Palbociclib with Fulvestrant or Letrozole in Endocrine-Sensitive Patients with HR-Positive/HER2-Negative Advanced Breast Cancer: A Detailed Safety Analysis of the Randomized PARSIFAL Trial.

BACKGROUND: Palbociclib has gained a central role in the treatment of hormone receptor-positive (HR+)/human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative (HER2-) advanced breast cancer (ABC). Despite its manageable toxicity profile, venous thromboembolism (VTE) or interstitial lung disease (ILD)/pneumonitis may infrequently occur. Therefore, we provide a comprehensive summary of the safety and tolerability of the combination of endocrine therapy and palbociclib among patients included in the randomized phase 2 PARSIFAL study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients with endocrine-sensitive HR+/HER2- ABC and no prior therapy in an advanced setting (n = 486) were randomly assigned 1:1 to receive fulvestrant-palbociclib (FP) or letrozole-palbociclib (LP). Laboratory tests and the incidence of adverse events (AEs) were recorded at baseline and day 1 of each cycle. Progression-free survival (PFS) was estimated for patients with and without VTE. RESULTS: A total of 483 patients were analyzed. Neutropenia, leukopenia, anemia, asthenia, arthralgia, fatigue, and diarrhea were the most frequent AEs in both groups. Febrile neutropenia occurred in 3 (1.2%) patients of the FP group and in 1 (0.4%) patient in the LP group. Six (2.5%; 0.4% grade 3) patients in the FP group and 6 patients (2.5%; 0.4% grade 3) in the LP group experienced ILD/pneumonitis. Pulmonary embolism was reported in 12 (5.0%) patients in the FP group and 6 (2.5%) patients in the LP group. Advanced age at baseline was the only factor significantly associated with an increased risk of pulmonary embolism (P < .01). CONCLUSION: The PARSIFAL data confirmed the favorable safety profile of both palbociclib regimens. VTE and ILD/pneumonitis were occasionally reported, and their early detection allowed patients to continue treatment effectively without detriment to efficacy. CLINICALTRIALS.GOV IDENTIFIER: NCT02491983; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02491983).

SOLTI-1904 ACROPOLI TRIAL: efficacy of spartalizumab monotherapy across tumor-types expressing high levels of PD1 mRNA.

Improved selection of cancer patients who are most likely to respond to immune checkpoint inhibitors remains an unmet clinical need. Recently, a positive correlation between levels of PD1 mRNA and clinical outcome in response to PD1 blockade across diverse tumor histologies has been confirmed in several datasets. ACROPOLI is a parallel cohort, non-randomized, phase II study that aims to evaluate the efficacy of the anti-PD1 immune checkpoint inhibitor spartalizumab as monotherapy in metastatic patients with solid tumors that express high levels of PD1 (cohort 1; n = 111). An additional cohort of 30 patients with tumors expressing low levels of PD1, where PD1/PD-L1 antibodies in monotherapy are standard treatment, will also be included (cohort 2). Primary end point is overall response rate in cohort 1. Trial registration number: NCT04802876 (ClinicalTrials.gov).

Adjuvant Palbociclib for Early Breast Cancer: The PALLAS Trial Results (ABCSG-42/AFT-05/BIG-14-03).

PURPOSE: Palbociclib is a cyclin-dependent kinase 4 and 6 inhibitor approved for advanced breast cancer. In the adjuvant setting, the potential value of adding palbociclib to endocrine therapy for hormone receptor-positive breast cancer has not been confirmed. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In the prospective, randomized, phase III PALLAS trial, patients with hormone receptor-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative early breast cancer were randomly assigned to receive 2 years of palbociclib (125 mg orally once daily, days 1-21 of a 28-day cycle) with adjuvant endocrine therapy or adjuvant endocrine therapy alone (for at least 5 years). The primary end point of the study was invasive disease-free survival (iDFS); secondary end points were invasive breast cancer-free survival, distant recurrence-free survival, locoregional cancer-free survival, and overall survival. RESULTS: Among 5,796 patients enrolled at 406 centers in 21 countries worldwide over 3 years, 5,761 were included in the intention-to-treat population. At the final protocol-defined analysis, at a median follow-up of 31 months, iDFS events occurred in 253 of 2,884 (8.8%) patients who received palbociclib plus endocrine therapy and in 263 of 2,877 (9.1%) patients who received endocrine therapy alone, with similar results between the two treatment groups (iDFS at 4 years: 84.2% v 84.5%; hazard ratio, 0.96; CI, 0.81 to 1.14; P = .65). No significant differences were observed for secondary time-to-event end points, and subgroup analyses did not show any differences by subgroup. There were no new safety signals for palbociclib in this trial. CONCLUSION: At this final analysis of the PALLAS trial, the addition of adjuvant palbociclib to standard endocrine therapy did not improve outcomes over endocrine therapy alone in patients with early hormone receptor-positive breast cancer.

Neoadjuvant eribulin in HER2-negative early-stage breast cancer (SOLTI-1007-NeoEribulin): a multicenter, two-cohort, non-randomized phase II trial.

Eribulin prolongs overall survival in patients with pre-treated advanced breast cancer. However, no biomarker exists to prospectively select patients who will benefit the most from this drug. SOLTI-1007-NeoEribulin is a phase II, open-label, two-cohort, exploratory pharmacogenomic study in patients with clinical stage I-II HER2-negative breast cancer receiving neoadjuvant eribulin monotherapy treatment. Primary objective was to explore the association of baseline tumor gene expression with pathological complete response in the breast (pCRB) at surgery. Key secondary objectives were pCRB rates in all patients and according to HR status, gene expression changes during treatment and safety. One-hundred one hormonal receptor-positive (HR + ) and seventy-three triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) patients were recruited. The pCRB rates were 6.4% in all patients, 4.9% in HR + disease and 8.2% in TNBC. The TNBC cohort was interrupted due to a progression disease rate of 30.1%. The pCRB rates differed according to intrinsic subtypes: 28.6% in HER2-enriched, 11.1% in Normal-like, 7.9% in Luminal B, 5.9% in Basal-like and 0% in Luminal A (HER2-enriched vs. others odds ratio = 7.05, 95% CI 1.80-42.14; p-value = 0.032). Intrinsic subtype changes at surgery occurred in 33.3% of cases, mostly (49.0%) Luminal B converting to Luminal A or Basal-like converting to Normal-like. Baseline tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) were significantly associated with pCR. Eribulin showed a good safety profile with a low response and pCRB rates. Patients with HER2-negative disease with a HER2-enriched profile may benefit the most from eribulin. In addition, significant biological activity of eribulin is observed in Luminal B and Basal-like subtypes.

Fulvestrant-Palbociclib vs Letrozole-Palbociclib as Initial Therapy for Endocrine-Sensitive, Hormone Receptor-Positive, ERBB2-Negative Advanced Breast Cancer: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: The cyclin-dependent kinase 4 and 6 inhibitor palbociclib in combination with letrozole has become a standard first-line treatment for patients with endocrine-sensitive, hormone receptor-positive, ERBB2-negative advanced breast cancer. Meanwhile, the antiestrogen fulvestrant was shown to be superior to anastrozole in the absence of cyclin-dependent kinase 4 and 6 inhibition for this patient population. Objective: To assess whether fulvestrant is superior to letrozole when combined with palbociclib in the first-line scenario. Design, Setting, and Participants: In this international, randomized, open-label, phase 2 clinical study conducted from July 30, 2015, to January 8, 2018, patients with hormone receptor-positive, ERBB2-negative advanced breast cancer with no prior therapy in the metastatic setting and endocrine-sensitive criteria were recruited from 47 centers in 7 countries. Data were analyzed from February 11 to May 15, 2020. Interventions: Patients were randomly assigned (1:1 ratio) to receive palbociclib with either fulvestrant or letrozole. Stratification factors were type of disease presentation (de novo vs recurrent) and the presence of visceral involvement (yes vs no). Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary end point was investigator-assessed progression-free survival determined by Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors, version 1.1. Results: A total of 486 women (median age, 63 years [range, 25-90 years]; 3 Asian women [0.6%]; 4 Black women [0.8%]; 461 White women [94.9%]; 18 women of unknown race [3.7%]) were randomized (243 to fulvestrant-palbociclib and 243 to letrozole-palbociclib). Median investigator-assessed progression-free survival was 27.9 months (95% CI, 24.2-33.1 months) in the fulvestrant-palbociclib group vs 32.8 months (95% CI, 25.8-35.9 months) in the letrozole-palbociclib group (hazard ratio, 1.13; 95% CI, 0.89-1.45; P = .32). This result was consistent across the stratification factors. No significant differences were observed in objective response rate (46.5% vs 50.2%) and 3-year overall survival rate (79.4% vs 77.1%) for fulvestrant-palbociclib and letrozole-palbociclib, respectively. Grade 3-4 adverse events were comparable among treatment groups, and no new safety signals were identified. No treatment-related deaths were reported. Conclusions and Relevance: Although fulvestrant-palbociclib demonstrated significant antitumor activity, this randomized clinical trial failed to identify an improvement in progression-free survival with this regimen over letrozole-palbociclib in patients with endocrine-sensitive, hormone receptor-positive, ERBB2-negative advanced breast cancer. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02491983.

Neoadjuvant Metformin Added to Systemic Therapy Decreases the Proliferative Capacity of Residual Breast Cancer.

The proliferative capacity of residual breast cancer (BC) disease indicates the existence of partial treatment resistance and higher probability of tumor recurrence. We explored the therapeutic potential of adding neoadjuvant metformin as an innovative strategy to decrease the proliferative potential of residual BC cells in patients failing to achieve pathological complete response (pCR) after pre-operative therapy. We performed a prospective analysis involving the intention-to-treat population of the (Metformin and Trastuzumab in Neoadjuvancy) METTEN study, a randomized multicenter phase II trial of women with primary, non-metastatic (human epidermal growth factor receptor 2) HER2-positive BC evaluating the efficacy, tolerability, and safety of oral metformin (850 mg twice-daily) for 24 weeks combined with anthracycline/taxane-based chemotherapy and trastuzumab (arm A) or equivalent regimen without metformin (arm B), before surgery. We centrally evaluated the proliferation marker Ki67 on sequential core biopsies using visual assessment (VA) and an (Food and Drug Administration) FDA-cleared automated digital image analysis (ADIA) algorithm. ADIA-based pre-operative values of high Ki67 (≥20%), but not those from VA, significantly predicted the occurrence of pCR in both arms irrespective of the hormone receptor status (p = 0.024 and 0.120, respectively). Changes in Ki67 in residual tumors of non-pCR patients were significantly higher in the metformin-containing arm (p = 0.025), with half of all patients exhibiting high Ki67 at baseline moving into the low-Ki67 (<20%) category after neoadjuvant treatment. By contrast, no statistically significant changes in Ki67 occurred in residual tumors of the control treatment arm (p = 0.293). There is an urgent need for innovative therapeutic strategies aiming to provide the protective effects of decreasing Ki67 after neoadjuvant treatment even if pCR is not achieved. Metformin would be evaluated as a safe candidate to decrease the aggressiveness of residual disease after neoadjuvant (pre-operative) systemic therapy of BC patients.

Oral metronomic vinorelbine combined with endocrine therapy in hormone receptor-positive HER2-negative breast cancer: SOLTI-1501 VENTANA window of opportunity trial.

BACKGROUND: The biological effect of oral metronomic vinorelbine (mVNB) alone or in combination with endocrine therapy in patients with hormone receptor-positive (HR+)/HER2-negative breast cancer has been scarcely addressed. METHODS: Postmenopausal women with untreated stage I-III HR+/HER2-negative breast cancer were randomized (1:1:1) to receive 3 weeks of letrozole (LTZ) 2.5 mg/day, oral mVNB 50 mg 3 days/week, or the combination. The primary objective was to evaluate, within PAM50 Luminal A/B disease, if the anti-proliferative effect of LTZ+mVNB was superior to monotherapy. An anti-proliferative effect was defined as the mean relative decrease of the PAM50 11-gene proliferation score in combination arm vs. both monotherapy arms. Secondary objectives included the evaluation of a comprehensive panel of breast cancer-related genes and safety. An unplanned analysis of stromal tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (sTILs) was also performed. PAM50 analyses were performed using the nCounter®-based Breast Cancer 360™ gene panel, which includes 752 genes and 32 signatures. RESULTS: Sixty-one patients were randomized, and 54 paired samples (89%) were analyzed. The main patient characteristics were mean age of 67, mean tumor size of 1.7 cm, mean Ki67 of 14.3%, stage I (55.7%), and grades 1-2 (90%). Most baseline samples were PAM50 Luminal A (74.1%) or B (22.2%). The anti-proliferative effect of 3 weeks of LTZ+mVNB (- 73.2%) was superior to both monotherapy arms combined (- 49.9%; p = 0.001) and mVNB (- 19.1%; p < 0.001). The anti-proliferative effect of LTZ+mVNB (- 73.2%) was numerically higher compared to LTZ (- 65.7%) but did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.328). LTZ+mVNB induced high expression of immune-related genes and gene signatures, including CD8 T cell signature and PDL1 gene and low expression of ER-regulated genes (e.g., progesterone receptor) and cell cycle-related and DNA repair genes. In tumors with ≤ 10% sTILs at baseline, a statistically significant increase in sTILs was observed following LTZ (paired analysis p = 0.049) and LTZ+mVNB (p = 0.012). Grade 3 adverse events occurred in 3.4% of the cases. CONCLUSIONS: Short-term mVNB is well-tolerated and presents anti-proliferative activity alone and in combination with LTZ. The high expression of immune-related biological processes and sTILs observed with the combination opens the possibility of studying this combination with immunotherapy. Further investigation comparing these biological results with other metronomic schedules or drug combinations is warranted. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT02802748 , registered 16 June 2016.

Metformin induces a fasting- and antifolate-mimicking modification of systemic host metabolism in breast cancer patients.

Certain dietary interventions might improve the therapeutic index of cancer treatments. An alternative to the "drug plus diet" approach is the pharmacological reproduction of the metabolic traits of such diets. Here we explored the impact of adding metformin to an established therapeutic regimen on the systemic host metabolism of cancer patients. A panel of 11 serum metabolites including markers of mitochondrial function and intermediates/products of folate-dependent one-carbon metabolism were measured in paired baseline and post-treatment sera obtained from HER2-positive breast cancer patients randomized to receive either metformin combined with neoadjuvant chemotherapy and trastuzumab or an equivalent regimen without metformin. Metabolite profiles revealed a significant increase of the ketone body ß-hydroxybutyrate and of the TCA intermediate α-ketoglutarate in the metformin-containing arm. A significant relationship was found between the follow-up levels of homocysteine and the ability of treatment arms to achieve a pathological complete response (pCR). In the metformin-containing arm, patients with significant elevations of homocysteine tended to have a higher probability of pCR. The addition of metformin to an established anti-cancer therapeutic regimen causes a fasting-mimicking modification of systemic host metabolism. Circulating homocysteine could be explored as a clinical pharmacodynamic biomarker linking the antifolate-like activity of metformin and biological tumor response.

The C Allele of ATM rs11212617 Associates With Higher Pathological Complete Remission Rate in Breast Cancer Patients Treated With Neoadjuvant Metformin.

Background: The minor allele (C) of the single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs11212617, located near the ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM) gene, has been associated with an increased likelihood of treatment success with metformin in type 2 diabetes. We herein investigated whether the same SNP would predict clinical response to neoadjuvant metformin in women with early breast cancer (BC). Methods: DNA was collected from 79 patients included in the intention-to-treat population of the METTEN study, a phase 2 clinical trial of HER2-positive BC patients randomized to receive either metformin combined with anthracycline/taxane-based chemotherapy and trastuzumab or equivalent regimen without metformin, before surgery. SNP rs11212617 genotyping was assessed using allelic discrimination by quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Results: Logistic regression analyses revealed a significant relationship between the rs11212617 genotype and the ability of treatment arms to achieve a pathological complete response (pCR) in patients (odds ratio [OR]genotype×arm = 10.33, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.29-82.89, p = 0.028). In the metformin-containing arm, patients bearing the rs11212617 C allele had a significantly higher probability of pCR (OR A/C,C/C = 7.94, 95%CI: 1.60-39.42, p = 0.011). Conversely, no association was found between rs11212617 and clinical response in the reference arm (OR A/C,C/C = 0.77, 95%CI: 0.20-2.92, p = 0.700). After controlling for tumor size and hormone receptor status, the rs11212617 C allele remained a significant predictor of pCR solely in the metformin-containing arm. Conclusions: If reproducible, the rs11212617 C allele might warrant consideration as a predictive clinical biomarker to inform the personalized use of metformin in BC patients. Trial Registration: EU Clinical Trials Register, EudraCT number 2011-000490-30. Registered 28 February 2011, https://www.clinicaltrialsregister.eu/ctr-search/trial/2011-000490-30/ES.

A phase 2 trial of neoadjuvant metformin in combination with trastuzumab and chemotherapy in women with early HER2-positive breast cancer: the METTEN study.

The METTEN study assessed the efficacy, tolerability, and safety of adding metformin to neoadjuvant chemotherapy plus trastuzumab in early HER2-positive breast cancer (BC). Women with primary, non-metastatic HER2-positive BC were randomized (1:1) to receive metformin (850 mg twice-daily) for 24 weeks concurrently with 12 cycles of weekly paclitaxel plus trastuzumab, followed by four cycles of 3-weekly FE75C plus trastuzumab (arm A), or equivalent regimen without metformin (arm B), followed by surgery. Primary endpoint was the rate of pathological complete response (pCR) in the per-protocol efficacy population. pCR rate was numerically higher in the metformin-containing arm A (19 of 29 patients [65.5%, 95% CI: 47.3-80.1]) than in arm B (17 of 29 patients [58.6%, 95% CI: 40.7-74.5]; OR 1.34 [95% CI: 0.46-3.89], P = 0.589). The rate of breast-conserving surgery was 79.3% and 58.6% in arm A and B (P = 0.089), respectively. Blood metformin concentrations (6.2 µmol/L, 95% CI: 3.6-8.8) were within the therapeutic range. Seventy-six percent of patients completed the metformin-containing regimen; 13% of patients in arm A dropped out because of metformin-related gastrointestinal symptoms. The most common adverse events (AEs) of grade ≥3 were neutropenia in both arms and diarrhea in arm A. None of the serious AEs was deemed to be metformin-related. Addition of anti-diabetic doses of metformin to a complex neoadjuvant regimen was well tolerated and safe. Because the study was underpowered relative to its primary endpoint, the efficacy data should be interpreted with caution.

Exogenous FABP4 increases breast cancer cell proliferation and activates the expression of fatty acid transport proteins.

Adipose tissue plays an important role in tumor progression, because it provides nutrients and adipokines to proliferating cells. Fatty acid binding protein 4 (FABP4) is a key adipokine for fatty acid transport. In metabolic pathologies, plasma levels of FABP4 are increased. However, the role of this circulating protein is unknown. Recent studies have demonstrated that FABP4 might have a role in tumor progression, but the molecular mechanisms involved are still unclear. In this study, we analysed the role of eFABP4 (exogenous FABP4) in breast cancer progression. MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells did not express substantial levels of FABP4 protein, but intracellular FABP4 levels increased after eFABP4 incubation. Moreover, eFABP4 enhanced the proliferation of these breast cancer cells but did not have any effect on MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cell migration. Additionally, eFABP4 induced the AKT and MAPK signaling cascades in breast cancer cells, and the inhibition of these pathways reduced the eFBAP4-mediated cell proliferation. Interestingly, eFABP4 treatment in MCF-7 cells increased levels of the transcription factor FoxM1 and the fatty acid transport proteins CD36 and FABP5. In summary, we showed that eFABP4 plays a key role in tumor proliferation and activates the expression of fatty acid transport proteins in MCF-7 breast cancer cells. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

SOLTI NeoPARP: a phase II randomized study of two schedules of iniparib plus paclitaxel versus paclitaxel alone as neoadjuvant therapy in patients with triple-negative breast cancer.

Iniparib is an investigational agent with antitumor activity of controversial mechanism of action. Two previous trials in advanced triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) in combination with gemcitabine and carboplatin showed some evidence of efficacy that was not confirmed. This phase II randomized neoadjuvant study was designed to explore its activity and tolerability with weekly paclitaxel (PTX) as neoadjuvant treatment in TNBC patients. 141 patients with Stage II-IIIA TNBC were randomly assigned to receive PTX (80 mg/m(2), d1; n = 47) alone or in combination with iniparib, either once-weekly (PWI) (11.2 mg/kg, d1; n = 46) or twice-weekly (PTI) (5.6 mg/kg, d1, 4; n = 48) for 12 weeks. Primary endpoint was pathologic complete response (pCR) in the breast. pCR rate was similar among the three arms (21, 22, and 19 % for PTX, PWI, and PTI, respectively). Secondary efficacy endpoints were comparable: pCR in breast and axilla (21, 17, and 19 %); best overall response in the breast (60, 61, and 63 %); and breast conservation rate (53, 54, and 50 %). Slightly more patients in the PTI arm presented grade 3/4 neutropenia (4, 0, and 10 %). Grade 1/2 (28, 22, and 29 %), but no grade 3/4 neuropathy, was observed. There were no differences in serious adverse events and treatment-emergent adverse events leading to treatment discontinuation among the three arms. Addition of iniparib to weekly PTX did not add relevant antitumor activity or toxicity. These results do not support further evaluation of the combination of iniparib at these doses plus paclitaxel in early TNBC.