Potential added value of combined DPYD/DPD genotyping and phenotyping to prevent severe toxicity in patients with a DPYD variant and decreased dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase enzyme activity.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate if dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase phenotyping has added value when combined with DPYD genotyping in predicting fluoropyrimidine-related toxicity. METHODS: Retrospective cohort study in which treatment and toxicity data were collected of 228 patients genotyped for four DPYD variants and phenotyped using an ex vivo peripheral blood mononuclear cell assay. RESULTS: Severe toxicity occurred in 25% of patients with a variant and normal dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase activity, in 21% of patients without a variant and with decreased dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase activity, and in 29% of patients without a variant and with normal dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase activity (controls). The majority of patients with a variant or a decreased dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase activity received an initial dose reduction (68% and 53% vs 19% in controls) and had a lower mean dose intensity (75% and 81% vs 91% in controls). Fifty percent of patients with a variant and decreased enzyme activity experienced severe toxicity, despite the lowest initial dose and whole treatment dose intensity. They also experienced more grade 4/5 toxicities. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that a combined genotype-phenotype approach could be useful to identify patients at increased risk for fluoropyrimidine-associated toxicity (e.g. patients with a variant and decreased dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase activity). Because the group sizes are too small to demonstrate statistically significant differences, this warrants further research in a prospective study in a larger cohort.

Experimental treatment of NRAS-mutated neurocutaneous melanocytosis with MEK162, a MEK-inhibitor.

Neurocutaneous melanosis (NCM) is a rare congenital disorder characterized by the association of large and/or multiple congenital melanocytic nevi (CMN) of the skin with melanocytic lesions of the leptomeninges, including melanocytosis. Leptomeningeal melanocytosis carries a poor prognosis once neurological symptoms develop. Despite surgery, which is often not radical, few other treatment options exist. Recently, it was demonstrated that early embryonic, post-zygotic somatic mutations in the NRAS gene are implicated in the pathogenesis of NCM.In this report, we present a 13-year-old boy with NCM and progressive symptomatic leptomeningeal melanocytosis. A somatic NRASQ61K mutation was present in both CMN as well as the melanocytosis. Despite repeated surgery, the patient showed clinical progression. Therefore, treatment with MEK162, a MEK inhibitor, was started on compassionate use base. The patient died only five days later, i.e. too early to expect a clinical effect of MEK162 therapy. We therefore studied the effect of MEK162 at the protein level in the leptomeningeal tumor by immunohistochemical and Western Blot analyses using Ki67 and pERK antibodies. We observed lower MIB-1 expression and lower pERK expression in the post-treatment samples compared to pre-treatment, suggesting a potential effect of MEK inhibiting therapy. Further studies are needed to determine whether MEK inhibitors can effectively target NRAS-mutated symptomatic NCM, a rare but potentially fatal disease.