DHEA-S, Androstenedione, 17-ß-estradiol signature as novel biomarkers for early prediction of risk of malignant pleural mesothelioma linked to asbestos-exposure: A preliminary investigation.

17-ß-estradiol, involved in mesothelioma pathogenesis, and its precursors were explored as potential biomarkers for the early diagnosis of mesothelioma. Using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA) for 17-ß-estradiol and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry(UHPLC-MS/MS) for 19 17-ß-estradiol precursors, a comprehensive analysis of 20steroid hormones was conducted in the serum of mesothelioma patients(n=67), asbestos-exposed healthy subjects(n=39), and non-asbestos-exposed healthy subjects(n=35). Bioinformatics analysis explored three potential serum biomarkers: 17-ß-estradiol, DHEA-S, and androstenedione. The results revealed significant differences in 17-ß-estradiol levels between mesothelioma patients and both non-asbestos-exposed and asbestos-exposed healthy subjects. No significant variations in serum 17-ß-estradiol levels were observed among mesothelioma patients at different stages, suggesting its potential as an early diagnostic marker. 17-ß-estradiol levels were similar in mesothelioma patients with environmental and occupational asbestos exposure, while males with occupational asbestos exposure exhibited significantly higher levels of 17-ß-estradiol compared to females. Significant reduction in androstenedione and an increase in DHEA-S were observed in asbestos-exposed individuals compared to non-asbestos-exposed individuals. The analysis of DHEA-S-androstenedione-17-ß-estradiol signature score showed an increase in asbestos-exposed individuals and mesothelioma patients compared to non-asbestos-exposed individuals, and this score effectively distinguished between the groups. The Cancer Genome Atlas data was utilized to analyze the expression of 5-α-reductase1 and hydroxysteroid-17ß-dehydrogenase2 genes. The findings indicated that mesothelioma patients with elevated gene values for 5-α-reductase1 and hydroxysteroid-17ß-dehydrogenase2 have a worse or better prognosis on overall survival, respectively. In conclusion, this study suggests 17-ß-estradiol, DHEA-S, and androstenedione as biomarkers for mesothelioma risk and early diagnosis of mesothelioma in asbestos-exposed individuals, aiding timely intervention and improved care.

Circulating SMRP and CA-125 before and after pleurectomy decortication for pleural mesothelioma.

BACKGROUND: Tumor recurrence remains the main barrier to survival after surgery for pleural mesothelioma (PM). Soluble mesothelin-related protein (SMRP) and cancer antigen 125 (CA-125) are established blood-based biomarkers for monitoring PM. We prospectively studied the utility of these biomarkers after pleurectomy decortication (PD). METHODS: Patients who underwent PD and achieved complete macroscopic resection with available preoperative SMRP levels were included. Tumor marker levels were determined within 60 days of three timepoints: (1) preoperation, (2) post-operation, and (3) recurrence. RESULTS: Of 356 evaluable patients, 276 (78%) had recurrence by the end of follow-up interval. Elevated preoperative SMRP levels were associated with epithelioid histology (p < 0.013), advanced TNM (p < 0.001) stage, and clinical stage (p < 0.001). Preoperative CA-125 levels were not significantly associated with clinical covariates. Neither biomarker was associated with survival or disease-free survival. With respect to nonpleural and nonlymphatic recurrences, mean SMRP levels were elevated in patients with pleural (p = 0.021) and lymph node (p = 0.042) recurrences. CA-125 levels were significantly higher in patients with abdominal (p < 0.001) and lymph node (p = 0.004) recurrences. Among patients with all three timepoints available, we observed an average decrease in SMRP levels by 1.93 nmol/L (p < 0.001) postoperatively and again an average increase at recurrence by 0.79 nmol/L (p < 0.001). There were no significant changes in levels of CA-125 across the study timepoints (p = 0.47). CONCLUSIONS: Longitudinal changes in SMRP levels corresponded with a radiographic presence of disease in a subset of patients. SMRP surveillance could aid in detection of local recurrences, whereas CA-125 could be helpful in recognizing abdominal recurrences.

Malignant pleural mesothelioma: clinical experience and prognostic value of derived neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and PD-L1 expression

Background Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is a rare and aggressive tumor, with a poor prognosis. MPM needs to find prognostic factors of survival. We provided the management of patients with MPM and sought to determine whether pre-treatment levels of derived neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (dNLR) as well as PD-L1 expression were reliable prognostic factors of survival. Methods We conducted a single-institution retrospective study, including all patients with MPM treated at La Paz University Hospital between December 2009 and March 2018. Baseline disease, demographics, clinical data, treatment characteristics and complete blood cell counts were collected. We examined dNLR at baseline and data for PD-L1 expression were analyzed in tumor cells by immunohistochemistry. Results We included 25 patients. The median overall survival (OS) was 15.7 months (95% CI 11.3–20.0). 5 patients had a dNLR greater than 3 (20%). Patients with a dNLR greater than 3 had shorter median OS (8.5 months), than patients with a dNLR less than 3 (17.0 months), with statistically significant differences (p = 0.038). Ten patients (40%) had positive PD-L1 expression (≥ 1%). Patients with positive PD-L1 expression had shorter median OS (8.5 months) than patients with negative PDL1 expression (15.7 months), but without statistically significant association (p = 0.319). Conclusion The survival data obtained in our sample are consistent with those previously reported. Pretreatment levels of dNLR greater than 3 and positive PD-L1 expression could be significant prognostic factors for poor survival in patients with MPM. Further and prospective studies are needed to explore this relationship and to derive definitive conclusions (AU)

Sensitive Blood-Based Detection of Asbestos-Associated Diseases Using Cysteine-Rich Angiogenic Inducer 61 as Circulating Protein Biomarker.

BACKGROUND: Detection of asbestos-associated diseases like asbestosis or mesothelioma is still challenging. We sought to improve the diagnosis of benign asbestos-associated disease (BAAD) by detection of the protein cysteine-rich angiogenic inducer 61 (Cyr61) in human plasma. METHODS: Plasma Cyr61 was quantified using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Plasma samples from males diagnosed with BAAD, but without a malignant disease (n = 101), and malignant mesothelioma (n = 21; 15 males, 6 females), as well as nonasbestos-exposed healthy control participants (n = 150; 58 males, 92 females) were analyzed. Clinical sensitivity and specificity of Cyr61 were determined by receiver operating characteristic analysis. RESULTS: The median plasma Cyr61 concentration for healthy control participants was 0.27 ng/mL. Cytoplasmic Cyr61 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy control participants was evenly distributed, as detected by immunofluorescent staining. The increase in plasma Cyr61 concentrations in the BAAD study group was statistically significant compared to the healthy control participants (P < 0.0001). For the detection of BAAD vs male healthy control participants, clinical sensitivity was 88% and clinical specificity 95% with an area under the curve of 0.924 at maximal Youden Index. For a predefined clinical specificity of 100%, the clinical sensitivity was 76%. For male mesothelioma patients vs male healthy control participants, the clinical sensitivity at maximal Youden Index was 95% with a clinical specificity of 100% (area under the curve, 0.997) and for a predefined clinical specificity of 100%, the clinical sensitivity was 93%. CONCLUSIONS: In our study, plasma Cyr61 protein concentrations showed to be a new biomarker for asbestos-associated diseases like BAAD and mesothelioma in men, which deserves further investigation in large-scale cohort studies.

Putative Biomarkers for Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma Suggested by Proteomic Analysis of Cell Secretome.

BACKGROUND: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) a rare neoplasm linked to asbestos exposure is characterized by a poor prognosis. Soluble mesothelin is currently considered the most specific diagnostic biomarker. The aim of the study was to identify novel biomarkers by proteomic analysis of two MPM cell lines secretome. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The protein patterns of MPM cells secretome were examined and compared to a non-malignant mesothelial cell line using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis coupled to mass spectrometry. Serum levels of candidate biomarkers were determined in MPM patients and control subjects. RESULTS: Two up-regulated proteins involved in cancer biology, prosaposin and quiescin Q6 sulfhydryl oxidase 1, were considered candidate biomarkers. Serum levels of both proteins were significantly higher in MPM patients than control subjects. Combining the data of each receiver-operating characteristic analysis predicted a good diagnostic accuracy. CONCLUSION: A panel of the putative biomarkers represents a promising tool for MPM diagnosis.

Serum levels of the chemokine CCL2 are elevated in malignant pleural mesothelioma patients.

BACKGROUND: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is a debilitating disease of the pleural cavity. It is primarily associated with previous inhalation of asbestos fibers. These fibers initiate an oxidant coupled inflammatory response. Repeated exposure to asbestos fibers results in a prolonged inflammatory response and cycles of tissue damage and repair. The inflammation-associated cycles of tissue damage and repair are intimately involved in the development of asbestos-associated cancers. Macrophages are a key component of asbestos-associated inflammation and play essential roles in the etiology of a variety of cancers. Macrophages are also a source of C-C motif chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2), and a variety of tumor-types express CCL2. High levels of CCL2 are present in the pleural effusions of mesothelioma patients, however, CCL2 has not been examined in the serum of mesothelioma patients. METHODS: The present study was carried out with 50 MPM patients and 356 subjects who were possibly exposed to asbestos but did not have disease symptoms and 41 healthy volunteers without a history of exposure to asbestos. The levels of CCL2 in the serum of the study participants was determined using ELISA. RESULTS: Levels of CCL2 were significantly elevated in the serum of patients with advanced MPM. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings are consistent with the premise that the CCL2/CCR2 axis and myeloid-derived cells play an important role in MPM and disease progression. Therapies are being developed that target CCL2/CCR2 and tumor resident myeloid cells, and clinical trials are being pursued that use these therapies as part of the treatment regimen. The results of trials with patients with a similar serum CCL2 pattern as MPM patients will have important implications for the treatment of MPM.

Mesothelin, Calretinin, and Megakaryocyte Potentiating Factor as Biomarkers of Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma.

PURPOSE: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is a highly lethal cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. Currently, the diagnosis is a challenge, carried out by means of invasive methods of limited sensitivity. This is a case-control study to evaluate the individual and combined performance of minimally invasive biomarkers for the diagnosis of MPM. METHOD: A study of 166 incident cases of MPM and 378 population controls of Mestizo-Mexican ethnicity was conducted. Mesothelin, calretinin, and megakaryocyte potentiating factor (MPF) were quantified in plasma by ELISA. The samples were collected from 2011 to 2016. RESULTS: Based on ROC analysis and a preset specificity of 95%, the combination of the three biomarkers reached an AUC of 0.944 and a sensitivity of 82% in men. In women, an AUC of 0.937 and a sensitivity of 87% were reached. In nonconditional logistic regression models, the adjusted ORs in men were 7.92 (95% CI 3.02-20.78) for mesothelin, 20.44 (95% CI 8.90-46.94) for calretinin, and 4.37 (95% CI 1.60-11.94) for MPF. The ORs for women were 28.89 (95% CI 7.32-113.99), 17.89 (95% CI 3.93-81.49), and 2.77 (95% CI 0.47-16.21), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge, this is the first study evaluating a combination of mesothelin, calretinin, and MPF, and demonstrating a sex effect for calretinin. The biomarker panel showed a good performance in a Mestizo-Mexican population, with high sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of MPM.

Evaluation of Matrix Metalloproteinase 9 Serum Concentration as a Biomarker in Malignant Mesothelioma.

BACKGROUND: Malignant mesothelioma (MM) is a rare, but fatal disease with few treatment options. The diagnosis and treatment response are challenging in MM. Therefore, the search for novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers is ongoing. The aim of our study was to investigate matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) as a potential serum biomarker of treatment response and survival in MM. We also investigated the influence of genetic polymorphisms on MMP9 serum levels. METHODS: We included 110 patients with MM that have been previously genotyped for common MMP9 polymorphisms. Serum samples were collected before treatment, at the end of chemotherapy, and at the time of progression. MMP9 serum levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. The role of serum MMP9 and MMP9 polymorphisms in treatment response was determined using the nonparametric tests and logistic or Cox regression. RESULTS: Median serum MMP9 was 706.7 (499.6-1224.9) ng/ml before treatment, 440.5 (255.9-685.2) ng/ml after chemotherapy, and 502.8 (307.2-851.4) ng/ml at disease progression. After chemotherapy, 87 (79.8%) patients had lower serum MMP9, with the median change of -286.3 (-607.3 to -70.2) ng/ml (P < 0.001). At disease progression, 47 (65.3%) patients had lower serum MMP9 compared to pretreatment values, with the median change of -163.7 (-466.6 to 108.6) ng/ml (P = 0.001). Patients with higher performance status had higher serum MMP9 before treatment (P = 0.010). Among investigated polymorphisms, only rs17576 was associated with serum MMP9 levels before treatment (P = 0.041). CONCLUSION: Median serum MMP9 levels differed significantly before and after treatment of MM, but failed to reach significance as a standalone biomarker. The contribution of MMP9 serum levels and MMP9 polymorphisms to a composite diagnostic and prognostic biomarker should be further tested.

Biomarkers for malignant pleural mesothelioma: a meta-analysis.

Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is a rare but aggressive cancer, and early detection is associated with better survival. Mesothelin, fibulin-3 and osteopontin have been suggested as screening biomarkers. The study conducted a meta-analysis of the mean differences of mesothelin, osteopontin and fibulin-3 in blood and pleural samples. PubMed searches were conducted for studies that measured levels of mesothelin, osteopontin and fibulin-3 in participants with MPM compared with malignancy, benign lung disease or healthy participants. Thirty-two studies with mesothelin levels, 12 studies with osteopontin levels and 9 studies with fibulin-3 levels were included in the meta-analysis. Statistically significant mean differences were seen between MPM patients and all other comparison groups for mesothelin blood and pleural levels. Statistically significant differences in blood osteopontin levels were seen between participants with benign lung disease and healthy participants compared with participants with MPM, but not when comparing participants with cancer with MPM participants. There were not enough studies that reported osteopontin levels in pleural fluid to complete a meta-analysis. Statistically significant differences were seen in both blood and pleural levels of fibulin-3 in MPM patients compared with all other groups. On the basis of these results, mesothelin and fibulin-3 levels appear to be significantly lower in all control groups compared with those with MPM, making them good candidates for screening biomarkers. Osteopontin may be a useful biomarker for screening healthy individuals or those with benign lung disease but would not be useful for screening patients with malignancies.

The Value of COX-2, NF-κB, and Blood Routine Indexes in the Prognosis of Malignant Peritoneal Mesothelioma.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: To investigate differences in blood routine indexes and the expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) in malignant peritoneal mesothelioma (MPeM) and their relationship with clinical prognosis. METHODS: We investigated changes in blood routine indexes between the MPeM patients and healthy subjects and detected the expression of COX-2 and NF-κB in peritoneal tissues by a streptavidin-peroxidase immunohistochemistry method. Potential prognostic factors were analyzed including age, gender, white blood cell count (WBC), absolute neutrophil count (ANC), absolute lymphocyte count (ALC), absolute platelet count (APC), absolute monocyte count (AMC), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), COX-2, and NF-κB. Cox regression model analysis established independent factors for the survival prognosis of the patients. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, AMC, MXD%, ANC, neutrophilic granulocyte percentage (NEUT%), APC, NLR, MLR, and PLR were markedly increased (p < 0.05) in the MPeM group. The positivity rates for COX-2 and NF-κB expression were 59.4 and 44.9%, respectively. Single factor analyses indicated that PLR, NLR, MLR, COX-2, and NF-κB were factors that affected the overall survival of MPeM patients, but multivariate analyses identified MLR and COX-2 as independent prognostic factors. CONCLUSIONS: High blood levels of MLR and COX-2 are adverse prognostic factors for patients with MPeM.

Droplet digital PCR as a novel system for the detection of microRNA­34b/c methylation in circulating DNA in malignant pleural mesothelioma.

Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is a rare malignancy arising from the pleura that is difficult to diagnose, contributing to its dismal prognosis. Previously, we reported that the degree of microRNA (miR)­34b/c methylation in circulating DNA is associated with the development of MPM. Herein, we present a newly developed droplet digital PCR (ddPCR)­based assay for the detection of miR­34b/c methylation in circulating DNA in patients with MPM. We originally prepared two probes within a short amplicon of 60 bp, designing one from the positive strand and the other from the complementary strand. The two probes functioned cooperatively, and our established assay detected DNA methylation accurately in the preliminary validation. We subsequently verified this assay using clinical samples. Serum samples from 35 cases of MPM, 29 cases of pleural plaque and 10 healthy volunteers were collected from 3 different institutions and used in this study. We divided the samples into 2 groups (group A, n=33; group B, n=41). A receiver­operating characteristic curve analysis using the samples in group A determined the optimal cut­off value for the diagnosis of MPM, with a sensitivity of 76.9% and a specificity of 90%. On the other hand, the use of the same criterion yielded a sensitivity of 59.1% and a specificity of 100% in group B, and corresponding values of 65.7 and 94.9% for the entire cohort, indicating a moderate sensitivity and a high specificity. In addition, when the analysis was focused on stage II or more advanced MPM, the sensitivity improved to 81.8%, suggesting the possibility that the methylated allele frequency in MPM may be associated with the stage of disease progression. On the whole, the findings of this study indicate that miR­34b/c methylation in circulating DNA is a promising biomarker for the prediction of disease progression in patients with MPM.

In commemoration of the 2018 Mataro Nagayo Prize: A road to early diagnosis and monitoring of asbestos-related mesothelioma.

Primarily caused by exposure to asbestos, mesothelioma is a typical occupational disease. The latency of mesothelioma is as long as 20-40 years, and the cancer initially progresses mainly along the surfaces of pleura or peritoneum without forming masses. As symptoms do not develop until late stages, it has been challenging to diagnose this disease in its early stages and to carry out complete surgical removal. In responding to Japan's asbestos crisis in the mid-2000s, we have developed and improved ERC/MSLN-based serum and radiological markers and pioneered the use of an N-ERC ELISA kit for screening populations at risk for asbestos exposure. In the present article, we review our research toward early diagnosis of asbestos-related mesothelioma before symptoms develop and share our clinical experience of screening, diagnosing and monitoring of this disease. This paper is dedicated to the author (Dr Okio Hino) to commemorate the honor bestowed upon him as the recipient of the Mataro Nagayo Prize in 2018.

Are circulating microRNAs suitable for the early detection of malignant mesothelioma? Results from a nested case-control study.

OBJECTIVE: Malignant mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer of the serous membranes. For the detection of the tumor at early stages non- or minimally-invasive biomarkers are needed. The circulating biomarkers miR-132-3p, miR-126-3p, and miR-103a-3p were analyzed in a nested case-control study using plasma samples from 17 prediagnostic mesothelioma cases and 34 matched asbestos-exposed controls without a malignant disease. RESULTS: Using prediagnostic plasma samples collected in median 8.9 months prior the clinical diagnosis miR-132-3p, miR-126-3p, and miR-103a-3p revealed 0% sensitivity on a defined specificity of 98%. Thus, the analyzed miRNAs failed to detect the cancer in prediagnostic samples, showing that they are not feasible for the early detection of malignant mesothelioma. However, the miRNAs might still serve as possible markers for prognosis and response to therapy, but this needs to be analyzed in appropriate studies.

Detection of circulating tumor cells with a novel microfluidic system in malignant pleural mesothelioma.

Detection of rare tumor cells circulating in the blood (CTCs) presents technical challenges. CellSearch, the only approved system for clinical use, fails to capture epithelial cell adhesion molecule-negative CTCs such as malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM). We have developed a novel microfluidic device (CTC-chip) in which any Ab to capture CTCs is conjugated. The CTC-chip was coated with an Ab against podoplanin that is abundantly expressed on MPM. Circulating tumor cell-detection performance was evaluated in experimental models in which MPM cells were spiked in blood sampled from a healthy volunteer and in clinical samples drawn from MPM patients. The CTC-chip showed superior CTC-detection performance over CellSearch in experimental models (sensitivity, 63.3%-64.5% vs 0%-1.1%; P < .001) and in clinical samples (CTC-positivity, 68.8% vs 6.3%; P < .001). A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis showed that the CTC test provided a significant diagnostic performance in discrimination of unresectable disease from resectable disease (area under the ROC curve, 0.851; P = .003). The higher CTC count (≥2 cells/mL) was significantly associated with a poor prognosis (P = .030). The novel CTC-chip enabled sensitive detection of CTCs, which provided significant diagnostic and prognostic information in MPM.

Peripheral Blood DNA Methylation as Potential Biomarker of Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma in Asbestos-Exposed Subjects.

INTRODUCTION: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is an aggressive tumor strongly associated with asbestos exposure. Patients are usually diagnosed when current treatments have limited benefits, highlighting the need for noninvasive early diagnostic tests to monitor asbestos-exposed people. METHODS: We used a genome-wide methylation array to identify, in asbestos-exposed subjects, novel blood DNA methylation markers of MPM in 163 MPM cases and 137 cancer-free controls (82 MPM cases and 68 controls, training set; replication in 81 MPM cases and 69 controls, test set) sampled from the same areas. RESULTS: Evidence of differential methylation between MPM cases and controls was found (more than 800 cytosine-guanine dinucleotide sites, false discovery rate p value (pfdr) < 0.05), mainly in immune system-related genes. Considering the top differentially methylated signals, seven single- cytosine-guanine dinucleotides and five genomic regions of coordinated methylation replicated with similar effect size in the test set (pfdr < 0.05). The top hypomethylated single-CpG (cases versus controls effect size less than -0.15, pfdr < 0.05 in both the training and test sets) was detected in FOXK1 (Forkhead-box K1) gene, an interactor of BAP1 which was found mutated in MPM tissue and as germline mutation in familial MPM. In the test set, comparison of receiver operating characteristic curves and the area under the curve (AUC) of two models, including or excluding methylation, showed a significant increase in case/control discrimination when considering DNA methylation together with asbestos exposure (AUC = 0.81 versus AUC = 0.89, DeLong's test p = 0.0013). CONCLUSIONS: We identified signatures of differential methylation in DNA from whole blood between asbestos exposed MPM cases and controls. Our results provide the rationale to further investigate, in prospective studies, the potential use of blood DNA methylation profiles for the identification of early changes related to the MPM carcinogenic process.

Clinical significance of serum DRAM1 mRNA, ARSA mRNA, hsa-miR-2053 and lncRNA-RP1-86D1.3 axis expression in malignant pleural mesothelioma.

AIM AND BACKGROUND: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is a lethal cancer mainly caused by chronic exposure of asbestos. In this pilot study, we aimed to assess the expression of serum RNA-based biomarker panel exploring their clinical utility as diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for MPM. METHODS: We have selected an MPM-specific RNA-based biomarker panel through bioinformatics analysis based on the integration of DNA damage regulated autophagy modulator 1 (DRAM1) and arylsulfatase A ( ARSA) gene expression with their epigenetic regulators microRNA ( miR-2053) and long noncoding RNA ( lncRNA-RP1-86D1.3). Then, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) validation in sera of 60 MPM patients, 20 chronic asbestos exposure patients, and 20 healthy volunteers was done. Lastly, the prognostic power of the selected panel was assessed. RESULTS: The expression of serum DRAM1 messenger RNA (mRNA), ARSA mRNA, hsa-miR-2053 and lncRNA-RP1-86D1.3 were positive in 78.3%, 90%, 85%, and 83.3% of MPM patients, respectively. The RNA-based biomarker panel was able to discriminate between MPM patients and controls with high accuracy and their combined sensitivity reached 100% for the diagnosis of MPM. Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that hsa-miR-2053 is an independent prognostic factor of MPM. CONCLUSION: Our preliminary data revealed that the chosen RNAs play an important role in driving MPM development and progression.

Prediction modelling using routine clinical parameters to stratify survival in Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma patients undergoing cytoreductive surgery.

INTRODUCTION: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is an uncommon cancer with a poor prognosis and heterogeneous survival. Surgery for MPM is offered in some specialist centers to highly selected patients. A previously described classification and regression tree (CART) model stratified survival in unselected MPM patients using routinely collected clinical data. This study aimed to examine the performance of this CART model on a highly selected surgical population. METHODS: Data were collected from subjects undergoing cytoreductive surgery for MPM from specialist centers in Hyõgo, Japan, and Sydney, Australia, between 1991 and 2016. The CART model was applied using the combination of clinical variables to stratify subjects into risk groups (1 through 4); survival characteristics were then compared. RESULTS: Two hundred eighty-nine cases were included (205 from Australia, 84 from Japan). Overall median survival was 34.6 (interquartile range: 17.5-56.1) months; median age was 63.0 (interquartile range: 57.0-67.8) years, and 83.0% (n = 240) were male. There were no clinically meaningful differences between the two cohorts. Survival across the four risk groups was significantly different (p < 0.0001); the model stratified survival well with a Harrell's concordance statistic of 0.62 (95% confidence interval: 0.57-0.66) at 36 months. The group with the longest survival (median, 82.5 months) had: no weight loss, hemoglobin > 153 g/L and serum albumin > 43 g/L at time of referral to the surgical center. CONCLUSIONS: Using routinely available clinical variables, the CART model was able to stratify surgical patients into risk groups with statistically different survival characteristics with fair to good performance. Presence of weight loss, anemia, and low albumin should confer caution when considering surgical therapy for MPM.

Tumour associated lymphocytes in the pleural effusions of patients with mesothelioma express high levels of inhibitory receptors.

OBJECTIVE: Pleural effusion (PE) is a common feature of malignant pleural mesothelioma. These effusions typically contain lymphocytes and malignant cells. We postulated that the PE would be a source of lymphocytes for analysis of tumor immune milieu. The aim of this study was to compare the phenotype and T cell receptor usage of pleural effusion T cells with paired concurrently drawn peripheral blood lymphocytes. We used multi-parameter flow cytometry and high-throughput T cell receptor sequencing to analyse peripheral blood and pleural effusion mononuclear cells. RESULTS: Both CD8+ and CD4+ T cells from effusion showed increased expression of T cell inhibitory receptors PD-1, LAG-3 and Tim-3 compared to blood. Comprehensive T cell receptor sequencing on one of the patients showed a discordant distribution of clonotypes in the antigen-experienced (PD-1+) compartment between effusion and blood, suggesting an enrichment of antigen specific clonotypes in the effusion, with potential as an immunological response biomarker.