A phase 1 study of concurrent cabozantinib and cetuximab in recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell cancer.

OBJECTIVES: Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibition with cetuximab is a standard treatment for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Activation of the receptor tyrosine kinases AXL, MET and VEGFR can mediate resistance to cetuximab. Cabozantinib, a multikinase inhibitor (MKI) targeting AXL/MET/VEGFR, has demonstrated antitumor activity in preclinical models of HNSCC. This investigator- initiated phase I trial evaluated the safety and efficacy of cetuximab plus cabozantinib in patients with recurrent/metastatic (R/M) HNSCC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients received cetuximab concurrently with cabozantinib daily on a 28-day cycle. Using a 3 + 3 dose-escalation design, the primary endpoint was to determine the maximally tolerated dose (MTD) of cabozantinib. Secondary endpoints included overall response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR), progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) RESULTS: Among the 20 patients enrolled, most had prior disease progression on immune checkpoint inhibitors (95 %), platinum-based chemotherapy (95 %), and cetuximab (80 %). No dose-limiting toxicities were recorded and the MTD for cabozantinib was established to be 60 mg. Grade ≥ 3 adverse events occurred in 65 % of patients (n = 13). ORR was 20 %, with 4 partial responses (PRs). Two PRs were observed in cetuximab-naïve patients (n = 4), with an ORR of 50 % in this subgroup. In the overall population, DCR was 75 %, median PFS was 3.4 months and median OS was 8.1 months. CONCLUSION: Cetuximab plus cabozantinib demonstrated a manageable toxicity profile and preliminary efficacy in patients with heavily treated R/M HNSCC. The combination of cetuximab with MKIs targeting the AXL/MET/VEGFR axis warrants further investigation, including in cetuximab-naïve patients.

A Somatic BRCA2-Mutated Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma With Sustained Exceptional Response to Modified FOLFIRINOX.

Homologous recombination repair (HRR) pathway deficiency opens multiple therapeutic avenues within pancreatic cancer. Patients with HRR deficiency-associated gene mutations such as BRCA1, BRCA2, and PALB2 are more susceptible to platinum-based chemotherapies and in those with somatic BRCA mutations, PARP inhibitor therapy prolongs progression-free survival. The case discussed herein illustrates the therapeutic opportunities offered through the identification of HRR deficiency in pancreatic cancer, as well as the challenges associated with treatment and prevention of central nervous system metastases in long-term survivors of pancreatic cancer.

Automated System for Multiplexing Detection of COVID-19 and Other Respiratory Pathogens.

OBJECTIVE: Infectious diseases are global health challenge, impacted the communities worldwide particularly in the midst of COVID-19 pandemic. The need of rapid and accurate automated systems for detecting pathogens of concern has always been critical. Ideally, such systems shall detect a large panel of pathogens simultaneously regardless of well-equipped facilities and highly trained operators, thus realizing on-site diagnosis for frontline healthcare providers and in critical locations such as borders and airports. METHODS & RESULTS: Avalon Automated Multiplex System, AAMST, is developed to automate a series of biochemistry protocols to detect nucleic acid sequences from multiple pathogens in one test. Automated processes include isolation of nucleic acids from unprocessed samples, reverse transcription and two rounds of amplifications. All procedures are carried out in a microfluidic cartridge performed by a desktop analyzer. The system was validated with reference controls and showed good agreement with their laboratory counterparts. In total 63 clinical samples, 13 positives including those from COVID-19 patients and 50 negative cases were detected, consistent with clinical diagnosis using conventional laboratory methods. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed system has demonstrated promising utility. It would benefit the screening and diagnosis of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases in a simple, rapid and accurate fashion. Clinical and Translational Impact Statement- A rapid and multiplex diagnostic system proposed in this work can clinically help to control spread of COVID-19 and other infectious agents as it can provide timely diagnosis, isolation and treatment to patients. Using the system at remoted clinical sites can facilitate early clinical management and surveillance.

Managed care considerations to improve health care utilization for patients with ALS.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatally progressive degenerative disease, with many patients succumbing to the condition within 3 to 5 years after diagnosis. It is a rare, orphan disease with an estimated US prevalence of 25,000 patients. Patients with ALS and their caregivers are faced with a substantial financial burden as a result of the condition, as ALS has an estimated national financial burden of $1.03 billion. A significant driver of the patient financial burden includes the continued need for caregiver support as the weakening of muscles progresses to dysphagia and dyspnea, making it difficult to complete activities of daily living as the disease progresses. Caregivers also experience financial burdens, as well as feelings of anxiety, depression, and decreased quality of life. In addition to needed caregiver support, patients with ALS and their families also incur substantial nonmedical costs including travel expenses, home modifications such as ramps, and indirect costs such as productivity loss. Due to the wide range of clinical symptoms that patients may exhibit when first presenting with ALS symptoms, diagnosis is often delayed, which negatively affects patient outcomes and impacts missed opportunity for clinical trial recruitment aimed at developing new disease-modifying therapies. Additionally, delay in diagnosis and referral to ALS treatment centers results in increased overall health care costs. Telemedicine may be a tool used to promote timely care from an ALS treatment center in addition to clinical trial participation for those patients who cannot overcome mobility barriers for care. Currently, 4 therapies are approved for the treatment of ALS. Riluzole has demonstrated modest improvement in survival. Other recently approved therapies include oral edaravone, a combination therapy of sodium phenylbutyrate and taurursodiol (PB/TURSO), and tofersen, which is administered intrathecally and approved under an accelerated approval. Long-term studies have shown PB/TURSO to have a dual benefit on survival and function. The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) 2022 Evidence Report for ALS does not value the high price points of edaravone and PB/TURSO as cost-effective based on the current evidence, despite valuing the need for new treatment options for this patient population.

Smoking is Not Associated with Lung Metastasis in Pancreatic Cancer.

Smoking is a risk factor for pulmonary metastasis in various malignancies. We investigated this association for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). We conducted a retrospective 1:2 case-control study of consecutive patients who underwent PDAC resection (2011-2021). Cases ultimately developed lung metastases and controls did not. Of 744 patients we identified 53 cases and 106 matched controls. Twenty-five (47%) cases and 50 (47%) matched controls had a history of smoking (p = 1.0). This indicates that smoking is not associated with increased risk of pulmonary metastasis in resectable PDAC. Further research is needed to elucidate tumor and parenchymal factors influencing metastatic site.

Ras-dependent activation of BMAL2 regulates hypoxic metabolism in pancreatic cancer.

To identify novel drivers of malignancy in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), we employed regulatory network analysis, which calculates the activity of transcription factors and other regulatory proteins based on the integrated expression of their positive and negative target genes. We generated a regulatory network for the malignant epithelial cells of human PDAC using gene expression data from a set of 197 laser capture microdissected human PDAC samples and 45 low-grade precursors, for which we had matched histopathological, clinical, and epidemiological annotation. We then identified the most highly activated and repressed regulatory proteins (e.g. master regulators or MRs) associated with four malignancy phenotypes: precursors vs. PDAC (initiation), low-grade vs. high grade histopathology (progression), survival post resection, and association with KRAS activity. Integrating across these phenotypes, the top MR of PDAC malignancy was found to be BMAL2, a member of the PAS family of bHLH transcription factors. Although the canonical function of BMAL2 is linked to the circadian rhythm protein CLOCK, annotation of BMAL2 target genes highlighted a potential role in hypoxia response. We previously demonstrated that PDAC is hypovascularized and hypoperfused, and here show that PDAC from the genetically engineered KPC model exists in a state of extreme hypoxia, with a partial oxygen pressure of <1mmHg. Given the close homology of BMAL2 to HIF1ß (ARNT) and its potential to heterodimerize with HIF1A and HIF2A, we investigated whether BMAL2 plays a role in the hypoxic response of PDAC. Indeed, BMAL2 controlled numerous hypoxia response genes and could be inhibited following treatment with multiple RAF, MEK, and ERK inhibitors, validating its association with RAS activity. Knockout of BMAL2 in four human PDAC cell lines led to defects in growth and invasion in the setting of hypoxia. Strikingly, BMAL2 null cells failed to induce glycolysis upon exposure to severe hypoxia and this was associated with a loss of expression of the glycolytic enzyme LDHA. Moreover, HIF1A was no longer stabilized under hypoxia in BMAL2 knockout cells. By contrast, HIF2A was hyper-stabilized under hypoxia, indicating a dysregulation of hypoxia metabolism in response to BMAL2 loss. We conclude that BMAL2 is a master regulator of hypoxic metabolism in PDAC, serving as a molecular switch between the disparate metabolic roles of HIF1A- and HIF2A-dependent hypoxia responses.

Future of immunotherapy in pancreas cancer and the trials, tribulations and successes thus far.

Pancreas ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) has a dismal prognosis with a 5-year survival rate of 10%. Currently, chemotherapy remains the standard of care for systemic treatment. Immunotherapy with checkpoint inhibitors unfortunately has not been found to be effective in the treatment of PDAC to date, likely due to the highly desmoplastic and immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME). Treatment targeting pathways against the immunosuppressive mechanisms of PDAC are of mounting interest to improve outcomes in PDAC. In this review, we discuss prior efforts and the current state of immunotherapy in PDAC. We will also review the emerging targets and treatments with significant clinical potential for the treatment of PDAC such as: CD40 pathway, the adenosine pathway, the CXCR4/CXCL12 axis, the CCR2/CCL2 axis, IDO pathway, and others.

Early-Onset Pancreas Cancer: Clinical Descriptors, Genomics, and Outcomes.

BACKGROUND: Recent evidence suggests a rising incidence of cancer in younger individuals. Herein, we report the epidemiologic, pathologic, and molecular characteristics of a patient cohort with early-onset pancreas cancer (EOPC). METHODS: Institutional databases were queried for demographics, treatment history, genomic results, and outcomes. Overall survival from date of diagnosis was estimated using Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS: Between 2008 and 2018, 450 patients with EOPC were identified at Memorial Sloan Kettering. Median overall survival was 16.3 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 14.6 to 17.7) months in the entire cohort and 11.3 (95% CI = 10.2 to 12.2) months for patients with stage IV disease at diagnosis. Of the patients, 132 (29.3% of the cohort) underwent somatic testing; 21 of 132 (15.9%) had RAS wild-type cancers with identification of several actionable alterations, including ETV6-NTRK3, TPR-NTRK1, SCLA5-NRG1, and ATP1B1-NRG1 fusions, IDH1 R132C mutation, and mismatch repair deficiency. A total of 138 patients (30.7% of the cohort) underwent germline testing; 44 of 138 (31.9%) had a pathogenic germline variant (PGV), and 27.5% harbored alterations in cancer susceptibility genes. Of patients seen between 2015 and 2018, 30 of 193 (15.5%) had a PGV. Among 138 who underwent germline testing, those with a PGV had a reduced all-cause mortality compared with patients without a PGV controlling for stage and year of diagnosis (hazard ratio = 0.42, 95% CI = 0.26 to 0.69). CONCLUSIONS: PGVs are present in a substantial minority of patients with EOPC. Actionable somatic alterations were identified frequently in EOPC, enriched in the RAS wild-type subgroup. These observations underpin the recent guidelines for universal germline testing and somatic profiling in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

A double-edged sword: Prolonged detection of SARS-COV-2 in patients receiving cancer directed therapy.

INTRODUCTION: SARS-CoV-2 (S-2) infection duration and its impact on patients with cancer and mild to moderate COVID-19 undergoing cancer-directed therapy (CDT), especially in the underserved population, is not well described. We conducted a retrospective study to analyze S-2 positive (+) patients on CDT to describe the S-2 duration and its impact on CDT. METHODS: Two hundred ninety-nine patients with cancer were tested with nasopharyngeal (NP) S-2 PCR assay at Columbia University Medical Irving Center (CUIMC), a Minority-NCI Community Oncology site, of which 77 (26%) tested positive. We retrospectively analyzed 26 S-2 (+) patients with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 receiving CDT who consented to the study. NP PCR was repeated every 1 to 2 weeks until 2 successive negative (-) PCRs were obtained prior to restarting CDT. Time to 2 (-) PCR and serology results were recorded. Cycling thresholds (Ct) were obtained for S-2 specific targets and represented an indirect measure of viral load. RESULTS: Demographics of N = 26 patients are: Hispanic (N = 17, 65%), Black (N = 1, 4%), White (N = 7, 27%), and undeclared (N = 1, 4%). Among the tumor histologies represented, gastrointestinal (N = 9, 35%), breast (N = 5, 19%), and sarcoma (N = 3, 12%) were most common. Median time to 2 (-) PCR was 32 days. Twenty patients required greater than 14 days to achieve 2 sequential (-) swabs. CDT was delayed in 21 patients (81%) of whom three experienced disease progression, likely attributed to an interruption in CDT, which was delayed by a mean of 53 days. Interestingly, nine (41%) patients had Ct values greater than 34 for the pan SARS target and seven (32%) patients had Ct values greater than 34 for the SARS-COV-2 target. Sixteen of 16 patients on CDT, tested positive for IgG antibodies at the time of consent, despite protracted viral detectability by NP PCR. CONCLUSION: Patients receiving CDT appear to have prolonged detectable S-2 by PCR, which can lead to interruption of CDT and POD in patients. We believe and recommend that patients with asymptomatic to mild COVID-19 and aggressive malignancies are at greatest risk for cancer related morbidity and mortality due to CDT cessation and should be considered for continued CDT without interruption. Ct values and serology testing are tools that can help identify those patients on CDT who may be at greatest risk of worsening COVID-19 or of spreading S-2.

Preoperative CT predictors of survival in patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma undergoing curative intent surgery.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the associations between computed tomography (CT) imaging features extracted from the structured American Pancreatic Association (APA)/Society of Abdominal Radiology (SAR) template and overall survival in patients with resected pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). METHODS: This retrospective analysis included consecutive patients with PDAC who consented to genomic tumor testing and underwent preoperative imaging and curative intent surgical resection from December 2006 to July 2017. Two radiologists assessed preoperative CT imaging using the APA/SAR PDAC-reporting template. Univariable associations between overall survival and imaging variables were evaluated using Cox proportional hazards regression. RESULTS: The study included 168 patients (66 years ± 11; 91 women). 126/168 patients (75%) received upfront surgical resection whereas 42/168 (25%) received neoadjuvant therapy prior to surgical resection. In the entire cohort, features associated with decreased overall survival were tumor arterial contact of any kind (hazard ratio (HR) 1.89, 95% CI 1.13-3.14, p = 0.020), tumor contact with the common hepatic artery (HR 2.33, 95% CI 1.35-4.04, p = 0.009), and portal vein deformity (HR 3.22, 95% CI 1.63-6.37, p = 0.003). In the upfront surgical group, larger tumor size was associated with decreased overall survival (HR 2.30, 95% CI 1.19-4.42, p = 0.013). In the neoadjuvant therapy group, the presence of venous collaterals was the only feature associated with decreased overall survival (HR 2.28, 95% CI 1.04-4.99, p = 0.042). CONCLUSION: The application of the APA/SAR pancreatic adenocarcinoma reporting template may identify predictors of survival that can aid in preoperative stratification of patients.

Economic burden of Alzheimer disease and managed care considerations.

Alzheimer disease is the most common cause of dementia and the fifth leading cause of death in adults older than 65 years. The estimated total healthcare costs for the treatment of Alzheimer disease in 2020 is estimated at $305 billion, with the cost expected to increase to more than $1 trillion as the population ages. Most of the direct costs of care for Alzheimer disease are attributed to skilled nursing care, home healthcare, and hospice care. Indirect costs of care, including quality of life and informal caregiving, are likely underestimated and are associated with significant negative societal and personal burden. Managed care organizations are in a unique position to develop utilization strategies that would positively impact early diagnosis and treatment to lead to better outcomes and lower costs for patients, caregivers, and the healthcare system. Additionally, the recent inclusion of Alzheimer disease diagnoses into risk corridor calculations by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services may encourage Medicare Advantage organizations to invest in programs that aid in its early detection and diagnosis.

The role of managed care professionals in improving care for patients with ALS.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a debilitating disease of progressively worsening physical function. The direct medical, direct nonmedical, and indirect costs of care for these patients is significant, and annual costs can be around $70,000 on average. Major drivers of cost can include hospitalizations, in-home care, nutrition, physical and occupational therapy, and medication interventions. Beyond the monetary costs, patients also endure a decreased quality of life, which may also burden caregivers and family members. Appropriate utilization management by managed care organizations and support for the multidisciplinary care team approach can help to ensure appropriate care, with a goal of optimizing clinical outcomes and potentially delaying disease progression. Although ALS has no cure, progressive gene therapy is currently being investigated and may offer promise. Thus, gene therapy may necessitate the need for novel and creative approaches to cost-management strategies in the future.

Managed care opportunities and approaches to select treatment for sight preservation.

Neovascular (or wet) age-related macular degeneration (AMD) affects more than 10% of people older than 65 years in North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. It is estimated that about 11 million Americans have some form of AMD, with that number expected to double by 2050. Approximately 20% of patients will advance from a nonneovascular form of the disease to neovascular AMD, which is associated with central visual acuity loss that can result in severe visual impairment and blindness. Improvements in vision preservation and quality of life require regular clinical visits for intravitreal therapy, which, while effective, come at high cost and potential financial strain, often complicated by the fact that most patients with the disease will be covered by Medicare and subject to the regulations and restrictions within their insurance plans. The requirement for frequent treatment also threatens adherence to therapy, and many patients do not follow up clinically as advised. The confluence of high-cost drug therapy and growing demand for treatment of a sight-threatening disease creates a mandate that managed care professionals and payers focus on current and emerging management options in neovascular AMD and on how to administer therapies in both a clinically responsible and cost-effective manner to diminish risk of vision loss and improve overall patient outcomes.

Alterations in driver genes are predictive of survival in patients with resected pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

BACKGROUND: KRAS, TP53, CDKN2A, and SMAD4 are established driver genes in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). This study was aimed at determining whether the mutational status of driver genes and those involved in DNA repair pathways are associated with clinical outcomes for individuals who undergo resection. METHODS: Eligible individuals were those who underwent resection of PDAC and consented to targeted sequencing of their primary tumor via Memorial Sloan Kettering-Integrated Mutation Profiling of Actionable Cancer Targets (MSK-IMPACT). Genomic alterations were determined on the basis of MSK-IMPACT results from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded samples. Associations between genomic alterations and clinical outcomes were assessed. RESULTS: Targeted sequencing was performed on 283 primary tumors resected between 2004 and 2017. The median follow-up was 23 months among survivors. Alterations in KRAS and TP53 were associated with worse overall survival (OS) in comparison to wild type (median for KRAS, 38.8 months [95% CI, 33.0-45.5 months] vs 91.0 months [95% CI, 34.8 months to not available (NA)]; P = .043; median for TP53, 37.4 months [95% CI, 32.1-42.8 months] vs 65.0 months [95% CI, 33.0 months to NA]; P = .035). KRAS G12D mutations were associated with worse OS (median, 31.6 months [95% CI, 25.3-45.5 months] vs 39.2 months [95% CI, 37.4-75.2 months]; P = .012). TP53 truncating mutations (median, 39.6 months [95% CI, 32.4-75.2 months] vs 33.9 months [95% CI, 24.0-39.0 months]; P = .020) and those associated with loss of heterozygosity (median, 26.6 months [95% CI, 21.6-44.2 months] vs 39.2 months [95% CI, 34.5-49.1 months]; P = .048) had decreased OS. TP53 alterations were independently associated with OS in a multivariate analysis (hazard ratio, 1.54; 95% CI, 1.01-2.33; P = .042). Individuals with germline alterations in homologous recombination deficiency (HRD) genes had improved OS in comparison with those without them (median, not reached vs 37.0 months; 95% CI, 33.0-49.8 months; P = .035). CONCLUSIONS: In patients with resected PDAC, genomic alterations in KRAS and TP53 are associated with worse outcomes, whereas alterations in HRD genes are associated with a favorable prognosis. Further studies are needed to better define these alterations as biomarkers in resected PDAC.

BRCA Mutations in Pancreas Cancer: Spectrum, Current Management, Challenges and Future Prospects.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains a challenging disease to treat. Despite advances in surgical techniques, radiation, and medical therapies, the 5-year survival rate remains below 9%. Over the past decade, the genomic landscape of PDAC has been well studied and BRCA mutations have emerged as a target for the development of more effective therapies. Alterations in germline BRCA and PALB2 are detected in approximately 5-9% of patients with PDAC and can lead to homologous repair deficiency (HRD). PDAC with HRD is more susceptible to cytotoxic agents, such as platinum salts and topoisomerase inhibitors, that cause DNA damage. Furthermore, PARP inhibitors have emerged as an effective non-cytotoxic approach to treating HRD-PDAC. In addition to BRCA and PALB2, germline mutations in other genes involved in the homologous DNA repair pathway - such as ATM and RAD51 - are potential targets, as are patients with the "BRCAness" phenotype and somatic mutations in the DNA repair pathway. Given the clinical implications of germline mutation related HRD in PDAC, universal germline testing is now recommended. In this review, we will discuss current and emerging biomarkers for HRD in PDAC, treatments, and the challenges associated with them.

Genetic and clinical correlates of entosis in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Entosis is a type of regulated cell death that promotes cancer cell competition. Though several studies have revealed the molecular mechanisms that govern entosis, the clinical and genetic correlates of entosis in human tumors is less well understood. Here we reviewed entotic cell-in-cell (CIC) patterns in a large single institution sequencing cohort (MSK IMPACT clinical sequencing cohort) of more than 1600 human pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) samples to identify the genetic and clinical correlates of this cellular feature. After case selection, 516 conventional PDACs and 21 ASCs entered this study and ~45,000 HPFs (median 80 HPFs per sample) were reviewed; 549 entotic-CICs were detected through our cohort. We observed that entotic-CIC occurred more frequently in liver metastasis compared with primary in PDAC. Moreover, poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma or adenosquamous carcinoma had more entotic-CIC than well or moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma. With respect to genetic features TP53 mutations, KRAS amplification, and MYC amplification were significantly associated with entosis in PDAC tissues. From a clinical standpoint entotic CICs were independently associated with a poor prognosis by multivariate Cox regression analysis when considering all cases or primary PDACs specifically. These results provide a contextual basis for understanding entosis in PDAC, a highly aggressive cancer for which molecular insights are needed to improve survival.

Genomic Methods Identify Homologous Recombination Deficiency in Pancreas Adenocarcinoma and Optimize Treatment Selection.

PURPOSE: Genomic methods can identify homologous recombination deficiency (HRD). Rigorous evaluation of their outcome association to DNA damage response-targeted therapies like platinum in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is essential in maximizing therapeutic outcome. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: We evaluated progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) of patients with advanced-stage PDAC, who had both germline- and somatic-targeted gene sequencing. Homologous recombination gene mutations (HRm) were evaluated: BRCA1, BRCA2, PALB2, ATM, BAP1, BARD1, BLM, BRIP1, CHEK2, FAM175A, FANCA, FANCC, NBN, RAD50, RAD51, RAD51C, and RTEL1 HRm status was grouped as: (i) germline versus somatic; (ii) core (BRCAs and PALB2) versus non-core (other HRm); and (iii) monoallelic versus biallelic. Genomic instability was compared using large-scale state transition, signature 3, and tumor mutation burden. RESULTS: Among 262 patients, 50 (19%) had HRD (15% germline and 4% somatic). Both groups were analyzed together due to lack of difference in their genomic instability and outcome. Median [95% confidence interval (CI)] follow-up was 21.9 (1.4-57.0) months. Median OS and PFS were 15.5 (14.6-19) and 7 (6.1-8.1) months, respectively. Patients with HRD had improved PFS compared with no HRD when treated with first-line (1L) platinum [HR, 0.44 (95% CI: 0.29-0.67); P < 0.01], but not with 1L-non-platinum. Multivariate analysis showed HRD patients had improved OS regardless of their first-line treatment, but most had platinum exposure during their course. Biallelic HRm (11%) and core HRm (12%) had higher genomic instability, which translated to improved PFS on first-line platinum (1L-platinum) versus 1L-non-platinum. CONCLUSIONS: Pathogenic HRm identifies HRD in patients with PDAC with the best outcome when treated with 1L-platinum. Biallelic HRm and core HRm further enriched benefit from 1L-platinum from HRD.

A unifying paradigm for transcriptional heterogeneity and squamous features in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Pancreatic cancer expression profiles largely reflect a classical or basal-like phenotype. The extent to which these profiles vary within a patient is unknown. We integrated evolutionary analysis and expression profiling in multiregion-sampled metastatic pancreatic cancers, finding that squamous features are the histologic correlate of an RNA-seq-defined basal-like subtype. In patients with coexisting basal and squamous and classical and glandular morphology, phylogenetic studies revealed that squamous morphology represented a subclonal population in an otherwise classical and glandular tumor. Cancers with squamous features were significantly more likely to have clonal mutations in chromatin modifiers, intercellular heterogeneity for MYC amplification and entosis. These data provide a unifying paradigm for integrating basal-type expression profiles, squamous histology and somatic mutations in chromatin modifier genes in the context of clonal evolution of pancreatic cancer.

Biomarkers Predictive of Survival and Response to Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors in Melanoma.

Immunotherapy has revolutionized the treatment of melanoma. Targeting of the immune checkpoints cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein 4 and programmed cell death protein 1 has led to improved survival in a subset of patients. Unfortunately, the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors is associated with significant side effects and many patients do not respond to treatment. Thus, there is an urgent need both for prognostic biomarkers to estimate risk and for predictive biomarkers to determine which patients are likely to respond to therapy. In this review, prognostic and predictive biomarkers that are an active area of research are outlined. Of note, certain transcriptomic signatures are already used in the clinic, albeit not routinely, to prognosticate patients. In the predictive setting, programmed cell death protein ligand 1 expression has been shown to correlate with benefit but is not precise enough to be used as an exclusionary biomarker. Future investigation will need to focus on biomarkers that are easily reproducible, cost effective, and accurate. The use of readily available clinical material, such as serum or hematoxylin and eosin-stained images, may offer one such path forward.