Durvalumab Outcomes in Stage III Non-small Cell Lung Cancer: A Single-institution Study.

BACKGROUND/AIM: The PACIFIC trial demonstrated improved survival in patients with unresectable stage III non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with durvalumab following definitive concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CRT). This study sought to explore real-world outcomes with durvalumab consolidation therapy at our institution. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively identified patients diagnosed with stage III NSCLC at our institution from January 2012 to January 2022. We created two cohorts: one who received durvalumab following definitive CRT and a historical one who did not. Primary outcomes of interest included median progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Additionally, we performed subgroup analysis on the durvalumab cohort to explore the associations between survival and time to durvalumab initiation, PD-L1 expression, and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR). RESULTS: We identified 79 patients with locally advanced NSCLC who were not surgical candidates. Patients treated with durvalumab (n=44) had significantly improved survival compared to the historical cohort (n=35) including a median PFS of 17.4 months versus 8.0 months (p=0.0019) and a median OS of 37.0 months versus 17.0 months (log-rank p-value=0.07, Wilcoxon p-value=0.02). Within the durvalumab group, outcomes did not significantly differ between those who initiated therapy before or after 42 days of finishing CRT, between various PD-L1 expression levels, or between high or low NLR. CONCLUSION: Patients who received durvalumab as consolidation therapy following definitive CRT demonstrated significantly improved survival compared to a historical cohort who did not receive durvalumab. Furthermore, durvalumab appears to benefit patients regardless of time to initiation, PD-L1 expression, or NLR.

Nivolumab Plus Ipilimumab in Patients With Solid Tumors With ATM Mutations: Results From the Targeted Agent and Profiling Utilization Registry (TAPUR) Study.

PURPOSE: The Targeted Agent and Profiling Utilization Registry Study is a phase II basket study evaluating the antitumor activity of commercially available targeted agents in patients with advanced cancers with genomic alterations known to be drug targets. Results of a cohort of patients with solid tumors with ATM mutations treated with nivolumab plus ipilimumab are reported. METHODS: Eligible patients had measurable disease (RECIST v.1.1), Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status 0-2, adequate organ function, and no standard treatment options. Primary end point was disease control (DC), defined as complete (CR) or partial (PR) response or stable disease (SD) of at least 16 weeks duration (SD16+). Low-accruing histology-specific cohorts with ATM mutations treated with nivolumab plus ipilimumab were collapsed into a single histology-pooled cohort for this analysis. The results were evaluated based on a one-sided exact binomial test with a null DC rate of 15% versus 35% (power = .84; α = .10). Secondary end points were objective response (OR), progression-free survival, overall survival, duration of response, duration of SD, and safety. RESULTS: Twenty-nine patients with 10 tumor types with ATM mutations were enrolled from January 2018 to May 2020. One patient was not evaluable for efficacy. One CR, three PR, and three SD16+ were observed for DC and OR rates of 24% (P = .13; one-sided 90% CI: 14 to 100) and 14% (95% CI: 4 to 32), respectively. The null hypothesis of 15% DC rate was not rejected. Eleven patients had one treatment-related grade 3 adverse event (AE) or serious AE. There were two treatment-related patient deaths including immune-related encephalitis and respiratory failure. CONCLUSION: Nivolumab plus ipilimumab did not meet prespecified criteria to declare a signal of activity in patients with solid tumors with ATM mutations.

Pembrolizumab in Patients With Tumors With High Tumor Mutational Burden: Results From the Targeted Agent and Profiling Utilization Registry Study.

PURPOSE: The Targeted Agent and Profiling Utilization Registry (TAPUR) Study is a pragmatic basket trial evaluating antitumor activity of approved targeted agents in patients with advanced cancers harboring potentially actionable genomic alterations. Data from cohorts of patients with high tumor mutational burden (HTMB, defined as ≥9 mutations per megabase) with advanced colorectal cancer (CRC) and other advanced cancers treated with pembrolizumab are reported. METHODS: Eligible patients were 18 years and older with measurable tumors and a lack of standard treatment options, an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0-1, and adequate organ function. The primary end point was disease control (DC), defined as complete or partial response or stable disease (SD) of at least 16-weeks duration. For the CRC cohort, Simon's two-stage design with a null DC rate of 15% versus 35% (power = 0.85; α = .10) was used. Low accruing histology-specific cohorts were collapsed into one histology-pooled (HP) cohort. For the HP cohort, the null hypothesis of a DC rate of 15% was rejected if the lower limit of a one-sided 90% CI was >15%. Secondary end points included objective response (OR), safety, progression-free survival, overall survival, duration of response, and duration of SD. RESULTS: Seventy-seven patients with HTMB with CRC (n = 28) or advanced cancers (n = 49) were treated with pembrolizumab. For the CRC cohort, the DC rate was 31% (P = .04) and the OR rate was 11%. For the HP cohort, the DC rate was 45% (one-sided 90% CI, 35 to 100) and the OR rate was 26%. The null hypothesis of a 15% DC rate was rejected for both cohorts. Twelve of 77 patients experienced treatment-related grade 3 adverse events (AEs) or serious AEs, including two deaths. CONCLUSION: Pembrolizumab demonstrated antitumor activity in pretreated patients with advanced cancers and HTMB.

Palbociclib in Patients With Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer With CDKN2A Alterations: Results From the Targeted Agent and Profiling Utilization Registry Study.

PURPOSE: The Targeted Agent and Profiling Utilization Registry (TAPUR) Study is a phase II pragmatic basket trial evaluating antitumor activity of commercially available targeted agents in patients with advanced cancer with genomic alterations known to be drug targets. Results in a cohort of patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with CDKN2A alterations treated with palbociclib are reported. METHODS: Eligible patients were ≥ 18 years old with advanced NSCLC, no remaining standard treatment options, measurable disease, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0 to 2, and adequate organ function. Patients with NSCLC with CDKN2A alterations and no Rb mutations received palbociclib 125 mg orally once daily for 21 days, followed by 7 days off. Simon's two-stage design was used with a primary study end point of objective response or stable disease (SD) of at least 16 weeks in duration. Secondary end points are progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and safety. RESULTS: Twenty-nine patients were enrolled from January 2017 to June 2018; two patients were not evaluable for response but were included in safety analyses. One patient with partial response and six patients with SD were observed, for a disease control rate of 31% (90% CI, 19% to 40%). Median PFS was 8.1 weeks (95% CI, 7.1 to 16.0 weeks), and median OS was 21.6 weeks (95% CI, 14.1 to 41.1 weeks). Eleven patients had at least 1 grade 3 or 4 adverse event (AE) or serious AE (SAE) possibly related to palbociclib (most common, cytopenias). Other AEs or SAEs possibly related to the treatment included anorexia, fatigue, febrile neutropenia, hypophosphatemia, sepsis, and vomiting. CONCLUSION: Palbociclib monotherapy demonstrated evidence of modest antitumor activity in heavily pretreated patients with NSCLC with CDKN2A alterations. Additional investigation is necessary to confirm efficacy and utility of palbociclib in this population.

A phase I study of weekly doxorubicin and oral topotecan for patients with relapsed or refractory small cell lung cancer (SCLC): A Fred and Pamela Buffet Cancer Center Clinical Trials Network study.

BACKGROUND: Relapsed/refractory small cell lung cancer (SCLC) has a poor prognosis, with no good options. We evaluated a novel combination of topotecan and doxorubicin, providing sequential topoisomerase I and II inhibition, in this setting. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Adult patients (>19 years) with relapsed/refractory SCLC, who had received at least one prior chemotherapy regimen were eligible. Patients received escalating doses of oral topotecan on days 1-5 of each three week cycle (maximum - 5 cycles). The dosing cohorts were: 0.85 mg/m2, 1.05 mg/m2, 1.35 mg/m2, 1.65 mg/m2 and 2.30 mg/m2. All patients received weekly doxorubicin 20 mg/m2 intravenously starting day 6 of the first cycle and continued weekly for a maximum of 15 weeks. In the absence of pre-specified dose limiting toxicities (DLT), patients were enrolled serially to escalated dose level cohorts. RESULTS: Twenty-two patients were enrolled, of which 20 were evaluable. Median age was 61 years; 74% were male and 95% were Caucasian. Hematologic side effects were the most common adverse events. There were no therapy-related Grade 5 toxicities. Incidence of DLT based on cohorts were: DL2: 1/6 (Grade 4 thrombocytopenia), DL3: 1/6 (AST elevation) and DL4: 2/4 (Grade 4 thrombocytopenia). Response rate was 20% (4/20) and disease control rate (SD + PR) was 36%. The median progression free and overall survival were 3.6 months and 6 months, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of topotecan and doxorubicin was safe and effective in relapsed/refractory SCLC. The maximum tolerated dose of oral topotecan was 1.35 mg/m2 when given concurrently with weekly doxorubicin.

Association Between Hospital Volume, Therapy Types, and Overall Survival in Stage III and IV Cutaneous Malignant Melanoma.

BACKGROUND: The advent of targeted therapies and immunomodulatory agents has revolutionized the management of advanced cutaneous malignant melanoma (MMel) by prolonging overall survival. This study evaluated the therapeutic and survival disparities among patients with advanced MMel based on hospital volume using the National Cancer Database (NCDB). METHODS: A retrospective analysis using regression models and Kaplan-Meier estimates was performed from the data obtained from the NCDB on patients with MMel diagnosed in 2004 through 2015. RESULTS: A total of 40,676 patients with MMel were treated at 1,260 facilities. Multivariable analysis showed that facility volume was an independent predictor of overall survival (P<.0001). Compared with patients treated at high-volume facilities (tertile 3 [T3]), those with stage III disease (n=27,528) treated at intermediate- and low-volume facilities (T2 and T1, respectively) had a significantly higher risk of death (T2 hazard ratio [HR], 1.15; 95% CI, 1.09-1.20; T1 HR, 1.23; 95% CI, 1.17-1.29). Compared with patients treated at T3 facilities, those with stage IV disease (n=13,148) treated at lower-tertile facilities had a significantly higher risk of death (T2 HR, 1.16; 95% CI, 1.10-1.21; T1 HR, 1.29; 95% CI, 1.23-1.36). Further, patients with stage IV disease treated at T3 facilities (vs T1 facilities) were more likely to receive chemotherapy (38% vs 28%) and immunotherapy (23% vs 10%) (P<.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with advanced-stage MMel treated at high-volume facilities had significantly improved survival and were more likely to receive chemotherapy and immunotherapy.

Weekly vinorelbine and paclitaxel in older patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer: A phase II Fred and Pamela Buffet Cancer Center Clinical Trials Network study.

OBJECTIVE: Platinum-based doublet chemotherapy is the standard for most patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Toxicity concerns limit chemotherapy for patients over 70years. Vinorelbine and paclitaxel are effective as single agents in advanced NSCLC. This phase II study evaluates safety and efficacy of a combination of these two agents in patients >70years with advanced NSCLC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients with treatment naïve metastatic NSCLC received two cycles comprising 6 weekly doses of vinorelbine and paclitaxel, with restaging scans at week 8. Patients with radiographic progression came off study. The estimated sample size was 29. Toxicity analyses were conducted after 10 patients and again after 19 patients were enrolled. Outcomes were safety and efficacy, progression free (PFS) and overall survival (OS) and quality of life (QOL). RESULTS: The study closed at second interim analysis as 6/19 patients had ≥grade 4 non-hematologic toxicity (respiratory failure, sepsis, ischemic encephalopathy, pneumonia, hypoxemia, cardiopulmonary arrest, neutropenic fever, death). Of the 16 evaluable patients, 7 completed the study. Disease control rate (partial response+stable disease) was 47% (n=9); 37% (n=7) progressed. No complete responses were seen. Median PFS was 3.5months (95% CI: 1.4, 5.5) and OS 7.8months (95% CI: 1.9, 13.6). QOL did not change compared to baseline, at week 9, but increased at week 17. CONCLUSIONS: Although the combination met its response end points, increased toxicity makes this combination unsuitable for older patients. While QOL improved over the study, the small sample hinders interpretation.

Resected small cell lung cancer-time for more?

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) often presents with either regional or systemic metastases, but approximately 4% of patients present with a solitary pulmonary nodule. Surgical resection can be an option for these patients and is endorsed by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines. There are no prospective randomized clinical trials evaluating the role of adjuvant systemic therapy in these resected SCLC patients. A recent National Cancer Database analysis found that the receipt of adjuvant chemotherapy alone [hazard ratio (HR), 0.78; 95% CI, 0.63-0.95] or with brain radiation (HR, 0.52; 95% CI, 0.36-0.75) was associated with significantly improved survival as compared to surgery alone. As it is unlikely that a randomized prospective clinical trial addressing this question will be completed, these data should assist with decision making in these patients.

Early Stage Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer in Octogenarian and Older Patients: A SEER Database Analysis.

BACKGROUND: The median age at diagnosis of lung cancer is 70 years. However, the evidence guiding the management of octogenarians and older patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), is based on data derived from younger patients and may not be appropriate. METHODS: Patients ≥ 80 years diagnosed with clinical stages I and II NSCLC, between 1988 and 2007, were identified from the SEER database. Patients were classified according to treatments received: no treatment, surgery only, radiation only, and surgery + radiation. Factors associated with survival were assessed using the Cox proportional hazards model. RESULTS: There were 1338 cases of early stage NSCLC in octogenarians. Surgery was the most common treatment modality. The median overall survival was 3.8 years for patients who had surgery, compared with 1.6 years, 1.6 years, and 0.9 years for those who received surgery + radiation, radiation alone, and no treatment, respectively (P < .0001). Factors significantly associated with worse overall survival following surgery included increasing age (hazard ratio [HR], 1.08; P = .0005), male gender (HR, 1.33; P = .01), stage II (HR, 2.21; P < .0001), and squamous histology (HR, 1.36; P = .01). CONCLUSION: Surgical resection is associated with long-term survival outcomes in a substantial proportion of octogenarian and older patients with early stage lung cancer and should not be withheld on the basis of age alone.

Management of patients with lung cancer and poor performance status.

Patients who are able to care for themselves but are unable to perform most work-related activities are considered to have a poor performance status (PS). Individuals who fulfill these criteria constitute a significant proportion of all patients with lung cancer. Patients with lung cancer and a poor PS, irrespective of age, have an increased incidence of adverse effects with therapy and poorer outcomes. Thus, although these individuals must be treated differently, data on optimal approaches for these patients are lacking, because this cohort is underrepresented in conventional clinical trials due to enrollment restrictions. This article presents the available evidence on the treatment of this group of patients with lung cancer. Although patients with PS 2 have worse overall outcomes than those with good PS, a selected proportion may still benefit from standard therapy. Further trials are needed to identify optimal strategies to treat this group of patients with lung cancer.

Predictive ability of Charlson comorbidity index on outcomes from lung cancer.

BACKGROUND: The effect of age and/or comorbidities on management decisions in lung cancer patients has been debated. The Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) was developed to help predict mortality from chronic medical conditions. This study was undertaken to evaluate whether CCI is correlated with survival in lung cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective chart review of 617 lung cancer patients diagnosed between 1994 and 2007 was conducted. CCI was calculated for each patient with and without the inclusion of age. Multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression analysis was used to evaluate the relationship between CCI and survival while adjusting for other prognostic factors. RESULTS: Six patients were excluded from the final analysis due to missing outcome or comorbidity data. The median age at diagnosis was 64 years (range, 16-89 y). Five hundred fourteen patients (84%) had nonsmall cell lung cancer and 97 patients (16%) had small cell lung cancer. Using multivariate analysis, no correlation was found between CCI and risk of death whether or not age was included in the index score. CONCLUSIONS: CCI did not provide predictive validity for survival of lung cancer patients. Development of accurate and predictive prognostic models to help estimate a patient's prognosis is needed.