the past decade. Therefore, we used the National Cancer Database to evaluate the use and impact of chemotherapy on survival in this population. Methods: We identified female patients aged 18 to 70 years with node-negative, HER2-positive breast cancer measuring <2 cm. A propensity-matched cohort model was used to control for risk factors known to influence survival. Primary end points assessed were receipt of chemotherapy and overall survival (OS). Results: In our propensity-matched cohort model (n=8,222), adjuvant chemotherapy (ACT) was associated with a lower 5-year OS rate in T1mi breast cancer (n=626; 89.1% [95% CI, 81.8%-93.5%] vs 99.1% [96.6%-99.8%]), no significant effect in T1a disease (n=2,901; 95.4% [93.2%-96.9%] vs 96.9% [94.1%-98.3%]), and improved 5-year OS in T1b (n=2,340; 97.1% [95.1%-98.4%] vs 92.3% [88.5%-94.9%]) and T1c tumors (n=2,355; 95.9% [93.5%-97.5%] vs 91.5% [88.4%-93.9%]). In the entire cohort of 21,148 patients who met the inclusion criteria, ACT was associated with lower 5-year OS in T1mi (89.6% [83.7%-93.4%] vs 98.1% [96.6%-98.9%]) and T1a tumors (94.9% [92.9%-96.3%] vs 96.5% [94.6%-97.7%]), and improved 5-year OS in T1b (96.8% [95.6%-97.7%] vs 92.3% [88.7%-94.8%]) and T1c tumors (95.8% [94.9%-96.5%] vs 91.6% [88.5%-93.9%]). Increased use of ACT was observed over the study period. From 2010 to 2013, annual treatment rates were 71.5%, 72.4%, 73.3%, and 74.4%, respectively (trend test, P<.0001). Conclusions: Our data support the use of ACT for HER2-positive, node-negative T1b and T1c breast cancer, whereas no benefit was observed for ACT in T1mi and T1a HER2-positive, node-negative breast cancer. Although use of ACT is increasing in node-negative, HER2-positive breast cancer <2 cm, our findings caution against its use in the smallest of these tumors (T1mi and T1a) due to lack of survival benefit.

A Strategy for Changing Adherence to National Guidelines for Decreasing Laboratory Testing for Early Breast Cancer Patients.

INTRODUCTION: Past studies indicate delays in adoption of consensus-based guideline updates. In June 2016, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network changed its guidelines from routine testing to omission of ordering complete blood cell count (CBC) and liver function tests (LFT) in patients with early breast cancer. In response, we developed an implementation strategy to discontinue our historical practice of routine ordering of these tests in asymptomatic patients. METHODS: The ordering of CBC and LFT for clinical stage I-IIIA breast cancer patients was audited in 2016. In June 2016, we utilized the levers of the National Quality Strategy implementation methodology to enact a system-wide change to omit routine ordering. To measure the plan's effectiveness, guideline compliance for ordering was tracked continually. RESULTS: Of 92 patients with early stage cancer in 2016, the overall rate of compliance with guidelines for ordering a CBC and LFT was 82% (88/107) and 87% (93/107), respectively. Segregated by the pre- and post-guideline change time period, the compliance rates for ordering a CBC and LFT were 78% and 87% (P = 0.076). CONCLUSION: In contrast to historical reports of delays in adoption of new evidence-based guideline changes, we were able to quickly change provider practice during the transition from routine ordering to omission of ordering screening blood tests in newly diagnosed patients with early breast cancer.

Fewer Reoperations After Lumpectomy for Breast Cancer with Neoadjuvant Rather than Adjuvant Chemotherapy: A Report from the National Cancer Database.

BACKGROUND: Reoperations occur frequently after initial lumpectomy for breast cancer. The authors hypothesized that the receipt of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) is associated with fewer reoperations. METHODS: The association between timing of chemotherapy and reoperation rates (ROR) after lumpectomy was investigated for patients with stages 1-3 breast cancer in the National Cancer Database (NCDB) from 2010 to 2013 by multivariable logistic regression modeling. Then propensity score-matching was performed. RESULTS: The unadjusted ROR for 71,627 stages 1-3 patients was 11.4% for those who had NAC compared with 20.3% for those who had postoperative chemotherapy (p < 0.001) (odds ratio [OR] 0.53; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.49-0.57; p < 0.001). The ORs for the reoperations performed for patients with stages 1, 2, and 3 cancers who received NAC were respectively 0.65 (95% CI 0.56-0.75), 0.50 (95% CI 0.45-0.56), and 0.27 (95% CI 0.19-0.38) The p values for all were lower than 0.001. CONCLUSION: For a population of patients receiving chemotherapy, the receipt of chemotherapy before instead of after surgery was associated with fewer reoperations after initial lumpectomy for breast cancer.

21-Gene recurrence score decreases receipt of chemotherapy in ER+ early-stage breast cancer: an analysis of the NCDB 2010-2013.

The purpose of this study was to determine if receipt of chemotherapy was associated with utilization of the 21-gene recurrence score assay (RS assay) or with recurrence score (RS) in eligible patients. Using the National Cancer Data Base (NCDB), we identified female patients eligible for RS assay based on National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines: age 18-70, ER-positive and HER2-negative early-stage breast cancer diagnosed during 2010-2013. We excluded patients not meeting testing guidelines. Inclusion required result of RS in patients who underwent RS assay and status for receipt of chemotherapy. Multivariable logistic regression models and propensity matched analysis were used to determine associations between RS assay and RS with receipt of chemotherapy. Among 129,765 patients who were eligible, 74,778 underwent RS assay and had results available. Of these, 59.5 % (44,505) had low-risk, 32.0 % (23,920) had intermediate-risk, and 8.5 % (6353) had high-risk RS. Patients with intermediate- and high-risk RS were more likely to receive chemotherapy [OR 12.9 (CI 12.2-13.6), p <0.001 and OR 87.2 (CI 79.6-95.6), p <0.0001], respectively. In both low- and intermediate-risk groups, increasing RS score was significantly associated with increasing odds of receiving chemotherapy [OR 1.10 (CI 1.09-1.12), p <0.0001 and OR 1.26 (CI 1.25-1.27), p <0.0001, respectively, for each point increase in RS]. Receipt of chemotherapy was more likely in patients who did not undergo RS assay compared to those who did, OR 1.21 (CI 1.175-1.249) p <0.0001. The utilization of RS assay and the RS were both strongly associated with chemotherapy receipt. Patients eligible for chemotherapy, based on NCCN criteria, were more likely to receive chemotherapy if they did not undergo RS assay or they had a high RS.

A retrospective multicenter analysis of elderly Hodgkin lymphoma: outcomes and prognostic factors in the modern era.

We investigated a recent (January 1999 to December 2009) cohort of 95 elderly Hodgkin lymphoma subjects. At diagnosis, median age was 67 years (range, 60-89 years), whereas 61% had significant comorbidity, 26% were unfit, 17% had a geriatric syndrome, and 13% had loss of activities of daily living. Overall response rate to therapy was 85%, whereas incidence of bleomycin lung toxicity was 32% (with associated mortality rate, 25%). With 66-month median follow-up, 2-year and 5-year overall survival were 73% and 58%, respectively (advanced-stage, 63% and 46%, respectively). Most International Prognostic Score factors were not prognostic on univariate analyses, whereas Cox multivariate regression identified 2 risk factors associated with inferior overall survival: (1) age more than 70 years (2.24; 95% CI, 1.16-4.33, P = .02) and (2) loss of activities of daily living (2.71; 95% CI, 1.07-6.84, P = .04). Furthermore, a novel survival model based on number of these risk factors (0, 1, or 2) showed differential 2-year OS of 83%, 70%, and 13%, respectively (P < .0001) and 5-year OS of 73%, 51%, and 0%, respectively (P < .0001).

Tumor-Infiltrating Normal B Cells Revealed by Immunoglobulin Repertoire Clonotype Analysis Are Highly Prognostic and Crucial for Antitumor Immune Responses in DLBCL.

PURPOSE: Tumor-infiltrating B lymphocytes (TIL-B) have demonstrated prognostic and predictive significance in solid cancers. In this study, we aimed to distinguish TIL-Bs from malignant B-cells in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and determine the clinical and biological significance. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: A total of 269 patients with de novo DLBCL from the International DLBCL R-CHOP Consortium Program were studied. Ultra-deep sequencing of the immunoglobulin genes was performed to determine B-cell clonotypes. The frequencies and numbers of TIL-B clonotypes in individual repertoires were correlated with patient survival, gene expression profiling (GEP) data, and frequencies of DLBCL-infiltrating immune cells quantified by fluorescent multiplex IHC at single-cell resolution. RESULTS: TIL-B abundance, evaluated by frequencies of normal B-cell clonotypes in the immunoglobulin repertoires, remarkably showed positive associations with significantly better survival of patients in our sequenced cohorts. DLBCLs with high versus low TIL-B abundance displayed distinct GEP signatures, increased pre-memory B-cell state and naïve CD4 T-cell state fractions, and higher CD4+ T-cell infiltration. TIL-B frequency, as a new biomarker in DLBCL, outperformed the germinal center (GC) B-cell-like/activated B-cell-like classification and TIL-T frequency. The identified TIL-B-high GEP signature, including genes upregulated during T-dependent B-cell activation and those highly expressed in normal GC B cells and T cells, showed significant favorable prognostic effects in several external validation cohorts. CONCLUSIONS: TIL-B frequency is a significant prognostic factor in DLBCL and plays a crucial role in antitumor immune responses. This study provides novel insights into the prognostic determinants in DLBCL and TIL-B functions with important therapeutic implications.

Development and validation of an integrative pan-solid tumor predictor of PD-1/PD-L1 blockade benefit.

BACKGROUND: Anti-PD-1 and PD-L1 (collectively PD-[L]1) therapies are approved for many advanced solid tumors. Biomarkers beyond PD-L1 immunohistochemistry, microsatellite instability, and tumor mutation burden (TMB) may improve benefit prediction. METHODS: Using treatment data and genomic and transcriptomic tumor tissue profiling from an observational trial (NCT03061305), we developed Immunotherapy Response Score (IRS), a pan-tumor predictive model of PD-(L)1 benefit. IRS real-world progression free survival (rwPFS) and overall survival (OS) prediction was validated in an independent cohort of trial patients. RESULTS: Here, by Cox modeling, we develop IRS-which combines TMB with CD274, PDCD1, ADAM12 and TOP2A quantitative expression-to predict pembrolizumab rwPFS (648 patients; 26 tumor types; IRS-High or -Low groups). In the 248 patient validation cohort (248 patients; 24 tumor types; non-pembrolizumab PD-[L]1 monotherapy treatment), median rwPFS and OS are significantly longer in IRS-High vs. IRS-Low patients (rwPFS adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 0.52, p = 0.003; OS aHR 0.49, p = 0.005); TMB alone does not significantly predict PD-(L)1 rwPFS nor OS. In 146 patients treated with systemic therapy prior to pembrolizumab monotherapy, pembrolizumab rwPFS is only significantly longer than immediately preceding therapy rwPFS in IRS-High patients (interaction test p = 0.001). In propensity matched lung cancer patients treated with first-line pembrolizumab monotherapy or pembrolizumab+chemotherapy, monotherapy rwPFS is significantly shorter in IRS-Low patients, but is not significantly different in IRS-High patients. Across 24,463 molecularly-evaluable trial patients, 7.6% of patients outside of monotherapy PD-(L)1 approved tumor types are IRS-High/TMB-Low. CONCLUSIONS: The validated, predictive, pan-tumor IRS model can expand PD-(L)1 monotherapy benefit outside currently approved indications.

Therapies activating the immune system (checkpoint inhibitors) have revolutionized the treatment of patients with advanced cancer, however new molecular tests may better identify patients who could benefit. Using treatment data and clinical molecular test results, we report the development and validation of Immunotherapy Response Score (IRS) to predict checkpoint inhibitor benefit. Across patients with more than 20 advanced cancer types, IRS better predicted checkpoint inhibitor benefit than currently available tests. Data from >20,000 patients showed that IRS identifies ~8% of patients with advanced cancer who may dramatically benefit from checkpoint inhibitors but would not receive them today based on currently available tests. Our approach may help clinicians to decide which patients should receive checkpoint inhibitors to treat their disease.

Validation of Immunotherapy Response Score as Predictive of Pan-solid Tumor Anti-PD-1/PD-L1 Benefit.

Immunotherapy response score (IRS) integrates tumor mutation burden (TMB) and quantitative expression biomarkers to predict anti-PD-1/PD-L1 [PD-(L)1] monotherapy benefit. Here, we evaluated IRS in additional cohorts. Patients from an observational trial (NCT03061305) treated with anti-PD-(L)1 monotherapy were included and assigned to IRS-High (-H) versus -Low (-L) groups. Associations with real-world progression-free survival (rwPFS) and overall survival (OS) were determined by Cox proportional hazards (CPH) modeling. Those with available PD-L1 IHC treated with anti-PD-(L)1 with or without chemotherapy were separately assessed. Patients treated with PD-(L)1 and/or chemotherapy (five relevant tumor types) were assigned to three IRS groups [IRS-L divided into IRS-Ultra-Low (-UL) and Intermediate-Low (-IL), and similarly assessed]. In the 352 patient anti-PD-(L)1 monotherapy validation cohort (31 tumor types), IRS-H versus IRS-L patients had significantly longer rwPFS and OS. IRS significantly improved CPH associations with rwPFS and OS beyond microsatellite instability (MSI)/TMB alone. In a 189 patient (10 tumor types) PD-L1 IHC comparison cohort, IRS, but not PD-L1 IHC nor TMB, was significantly associated with anti-PD-L1 rwPFS. In a 1,103-patient cohort (from five relevant tumor types), rwPFS did not significantly differ in IRS-UL patients treated with chemotherapy versus chemotherapy plus anti-PD-(L)1, nor in IRS-H patients treated with anti-PD-(L)1 versus anti-PD-(L)1 + chemotherapy. IRS associations were consistent across subgroups, including both Europeans and non-Europeans. These results confirm the utility of IRS utility for predicting pan-solid tumor PD-(L)1 monotherapy benefit beyond available biomarkers and demonstrate utility for informing on anti-PD-(L)1 and/or chemotherapy treatment. Significance: This study confirms the utility of the integrative IRS biomarker for predicting anti-PD-L1/PD-1 benefit. IRS significantly improved upon currently available biomarkers, including PD-L1 IHC, TMB, and MSI status. Additional utility for informing on chemotherapy, anti-PD-L1/PD-1, and anti-PD-L1/PD-1 plus chemotherapy treatments decisions is shown.

Analysis of very elderly (≥80 years) non-hodgkin lymphoma: impact of functional status and co-morbidities on outcome.

Data on outcome, prognostic factors, and treatment for very elderly non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL) is sparse. We conducted a multicentre retrospective analysis of NHL patients ≥80 years (at diagnosis) treated between 1999 and 2009. Detailed characteristics were obtained including geriatric syndromes, activities of daily living (ADLs), and co-morbidities using the Cumulative Illness Rating Scale-Geriatrics (CIRS-G). We identified 303 patients: 170 aggressive NHL (84% B cell/16% T cell) and 133 indolent NHL (82% B cell/18% T cell). Median age was 84 years (80-95). A geriatric syndrome was present in 26% of patients, 18% had ≥1 grade 4 CIRS-G, and 14% had loss of ADLs. At 49-month median follow-up, 4-year progression-free (PFS) and overall survival (OS) for aggressive NHLs were 31% and 44% respectively (stage I/II: PFS 53% and OS 66%; stage III/IV: PFS 20% and OS 32%; P < 0·0001 and 0·0002, respectively). Four-year PFS and OS for indolent NHL were 44% and 66% respectively, regardless of stage. Multivariate regression analysis identified two key factors that predicted inferior PFS and OS for both NHL groups: lack of CR and loss of ADLs. Prospective studies for very elderly NHL that incorporate geriatric tools, especially ADLs, are warranted.

Determining clinical course of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma using targeted transcriptome and machine learning algorithms.

Multiple studies have demonstrated that diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) can be divided into subgroups based on their biology; however, these biological subgroups overlap clinically. Using machine learning, we developed an approach to stratify patients with DLBCL into four subgroups based on survival characteristics. This approach uses data from the targeted transcriptome to predict these survival subgroups. Using the expression levels of 180 genes, our model reliably predicted the four survival subgroups and was validated using independent groups of patients. Multivariate analysis showed that this patient stratification strategy encompasses various biological characteristics of DLBCL, and only TP53 mutations remained an independent prognostic biomarker. This novel approach for stratifying patients with DLBCL, based on the clinical outcome of rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone therapy, can be used to identify patients who may not respond well to these types of therapy, but would otherwise benefit from alternative therapy and clinical trials.

Genetic Subtyping and Phenotypic Characterization of the Immune Microenvironment and MYC/BCL2 Double Expression Reveal Heterogeneity in Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma.

PURPOSE: Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is molecularly and clinically heterogeneous, and can be subtyped according to genetic alterations, cell-of-origin, or microenvironmental signatures using high-throughput genomic data at the DNA or RNA level. Although high-throughput proteomic profiling has not been available for DLBCL subtyping, MYC/BCL2 protein double expression (DE) is an established prognostic biomarker in DLBCL. The purpose of this study is to reveal the relative prognostic roles of DLBCL genetic, phenotypic, and microenvironmental biomarkers. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: We performed targeted next-generation sequencing; IHC for MYC, BCL2, and FN1; and fluorescent multiplex IHC for microenvironmental markers in a large cohort of DLBCL. We performed correlative and prognostic analyses within and across DLBCL genetic subtypes and MYC/BCL2 double expressors. RESULTS: We found that MYC/BCL2 double-high-expression (DhE) had significant adverse prognostic impact within the EZB genetic subtype and LymphGen-unclassified DLBCL cases but not within MCD and ST2 genetic subtypes. Conversely, KMT2D mutations significantly stratified DhE but not non-DhE DLBCL. T-cell infiltration showed favorable prognostic effects within BN2, MCD, and DhE but unfavorable effects within ST2 and LymphGen-unclassified cases. FN1 and PD-1-high expression had significant adverse prognostic effects within multiple DLBCL genetic/phenotypic subgroups. The prognostic effects of DhE and immune biomarkers within DLBCL genetic subtypes were independent although DhE and high Ki-67 were significantly associated with lower T-cell infiltration in LymphGen-unclassified cases. CONCLUSIONS: Together, these results demonstrated independent and additive prognostic effects of phenotypic MYC/BCL2 and microenvironment biomarkers and genetic subtyping in DLBCL prognostication, important for improving DLBCL classification and identifying prognostic determinants and therapeutic targets.

External Validation of AJCC Eighth Edition of Non-small-cell Lung Cancer Staging Among African Americans.

INTRODUCTION: The American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) eighth staging classification system for non-small-cell lung cancer was based on data from a multinational study consisting of 94,708 patients. African Americans were not included in this large database. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The authors aimed to compare the performance of the AJCC eighth staging system with that of the seventh in predicting overall survival among African Americans utilizing the National Cancer Database. Cases with T- and M- categories were classified into 2 groups based on the AJCC seventh and eighth edition staging systems. Kaplan-Meier curves for overall survival were then constructed for each subgroup. Concordance index was computed using Uno's methodology to assess the overall performance between the 2 staging systems in predicting the mortality. Time-dependent area under the curve was calculated at each follow-up event for the seventh and eighth edition clinical and pathologic staging using an inverse probability of censoring weighted methodology. A 2-sided P-value < .05 was considered to show statistical significance. RESULTS: The database identified a total of 70,606 African American patients in the study period of 2004 through 2014. Area under the curve values were consistently higher for the eighth edition scheme compared with the seventh edition (concordance 0.630 vs. 0.624, respectively; P < .0001 for clinical staging scheme and 0.596 vs. 0.591, respectively; P = .01 for pathologic staging scheme). CONCLUSION: The AJCC eighth edition staging system showed better prognostic value in predicting overall survival when compared with the AJCC seventh edition staging scheme among African American patients with non-small-cell lung cancer.

Genomic complexity is associated with epigenetic regulator mutations and poor prognosis in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common type of lymphoma with high mutation burdens but a low response rate to immune checkpoint inhibitors. In this study, we performed targeted next-generation sequencing and fluorescent multiplex immunohistochemistry, and investigated the clinical significance and immunological effect of mutation numbers in 424 DLBCL patients treated with standard immunochemotherapy. We found that KMT2D and TP53 nonsynonymous mutations (MUT) were significantly associated with increased nonsynonymous mutation numbers, and that high mutation numbers (MUThigh) were associated with significantly poorer clinical outcome in germinal center B-cell-like DLBCL with wild-type TP53. To understand the underlying mechanisms, we identified a gene-expression profiling signature and the association of MUThigh with decreased T cells in DLBCL patients with wild-type TP53. On the other hand, in overall cohort, MUThigh was associated with lower PD-1 expression in T cells and PD-L1 expression in macrophages, suggesting a positive role of MUThigh in immune responses. Analysis in a whole-exome sequencing dataset of 304 patients deposited by Chapuy et al. validated the correlation of MUT-KMT2D with genomic complexity and the significantly poorer survival associated with higher numbers of genomic single nucleotide variants in activated B-cell-like DLBCL with wild-type TP53. Together, these results suggest that KMT2D inactivation or epigenetic dysregulation has a role in driving DLBCL genomic instability, and that genomic complexity has adverse impact on clinical outcome in DLBCL patients with wild-type TP53 treated with standard immunochemotherapy. The oncoimmune data in this study have important implications for biomarker and therapeutic studies in DLBCL.

Aggressive B-cell Lymphoma with MYC/TP53 Dual Alterations Displays Distinct Clinicopathobiological Features and Response to Novel Targeted Agents.

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the major type of aggressive B-cell lymphoma. High-grade B-cell lymphoma (HGBCL) with MYC/BCL2 double-hit (DH) represents a distinct entity with dismal prognosis after standard immunochemotherapy in the current WHO lymphoma classification. However, whether TP53 mutation synergizes with MYC abnormalities (MYC rearrangement and/or Myc protein overexpression) contributing to HGBCL-like biology and prognosis is not well investigated. In this study, patients with DLBCL with MYC/TP53 abnormalities demonstrated poor clinical outcome, high-grade morphology, and distinct gene expression signatures. To identify more effective therapies for this distinctive DLBCL subset, novel MYC/TP53/BCL-2-targeted agents were investigated in DLBCL cells with MYC/TP53 dual alterations or HGBCL-MYC/BCL2-DH. A BET inhibitor INCB057643 effectively inhibited cell viability and induced apoptosis in DLBCL/HGBCL cells regardless of MYC/BCL2/TP53 status. Combining INCB057643 with a MDM2-p53 inhibitor DS3032b significantly enhanced the cytotoxic effects in HGBCL-DH without TP53 mutation, while combining with the BCL-2 inhibitor venetoclax displayed potent therapeutic synergy in DLBCL/HGBCL cells with and without concurrent TP53 mutation. Reverse-phase protein arrays revealed the synergistic molecular actions by INCB057643, DS3032b and venetoclax to induce cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis and to inhibit AKT/MEK/ERK/mTOR pathways, as well as potential drug resistance mechanisms mediated by upregulation of Mcl-1 and RAS/RAF/MEK/ERK pathways. In summary, these findings support subclassification of DLBCL/HGBCL with dual MYC/TP53 alterations, which demonstrates distinct pathobiologic features and dismal survival with standard therapy, therefore requiring additional targeted therapies. IMPLICATIONS: The clinical and pharmacologic studies suggest recognizing DLBCL with concomitant TP53 mutation and MYC abnormalities as a distinctive entity necessary for precision oncology practice. VISUAL OVERVIEW: http://mcr.aacrjournals.org/content/molcanres/19/2/249/F1.large.jpg.

Real-World Performance of a Comprehensive Genomic Profiling Test Optimized for Small Tumor Samples.

PURPOSE: Tissue-based comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) is increasingly used for treatment selection in patients with advanced cancer; however, tissue availability may limit widespread implementation. Here, we established real-world CGP tissue availability and assessed CGP performance on consecutively received samples. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted a post hoc, nonprespecified analysis of 32,048 consecutive tumor tissue samples received for StrataNGS, a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based comprehensive genomic profiling (PCR-CGP) test, as part of an ongoing observational trial (NCT03061305). Sample characteristics and PCR-CGP performance were assessed across all tested samples, including exception samples not meeting minimum input quality control (QC) requirements (< 20% tumor content [TC], < 2 mm2 tumor surface area [TSA], DNA or RNA yield < 1 ng/µL, or specimen age > 5 years). Tests reporting ≥ 1 prioritized alteration or meeting TC and sequencing QC were considered successful. For prostate carcinoma and lung adenocarcinoma, tests reporting ≥ 1 actionable or informative alteration or meeting TC and sequencing QC were considered actionable. RESULTS: Among 31,165 (97.2%) samples where PCR-CGP was attempted, 10.7% had < 20% TC and 59.2% were small (< 25 mm2 tumor surface area). Of 31,101 samples evaluable for input requirements, 8,089 (26.0%) were exceptions not meeting requirements. However, 94.2% of the 31,101 tested samples were successfully reported, including 80.5% of exception samples. Positive predictive value of PCR-CGP for ERBB2 amplification in exceptions and/or sequencing QC-failure breast cancer samples was 96.7%. Importantly, 84.0% of tested prostate carcinomas and 87.9% of lung adenocarcinomas yielded results informing treatment selection. CONCLUSION: Most real-world tissue samples from patients with advanced cancer desiring CGP are limited, requiring optimized CGP approaches to produce meaningful results. An optimized PCR-CGP test, coupled with an inclusive exception testing policy, delivered reportable results for > 94% of samples, potentially expanding the proportion of CGP-testable patients and impact of biomarker-guided therapies.

Utilization of Surgery and Its Impact on Survival in Patients With Early Stage Small-cell Lung Cancer in the United States.

INTRODUCTION: For patients with T1 or T2 N0 M0 small-cell lung cancer (SCLC), lobectomy followed by chemotherapy is the standard of care. However, because of its tendency for early dissemination, patients are often treated with concurrent chemo-radiation without surgery. This study was conducted to evaluate the utilization of surgery and its impact on survival in patients with early stage SCLC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The National Cancer Database was queried to identify patients with T1 or T2 N0 M0 SCLC diagnosed from 2004 to 2013. Multivariate logistic regression modeling was utilized to identify factors associated with receipt of surgery. Patients were stratified into 3 groups: chemo-radiation, surgery followed by chemotherapy, and surgery followed by chemotherapy and prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI). Kaplan-Meier estimators and Cox proportional-hazards regression were used to compare overall survival. Patients were matched on the propensity score. RESULTS: A total of 3879 SCLC cases were identified. Of those cases, 80.7% received chemo-radiation. Surgery followed by chemotherapy with or without PCI was associated with better median overall survival (93.0 months [lower 95% confidence interval (CI), 72.5] and 61.7 months [95% CI, 51.8-76.5], respectively) compared with chemo-radiation (31.2 months [95% CI, 26.3-37.0]). PCI offered survival benefit in addition to surgery and chemotherapy (hazard ratio, 0.75). CONCLUSIONS: Our study showed a significant survival benefit with surgery (lobectomy or more), adjuvant chemotherapy, and PCI in patients with T1-T2 N0 M0 SCLC.