Effectiveness of teriflunomide on No Evidence of Disease Activity and cognition in relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis: results of the NEDA3PLUS study.

BACKGROUND: Cognitive impairment (CI) is a prevalent and debilitating manifestation of multiple sclerosis (MS); however, it is not included in the widely used concept of No Evidence of Disease Activity (NEDA-3). We expanded the NEDA-3 concept to NEDA-3 + by encompassing CI assessed through the Symbol Digit Modality Test (SDMT) and evaluated the effect of teriflunomide on NEDA3 + in patients treated in a real-world setting. The value of NEDA-3 + in predicting disability progression was also assessed. METHODS: This 96-weeks observational study enrolled patients already on treatment with teriflunomide for ≥ 24 weeks. The predictiveness of NEDA-3 and NEDA-3 + at 48 weeks on the change in motor disability at 96 weeks was compared through a two-sided McNemar test. RESULTS: The full analysis set (n = 128; 38% treatment naïve) featured relatively low level of disability (baseline EDSS = 1.97 ± 1.33). NEDA-3 and NEDA-3 + statuses were achieved by 82.8% and 64.8% of patients, respectively at 48 weeks vs. baseline, and by 57.0% and 49.2% of patients, respectively at 96 weeks vs. baseline. All patients except one were free of disability progression at Week 96, and NEDA-3 and NEDA-3 + were equally predictive. Most patients were free of relapse (87.5%), disability progression (94.5%) and new MRI activity (67.2%) comparing 96 weeks with baseline. SDMT scores were stable in patients with baseline score ˃35 and improved significantly in those with baseline score ≤ 35. Treatment persistence was high (81.0% at Week 96). CONCLUSION: Teriflunomide confirmed its real-world efficacy and was found to have a potentially beneficial effect on cognition.

Alemtuzumab in Covid era.

BACKGROUND: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic impact on people with Multiple Sclerosis (pwMS) continues to worry. The disease modifying therapies in pwMS can add a more severe risk of infection when compared to the general population. Alemtuzumab is an anti-CD52 monoclonal antibody and it is one of the most immunosuppressive drugs used in Multiple Sclerosis (MS). CASE DESCRIPTION: We present a case of Covid-19 infection that occurred in a 24-year-old woman with MS and treated with alemtuzumab. The infection occurred 4 months after administration of the first course of alemtuzumab and had a benign course with subsequent development of antibodies. Furthermore, we present a brief review of the literature on similar published cases. DISCUSSION: We reviewed 17 articles concerning COVID-19 infection in MS patients in treatment with Alemtuzumab. In our case and all screened cases no severe course of disease was noted and no fatality was observed. Systematic compilation of this observation comforts clinicians about the course of Covid-19 infection despite alemtuzumab immunosuppressive treatment CONCLUSIONS: The risk of serious COVID-19 disease in MS patients treated with alemtuzumab is unknown. Physicians need to monitor carefully pwMS treated with alemtuzumab and to consider COVID-19 infection related relapse in the MS patients. Further research is recommended to evaluate the beneficial-risk profile of alemtuzumab in pandemic era.

Urothelial bladder carcinoma metastasizing to the eye: A systematic review and case report.

The eye is a rare site for disseminated malignancies; nevertheless, several tumors may metastasize to ocular structures. Few cases of urothelial and bladder cancer with eye involvement have been described in the literature thus far. The rarity of metastatic ocular localization implies an accurate differential diagnosis among the possible primary tumor sites. However, a specific diagnostic algorithm is not currently available, nor a defined therapeutic approach. Eye metastases are associated with advanced disease and poor prognosis. Physicians should be made aware of the possibility of eye involvement in patients with a past medical history of urothelial bladder cancer associated with ocular symptoms. The present case reports discusses the first documented case, to the best of our knowledge, of an urothelial bladder cancer metastasizing to the retro bulbar region that infiltrates the lacrimal gland. Furthermore, the report provides a systematic qualitative review of the current literature on eye metastases from urothelial bladder cancer using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses.

Colonic Ewing Sarcoma/PNET associated with liver metastases: A systematic review and case report.

Ewing Sarcoma is a highly lethal undifferentiated tumor of bone. ES is a small round cell tumor with etiological and characteristic chromosomal translocations between TET/FET (TLS/FUS, EWSR1, and TAF15) and ETS (E26 transformation-specific) family genes. Generally, therapeutic approach for metastatic Ewing Sarcoma includes both local (surgery and radiotherapy) and systemic (chemotherapy) disease control with an overall cure rate of 20%. For extra-osseous tumors, the most common primary sites of disease are trunk, extremities, head and neck, retroperitoneum. Among other sites, Ewing Sarcoma/PNET may also rarely arise in colon and rectum. Even if colonic Ewing Sarcoma/PNET have been previously reported in 5 cases, none of those reports came from right side of the colon. In this article, we report the first case of right-sided Ewing Sarcoma with synchronous liver metastases completely responding to first line chemotherapy. Furthermore, we provide a systematic qualitative review of the current literature on adult colorectal Ewing Sarcoma using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA).

Crosstalk between the Tumor Microenvironment and Immune System in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma: Potential Targets for New Therapeutic Approaches.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is a lethal disease for which radical surgery and chemotherapy represent the only curative options for a small proportion of patients. Recently, FOLFIRINOX and nab-paclitaxel plus gemcitabine have improved the survival of metastatic patients but prognosis remains poor. A pancreatic tumor microenvironment is a dynamic milieu of cellular and acellular elements, and it represents one of the major limitations to chemotherapy efficacy. The continued crosstalk between cancer cells and the surrounding microenvironment causes immunosuppression within pancreatic immune infiltrate increasing tumor aggressiveness. Several potential targets have been identified among tumor microenvironment components, and different therapeutic approaches are under investigation. In this article, we provide a qualitative literature review about the crosstalk between the tumor microenvironment components and immune system in pancreatic cancer. Finally, we discuss potential therapeutic strategies targeting the tumor microenvironment and we show the ongoing trials.

Nano albumin bound-paclitaxel in pancreatic cancer: Current evidences and future directions.

Pancreatic cancer (PDAC) is an aggressive and chemoresistant disease, representing the fourth cause of cancer related deaths in western countries. Majority of patients have unresectable, locally advanced or metastatic disease at time of diagnosis and the 5-year survival rate in these conditions is extremely low. For more than a decade gemcitabine has been the cornerstone of metastatic PDAC treatment, although survival benefit was very poor. PDAC cells are surrounded by an intense desmoplastic reaction that may create a barrier to the drugs penetration within the tumor. Recently PDAC stroma has been addressed as a potential therapeutic target. Nano albumin bound (Nab)-paclitaxel is an innovative molecule depleting tumor stroma, through interaction between albumin and secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine. Addition of nab-paclitaxel to gemcitabine has showed activity and efficacy in metastatic PDAC first-line treatment improving survival and overall response rate vs gemcitabine alone in the MPACT phase III study. This combination represents one of the standards of care in advanced PDAC therapy and is suitable to a broader spectrum of patients compared to other schedules. Nab-paclitaxel is under investigation as a backbone of chemotherapy in novel combinations with target agents or immunotherapy in locally advanced or metastatic PDAC. In this article, we provide an updated and critical overview about the role of nab-paclitaxel in PDAC treatment based on the latest advances in preclinical and clinical research. Furthermore, we focus on the use of nab-paclitaxel within the context of metastatic PDAC treatment landscape and we discuss about future implications in the light of current clinical ongoing trials.

Cancer drug related cardiotoxicity during breast cancer treatment.

INTRODUCTION: Breast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer in women. Although therapeutic armamentarium like chemotherapy, endocrine and target agents have increased survival, cardiovascular side effects have been observed. A comprehensive risk assessment, early detection and management of cardiac adverse events is therefore needed. AREAS COVERED: In this review we focus on cardiotoxicity data deriving from Phase III randomized trials, systematic reviews and meta-analysis in BC patients. We provide insight into advances that have been made in the molecular mechanisms, clinical presentation and management of such adverse event. EXPERT OPINION: Despite the large number of data from Phase III trials about cardiac events incidence, there are poor evidences for detection, monitoring and management of cardiotoxicity during BC treatment. Future cardiotoxicity-oriented clinical cancer research can help to predict the risk of cardiac adverse events and improve patients' outcome. Multidisciplinary approach as well as integration of blood biomarkers with imaging will be desirable.

Targeting angiogenesis and tumor microenvironment in metastatic colorectal cancer: role of aflibercept.

In the last decades, we have progressively observed an improvement in therapeutic options for metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) treatment with a progressive prolongation of survival. mCRC prognosis still remains poor with low percentage of 5-year survival. Targeted agents have improved results obtained with standard chemotherapy. Angiogenesis plays a crucial role in colorectal cancer growth, proliferation, and metastasization and it has been investigated as a potential target for mCRC treatment. Accordingly, novel antiangiogenic targeted agents bevacizumab, regorafenib, and aflibercept have been approved for mCRC treatment as the result of several phase III randomized trials. The development of a tumor permissive microenvironment via the aberrant expression by tumor cells of paracrine factors alters the tumor-stroma interactions inducing an expansion of proangiogenic signals. Recently, the VELOUR study showed that addition of aflibercept to FOLFIRI regimen as a second-line therapy for mCRC improved significantly OS, PFS, and RR. This molecule represents a valid second-line therapeutic option and its peculiar ability to interfere with placental growth factor (PlGF)/vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 1 (VEGFR1) axis makes it effective in targeting angiogenesis, inflammatory cells and in overcoming resistances to anti-angiogenic first-line treatment. Here, we discuss about Aflibercept peculiar ability to interfere with tumor microenvironment and angiogenic pathway.