30 years of ocular proton therapy,the Nice view

PurposeRadiotherapy with protons (PT) is a standard treatment of ocular tumors. It achieves excellent tumor control, limited toxicities, and the preservation of important functional outcomes, such as vision. Although PT may appear as one homogenous technique, it can be performed using dedicated ocular passive scattering PT or, increasingly, Pencil Beam Scanning (PBS), both with various degrees of patient-oriented customization.Materaial and methodsMEDICYC PT facility of Nice are detailed with respect to their technical, dosimetric, microdosimetric and radiobiological, patient and tumor-customization process of PT planning and delivery that are key. 6684 patients have been treated for ocular tumors (1991–2020). Machine characteristics (accelerator, beam line, beam monitoring) allow efficient proton extraction, high dose rate, sharp lateral and distal penumbrae, and limited stray radiation in comparison to beam energy reduction and subsequent straggling with high-energy PBS PT. Patient preparation before PT includes customized setup and image-guidance, CT-based planning, and ocular PT software modelling of the patient eye with integration of beam modifiers. Clinical reports have shown excellent tumor control rates (～95%), vision preservation and limited toxicity rates (papillopathy, retinopathy, neovascular glaucoma, dry eye, madarosis, cataract).ResultsAlthough demanding, dedicated ocular PT has proven its efficiency in achieving excellent tumor control, OAR sparing and patient radioprotection. It is therefore worth adaptations of the equipments and practice.ConclusionsSome of these adaptations can be transferred to other PT centers and should be acknowledeged when using non-PT options.     

A Phase I Dose Escalation Study of the Safety,Tolerability, and Pharmacokinetics of Ipilimumab in Chinese Patients with Select Advanced Solid Tumors

Lessons Learned

• The overall safety profiles of ipilimumab 3 mg/kg and 10 mg/kg administered every 3 weeks, were consistent between Chinese patients with solid tumors in the current study and patients from previous U.S. ipilimumab monotherapy studies. No new safety signals were identified.
• The mean systemic exposures to ipilimumab (assessed by first dose area under the curve during the dosing interval and maximum serum concentration) were numerically lower in the Chinese patient population than in U.S. patients for both 3 mg/kg and 10 mg/kg doses; however, the range of serum concentrations in the Chinese and U.S. populations overlapped (3 mg/kg and 10 mg/kg), suggesting that ipilimumab pharmacokinetics was ethnically insensitive in this study.

BackgroundThis phase I, open‐label study assessed ipilimumab safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics (PK), immunogenicity, and antitumor activity in Chinese patients with unresectable, metastatic, recurrent malignant melanoma (MM) or nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).MethodsOf 39 patients enrolled, 25 received ipilimumab (11 patients received 3 mg/kg, and 14 patients received 10 mg/kg). Reasons for not receiving treatment were withdrawal of consent (3 patients), no longer meeting the criteria (10 patients), and one recorded as “other.” During the induction phase, patients received ipilimumab (3 mg/kg, i.v.), on day 1 of a 3‐week cycle, to a maximum of four doses or progressive disease (PD). During the maintenance phase at week 24, patients received ipilimumab (3 mg/kg, i.v.) on day 1 of a 12‐week cycle, to a maximum of 3 years or PD. Considering the co‐primary safety and PK endpoints, the successive dosing required nine patients with two or fewer dose‐limiting toxicities during the 42‐day observation period to proceed with a new cohort of nine patients at 10 mg/kg.ResultsIpilimumab safety and PK profiles were similar in Chinese and predominantly White populations. Ipilimumab was well tolerated. Most adverse events (AEs) were grades 1–2 and experienced by 11 patients treated with 3 mg/kg and 14 patients treated with 10 mg/kg. There were no new safety concerns. Incidence of anti‐ipilimumab antibodies was low (1 of 10 in the 3 mg/kg patients and 2 of 13 in the 10 mg/kg patients) and without safety implications. In the 3 mg/kg group, 8 of 11 patients had PD. In the 10 mg/kg group (all NPC, 0 MM patients), 11 of 14 patients had PD. Three patients had stable disease (one at 3 mg/kg and two at 10 mg/kg).ConclusionIpilimumab was well tolerated in Chinese patients, showing similar safety and PK to previous studies in predominantly White populations.     

Sentinel lymph node localization and staging with a low-dose of superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) enhanced MRI and magnetometer in patients with cutaneous melanoma of the extremity - The MAGMEN feasibility study

BackgroundIn patients with melanoma, sentinel lymph node (SLN) status is pivotal for treatment decisions. Current routine for SLN detection combines Technetium^99m (Tc⁹⁹) lymphoscintigraphy and blue dye (BD). The primary aim of this study was to examine the feasibility of using a low dose of superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) injected intracutaneously to detect and identify the SLN, and the secondary aim was to investigate if a low dose of SPIO would enable a preoperative MRI-evaluation of SLN status.MethodsPatients with melanoma of the extremities were eligible. Before surgery, a baseline MRI of the nodal basin was followed by an injection of a low dose (0.02–0.5 mL) of SPIO and then a second MRI (SPIO-MRI). Tc⁹⁹ and BD was used in parallel and all nodes with a superparamagnetic and/or radioactive signal were harvested and analyzed.ResultsFifteen patients were included and the SLNB procedure was successful in all patients (27 SLNs removed). All superparamagnetic SLNs were visualized by MRI corresponding to the same nodes on scintigraphy. Micrometastatic deposits were identified in four SLNs taken from three patients, and SPIO-MRI correctly predicted two of the metastases. There was an association between MRI artefacts in the lymph node and the dose SPIO given.DiscussionIt is feasible to detect SLN in patients with melanoma using a low dose of SPIO injected intracutaneously compared with the standard dual technique. A low dose of SPIO reduces the lymph node MRI artefacts, opening up for a non-invasive assessment of SLN status in patients with cancer.     

帕博丽珠单抗治疗晚期黑色素瘤的不良事件及相关性分析

背景与目的:免疫检查点抑制剂(immune checkpoint inhibitor,ICI)已成为肿瘤治疗的重要手段,然而伴随其显著疗效的是药物相关不良反应。观察帕博丽珠单抗在晚期黑色素瘤治疗中的安全性;初步探讨程序性死亡[蛋白]-1(programmed death-1,PD-1)单抗不良事件发生的预测因子及与疗效的相关性。方法:收集2016年8月-2017年7月期间在北京大学肿瘤医院入组一项"帕博丽珠单抗作为二线治疗中国局部晚期或转移性黑色素瘤的Ⅰb期临床研究(Keynote-151)"的54例患者的临床资料,包括性别、年龄、疾病分期、原发部位、既往化疗史、美国东部肿瘤协作组(Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group,ECOG)评分及基线外周血细胞计数,以及药物治疗相关不良事件和疗效相关信息。不良事件根据通用不良事件术语标准(Common Terminology Criteria Adverse Events,CTCAE)4.03版评价,疗效根据实体肿瘤疗效评价标准(Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors,RECIST)1.1标准评估。结果:帕博丽珠单抗在晚期黑色素瘤治疗中不良事件发生率达88.9%(48/54),严重不良事件发生率为13.0%(7/54),无死亡病例;肝毒性是导致中断和终止用药的主要原因;分析严重不良事件的发生与所观察各项临床特征及实验室检查指标之间均无显著相关性;不良事件的发生与疗效相关分析提示白癜风(P=0.001)和甲状腺功能异常(P=0.007)与疗效相关。结论:帕博丽珠单抗治疗晚期黑色素瘤不良反应发生率较高,但以1~2级为主,耐受性较好;肝毒性对试验药物应用影响最大;白癜风和甲状腺功能异常均可能是疗效较好的预测因子。     

uPAR Controls Vasculogenic Mimicry Ability Expressed by Drug-Resistant Melanoma Cells

Malignant melanoma is a highly aggressive skin cancer characterized by an elevated grade of tumor cell plasticity. Such plasticity allows adaptation of melanoma cells to different hostile conditions and guarantees tumor survival and disease progression, including aggressive features such as drug resistance. Indeed, almost 50% of melanoma rapidly develop resistance to the BRAFV600E inhibitor vemurafenib, with fast tumor dissemination, a devastating consequence for patients’ outcomes. Vasculogenic mimicry (VM), the ability of cancer cells to organize themselves in perfused vascular-like channels, might sustain tumor spread by providing vemurafenibresistant cancer cells with supplementary ways to enter into circulation and disseminate. Thus, this research aims to determine if vemurafenib resistance goes with the acquisition of VM ability by aggressive melanoma cells, and identify a driving molecule for both vemurafenib resistance and VM. We used two independent experimental models of drug-resistant melanoma cells, the first one represented by a chronic adaptation of melanoma cells to extracellular acidosis, known to drive a particularly aggressive and vemurafenib-resistant phenotype, the second one generated with chronic vemurafenib exposure. By performing in vitro tube formation assay and evaluating the expression levels of the VM markers EphA2 and VE-cadherin by Western blotting and flow cytometer analyses, we demonstrated that vemurafenib-resistant cells obtained by both models are characterized by an increased ability to perform VM. Moreover, by exploiting the CRISPR-Cas9 technique and using the urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) inhibitor M25, we identified uPAR as a driver of VM expressed by vemurafenib-resistant melanoma cells. Thus, uPAR targeting may be successfully leveraged as a new complementary therapy to inhibit VM in drug-resistant melanoma patients, to counteract the rapid progression and dissemination of the disease.     

免疫检查点抑制剂联合治疗：从机制到临床

近年来免疫检查点抑制剂（immune checkpoint inhibitor，ICI）陆续获批用于多种恶性肿瘤的治疗，为患者带来新的希望。但在一些瘤种中ICI单药客观缓解率仅10%~20%，如何提高临床获益是免疫相关临床研究关注的重点。近期研究显示，联合不同机制的ICI有助于提高缓解率和发挥持久的抗肿瘤作用，合适的剂量方案也能合理平衡疗效和安全性。拟对ICI联合治疗的机制、药代动力学和临床研究进展进行综述。     

口腔黏膜恶性黑色素瘤颈部淋巴结转移规律及颈部预防治疗的价值

目的 分析口腔黏膜恶性黑色素瘤(OMM)颈部淋巴结转移规律以及颈部预防治疗的价值。方法 回顾性分析中国医学科学院肿瘤医院1984-2016年间收治的61例无远处转移的OMM病例的颈部淋巴结转移规律,颈部预防治疗疗效,失败模式及预后因素。结果 OMM颈部淋巴结转移率为55.7%。Ⅰ b区是最常见的颈部淋巴结转移区域,占颈部淋巴结转移患者的76%,其次是Ⅱ区和Ⅲ区。对于cN0患者,接受至少同侧Ⅰ b-Ⅲ区颈部预防治疗和未接受的5年无区域复发生存率分别为91.7%和52.4%(P=0.036),接受至少同侧Ⅰ b-Ⅲ区颈部预防治疗能将区域失败率由46%降至6%(P=0.035)。发生区域失败患者中93%发生在Ⅰ b区,50%发生在Ⅱ区,36%发生在Ⅲ区。结论 OMM颈部淋巴结转移率较高,淋巴结引流具有一定规律性,最常见转移和复发部位均为Ⅰ b-Ⅲ区。对于cN0的OMM,推荐至少包括同侧颈部Ⅰ b-Ⅲ区的预防治疗。