Thomas, James P.

TPS234 Background: Total neoadjuvant therapy (TNT) followed by total mesorectal excision (TME) is one of the standard treatment options for patients with locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC). A commonly employed TNT protocol consists of 8 biweekly cycles of oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy (CT) followed by radiation concurrent with fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy (CRT) for about 6 weeks. During the TNT, patients undergo tumor response assessments periodically with standard modalities (SM) consisting of pelvic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and proctoscopic/endoscopic examination. The objective of the current protocol is to evaluate the feasibility of tumor response assessment by ctDNA in patients with LARC undergoing TNT. The present feasibility study is designed to collect preliminary data to evaluate if a subsequent larger validation study is justified. If ctDNA-based response assessment is validated, ctDNA can potentially replace at least some components of the SM (for example, MRI) as tumor response assessment by SM is often time-consuming, expensive, and poses logistical challenges. Methods: Patients with LARC undergoing TNT will be enrolled. After obtaining informed consent, venous blood samples will be obtained for ctDNA level measurements at the following time points: baseline (within 1 week before the CT begins), after 4 cycles of CT within +/- 5 days of the MRI study, after 8 cycles of CT within +/- 5 days of the MRI study, and 1 to 14 days before TME. ctDNA levels will be measured by a commercially available ctDNA assay (Signatera by Natera), and ctDNA response is defined as >90% drop in the ctDNA level after treatment compared to the baseline level. Tumor response will be evaluated after 4 and 8 cycles of CT by SM. Primary endpoint: correlation between the response rate (RR) assessed by ctDNA and by SM after 4 cycles of CT. Secondary endpoints: 1) correlation between the RR assessed by ctDNA and by SM after 8 cycles of CT, and 2) correlation between the ctDNA defined RR and the complete pathological response (pCR) rate. The trial will enroll 30 patients. To evaluate the primary endpoint, differences in ctDNA levels between the baseline and 4-cycles post-CT will be computed. The differences will then be expressed as a proportion of each patient’s baseline level, D. This relative change, D, will be compared between the responder and non-responder groups using a two-sample Welch’s t-test. Similar methods will be applied for the secondary endpoints. All analyses will use the nominal type I error level of 0.05 and two-sided tests. Clinical trial information: NCT04670588.

656 Background: Non-neutropenic enterocolitis (NNEC), a potentially fatal toxicity of capecitabine (CAPE), is under-reported in the literature. An institutional review was performed to determine the incidence, clinical course, and outcome of patients developing CAPE-induced NNEC. Methods: After the institutional review board approval, a database search identified patients requiring inpatient care for CAPE-induced diarrhea over a period of 6 years (between 01/2015 and 12/2020). Among the patients requiring hospital admission, patients with radiologic features of enterocolitis were included in the analysis. Data on patient characteristics, imaging study results, clinical course, and outcomes were gathered by electronic chart review. Results: Among the 789 patients treated with CAPE, 25 patients (3%) developed grade 3 or higher diarrhea requiring hospital admission, and 13 out of these 25 patients (1.6 % of patients treated with CAPE) had evidence of enterocolitis on CT scan: ileitis in 7/13 (54%), colitis in 1/13 (8%), and both in 5/13 (38%) patients. The median age of the patient cohort was 64 years (range, 31-81), 8/13 (62%) were female, and all patients were Caucasian. CAPE was administered for the following indications: breast cancer in 6 patients, colorectal cancer in 4 patients, cholangiocarcinoma in 2 patients, and neuroendocrine tumor in 1 patient. ECOG performance status at the time of CAPE initiation was 0 in 7 patients and 1 in 6 patients. Most patients (7/13, 54%) received single-agent CAPE, and the majority (10/13, 77%) developed diarrhea with the first cycle after a median of 21 days (range, 10-50). Patients were hospitalized after a median of 27 days (range, 13-51), and the median hospital stay was 12 days (range, 4-25). None of the 13 patients demonstrated neutropenia at the time of hospital admission. The associated adverse effects at the time of admission included grade 3 abdominal pain in 8 (62%) patients, grade 3 nausea in 7 (54%) patients, and grade 3 vomiting in 3 (23%) patients. Hypokalemia and oral mucositis were present at admission in 6 (46%) and 2 (15%) patients, respectively. Stool studies performed in 11 (85%) patients ruled out infection. Testing for dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase deficiency performed in 4 (31%) patients was negative. All patients were treated with supportive measures, and 2 (15%) patients required total parenteral nutrition. All but 1 patient recovered fully; 1 patient died due to a condition unrelated to CAPE. Intravenous infusional 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) administration in 3 patients after the recovery was tolerated well. Conclusions: CAPE-induced NNEC is uncommon and generally occurs after the first cycle of therapy. Most patients developing CAPE-induced NNEC recover fully with appropriate supportive measures. Infusional 5-FU-based regimens appear to be safe in this patient group.

474 Background: FLO is a rare variant of liver cancer that disproportionately affects young adults and is frequently progressive and fatal as it is often detected in a clinically advanced stage. It is seldom associated with cirrhosis of liver, viral hepatitis or other risk factors associated with conventional HCC. Treatment options are largely limited to surgical resection, and there is dearth of effective targeted therapies for FLO. Methods: Comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) was performed using the Foundation Medicine Inc. (FMI) data base on 63 FLO and 1,793 HCC clinically advanced cases between 6/2013-12/2020 using a hybrid capture-based assay of up to 324 genes a to detect genomic alterations (GA), tumor mutational burden (TMB) and microsatellite instability (MSI). PD-L1 expression in tumor cells (Dako 22C3) was measured by IHC and scored using the tumor proportion score (TPS) method. Results: The FLO patients (pts) were significantly younger than HCC pts (median age 20 vs. 64, respectively) and the male preponderance was similar. The HCC group featured significantly more GA/tumor than FLO group (3.74 vs 1.31 p<.0001). In the currently untargetable GA group, CTNNB1, TERT and TP53 GA were significantly more frequent in HCC than FLO. GA in potentially targetable genes were extremely uncommon in both FLO and HCC with HCC featuring slightly more MTOR pathway targets ( PTEN, TSC2, NF1). GA in DNA damage and repair (DDR) pathway including BRCA2 were infrequent in both groups. GA in targetable kinases including EGFR, ERBB2, ALK, RET and PIK3CA were extremely uncommon in both groups. GA associated with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (IDH1, FGFR2) were extremely uncommon in these tumors. Although the mean TMB was significantly higher in HCC than FLO, overall TMB was low with very few cases having TMB > 10 mutations/Mb. PD-L1 expression was relatively low in both groups. GA in genes associated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICPI) drug response like PBRM1, CD274, MDM2, STK11 were rarely identified in both groups. Additional details are illustrated in the table. Conclusions: Comparison of CGP of FLO with HCC illustrates the multifarious nature of these cancers. In HCC, there is a high prevalence of GA in TERT, CTNNB1 and TP53. CGP identified certain targetable GA in the MTOR and DDR pathways and TMB was higher in HCC. These findings warrant further evaluation of clinically advanced FLO and HCC pts by CGP to identify possible targetable genomic pathways. [Table: see text]

44 Background: Despite an alarming rise in incidence, data on survival outcome and treatment response of young-onset (age < 50 years) locally advanced rectal cancer (YO-LARC) patients receiving total neoadjuvant therapy (TNT) are sparse. We retrospectively compared the outcome between YO-LARC and later-onset (aged 50 years or older) LARC (LO-LARC) patients treated with TNT. Methods: After the institutional review board approval, electronic medical records of the LARC (T3/T4 or node-positive) patients treated with TNT at a tertiary care cancer center between January 1, 2015, and June 30, 2020, were reviewed for data collection. TNT consisted of systemic chemotherapy with oxaliplatin-based regimens for 16 weeks followed by long-course radiation with concurrent capecitabine or 5-fluorouracil (CRT). Patients receiving only preoperative CRT were excluded. Most patients underwent surgical resection following the TNT. Non-operative management was offered to patients if TNT resulted in clinical complete response (cCR). The following comparisons between the YO-LARC and the LO-LARC patients were performed: patient characteristics, pathological complete response (pCR) rate, combined pCR + cCR rate, disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS). Results: Of 72 patients included in the analysis, 44(61%) were male, 49 (68%) were Caucasian, and 62 (86%) had clinical stage III disease. The study included 26 (36%) patients with YO-LARC (median age, 43 years) and 46 (64%) patients with LO-LARC (median age, 64 years). The comparison of patient characteristics that included gender, clinical stage, baseline carcinoembryonic antigen level, the distance of the tumor from the anal verge, presence of high-risk features, and histologic grade did not differ significantly between the groups. There were no statistically significant differences in pCR and combined pCR+cCR rates (p = 0.16) between the groups: YO-LARC, 12 % (3/26) and 15 % (4/26), respectively; LO-LARC, 22% (10/46) and 30% (14/46), respectively. Either group did not reach median DFS and OS after a median follow-up of 38 months for survivors. The estimated 5-year OS rates in patients with YO-LARC and LO-LARC were 86 % (95% confidence interval [CI], 69% to 100%) and 84% (95% CI, 68% to 100%), respectively (p = 0.92). The estimated 3-year DFS rates in patients with YO-LARC and LO-LARC were 67 % (95% CI, 50% to 89%) and 83% (95% CI, 72% to 95%), respectively (p = 0.19). Conclusions: The current retrospective analysis did not demonstrate significant differences in the pCR rates, combined pCR +cCR rates, DFS, or OS between the YO-LARC and LO-LARC patients treated with TNT.

4136 Background: The genomic alterations which characterize PDAC holds great promise for novel therapeutic interventions. Constitutive signaling via mutated KRAS is considered the signature pathognomonic alteration in PDAC, less than 10% of patients (pts) have tumors which are KRAS wild type (WT). We retrospectively reviewed our institutional genomic database to characterize PDAC pts with KRAS WT tumors. Methods: We reviewed electronic medical records of PDAC pts who underwent comprehensive genomic profiling (CPG) utilizing Foundation One CDx (50.6%) or TEMPUS (49.4%) between 2015-2020. Demographic and disease characteristics were compared between cohorts using Wilcoxon rank-sum test or chi-square tests. Left truncation at the time of CGP was used to account for the time of entry into the study cohort. Kaplan-Meier method was used for survival curve estimation, and log-rank test was used for between-group comparison. Cox regression was used to adjust for confounders. Results: We identified 235 patients: median age at diagnosis was 65 years and 52% were male. Clinical stages at diagnosis were localized (resectable/borderline resectable), locally advanced, or metastatic in 105 (44.7%), 61 (26.0%), and 69 (29.4%) patients, respectively. KRAS status was mutated in 212 (90%) patients: the most common alterations being G12D (48%), G12V (28%) and G12R (14%). KRAS WT status was noted in 23 (9.8%) pts, actionable genomic alterations in this subgroup are summarized in the table. Baseline demographic and treatment characteristics were similar between patients with KRAS mutated and WT tumors. Of the 23 patients with KRAS WT tumors, 16 (69.6%) completed all planned curative intent therapy compared to 121 (57.3%) of the 212 KRAS mutated pts (p=0.26). Median Overall Survival of patients with KRAS mutated tumors was 18.6 months compared to 44.1 months for WT pts (p=0.03). Adjusting for stage, WT vs. mutated status was associated with a 62% decreased hazard of death (HR 0.38 [0.18-0.83]; p=0.016). Conclusions: Patients with KRAS WT PDAC appear to have a distinct biology compared to those with KRAS mutations, meriting exploration in larger data sets. Further, comprehensive whole genome or transcriptomic characterization of KRAS WT tumors is necessary to identify putative driver alterations as well as actionable therapeutic targets.[Table: see text]

231 Background: Both peri-operative chemotherapy and neoadjuvant chemoradiation have been shown to improve outcomes in patients (pts) with LA-GEJ CA compared to surgery alone. Rates of post-operative chemotherapy delivery remain suboptimal. Total neo-adjuvant therapy (TNT) in LA-GEJ CA - induction chemotherapy (IC) followed by concurrent chemoradiation (CRT) - may improve systematic delivery of neoadjuvant therapy and result in favorable clinical outcomes. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed medical records of 135 pts with LA-GEJ CA at our institution between 2/2007 and 11/2019; pertinent clinical data were abstracted with Institutional Review Board approval. Patients treated with IC and curative-intent CRT with ≥40 Gy dose of radiation for adenocarcinoma were included in this analysis (N = 59). Doublet or triplet IC regimens utilizing 5-Flurouracil(5-FU), Cisplatin/Oxaliplatin and Docetaxel were commonly administered while combinations of Carboplatin +Paclitaxel or 5-FU + Oxaliplatin were used in CRT. Clinical complete response (CCR) was defined as metabolic imaging and endoscopic biopsies negative for residual malignancy after completion of TNT. Patients were followed from diagnosis to recurrence and overall survival. Survival probabilities were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared between groups using a log-rank test. Results: Out of 59 evaluable pts, 69% were clinical stage T3, 71% were node positive. 37 pts (63%) underwent surgery, R0 resection rate was 89% (33/37), pathologic complete response (pCR) rate was 19% (7/37). Among the pts who did not undergo surgery, 41% (9/22) opted to forego surgery since they attained a CCR. For the entire cohort, median Disease-Free Survival (mDFS), median Overall Survival (mOS), and 3-yr OS were 2.4 yrs, 4.7 yrs, and 67% respectively. Pts who did not undergo surgery had a mDFS, mOS, and 3-yr OS of 1.5 yrs, 4.2 yrs, and 59% respectively. Median DFS, mOS, and 3-yr OS of patients who underwent surgery were 3.5 yrs, 5.8 yrs and 72% respectively. Patients who achieved a CCR and opted to forego surgery (N = 9) had a 3 -yr DFS of 42% vs 83% for pts (N = 7) who demonstrated a pCR after curative intent tri-modality therapy. (P = 0.0099) Interestingly, the same group that achieved CCR and opted out of surgery had 3yr OS of 89% vs 83% of those who demonstrated a pCR (p = 0.0042). Conclusions: TNT for pts with LA-GEJ CA is associated with high rates of R0 resection as well as excellent DFS and OS compared to historical controls, warranting prospective evaluation. The remarkable DFS and OS in patients who opted to forego surgery due to achieving CCR is reflective of the local and systemic control rendered by this approach. Careful characterization and close longitudinal follow-up of patients who achieve CCR may help identify a subgroup of LA-GEJ CA pts who may benefit from surgery sparing approaches.

e16612 Background: Primary malignant vascular tumors of the liver are rare, aggressive and poorly understood subtypes of liver cancers. In this analysis, we aim to determine the impact of tumor histology and other socio economic factors on survival of these tumors and hepatocellular carcinomas. Methods: Patients with malignant histopathological diagnoses of hepatocellular carcinoma not otherwise specified (HCC NOS), hepatocellular carcinoma with spindle cell (HCC SP), fibrolamellar (HCC F), clear cell (HCC CL), scirrhous (HCC SC) and pleomorphic variants ( HCC PL), combined hepatocellular carcinoma and cholangiocarcinoma (Mixed), hepatic angiosarcoma (AS), hemangioendothelioma (HE), its epithelioid variant (EHE) and hemangiopericytoma (HP) were identified using the SEER (version 2018) database. Overall survival was studied with Kaplan–Meier with the log rank method. Multivariable analysis was performed to assess the impact of race, ethnicity, marital and insurance status on survival of these patients. Results: We analyzed de-identified data of 104502 patients from the year 1973 to 2016 with hepatocellular carcinomas and malignant vascular tumors of liver (including 101851 patients with HCCNOS, 70 with HCC SP, 378 with HCC F, 104 with HCC SC, 593 with HCC CL, 23 with HCC PL, 950 with Mixed, 367 with AS, 36 with HE, 120 with EHE and 10 with HP ) respectively. Median overall survival (OS) of HCC NOS was calculated to be 7 months. Among hepatocellular carcinoma patients HCC F had the longest median OS of 29 months and HCC SP had the shortest median OS of 3months (P < 0.001). Additionally, among patients with malignant vascular tumors, AS had the shortest median OS (1 month) while patients with EHE had the longest median OS of 81 months (P < 0.001). Overall, married and insured patients had a better overall survival than unmarried and uninsured patients (P < 0.04). Conclusions: Malignant vascular tumors of liver are rare in comparison to hepatocellular carcinomas. Spindle cell variant of HCC and liver angiosarcomas carry the worst prognosis and fibrolamellar variant of HCC, hemangioendothelioma (HE) and its epithelioid variant (EHE) have the best prognosis. Insurance and marital status has a positive impact on overall survival of liver cancer patients.

14118 Background: Triapine is a small molecule iron chelator that has been shown to inhibit ribonucleotide reductase (RR) at the M2 subunit. Early trials suggested activity in pancreatic cancer. The P2C initiated a study of single agent Triapine as both first-line therapy and for pts with gemcitabine-refractory disease. Correlatives included: pharmacokinetics, MDR polymorphisms, and the effects of Triapine on cell cycle and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (EPR). Methods: Standard eligibility criteria were used, however, pts with G6PD deficiency were excluded. Triapine was given 96 mg/m2 IV over 2 hours, days 1–4 and 15–18, repeated q 28 days. Primary goals - evaluate survival (S) at 6 mos (previously untreated pts) and 4 mos (refractory pts). Interim analyses were planned when 28 previously untreated and 20 refractory pts were enrolled. Results: 14 eligible pts were enrolled in 10 mos (13 refractory, 9 male). The previously untreated pt received only 1 cycle secondary to progressive disease. Of the 13 refractory pts, 7 pts received at most 2 cycles; 6 received 1. Disease progression precluded further treatment in 11 pts. 6 pts had Gr 4 toxicities at least possibly related to drug, including: neutropenia-4, hyperkalemia-1, hyponatremia-1, leukopenia-1, thrombocytopenia-1, hypophosphatemia-1. 6 pts had a Gr 3 fatigue. One refractory patient expired on study. No responses were seen. Estimated 4 mos S in refractory pts is 16% (95% CI 3–94). EPR studies showed that Triapine led to a loss of the RR tyrosine radical EPR signal. Conclusions: Enrollment was suspended due to excess toxicity and lack of activity in pts refractory to gemcitabine. Correlative studies confirm the mechanism of action of Triapine as a chelating agent on RR. Supported by NCI Grant N01 CM17104 and the NCI Translational Research Fund. No significant financial relationships to disclose.

Purpose Regular physical activity reduces the risk of developing colon cancer, however, its influence on patients with established disease is unknown. Patients and Methods We conducted a prospective observational study of 832 patients with stage III colon cancer enrolled in a randomized adjuvant chemotherapy trial. Patients reported on various recreational physical activities approximately 6 months after completion of therapy and were observed for recurrence or death. To minimize bias by occult recurrence, we excluded patients who experienced recurrence or died within 90 days of their physical activity assessment. Results Compared with patients engaged in less than three metabolic equivalent task (MET) -hours per week of physical activity, the adjusted hazard ratio for disease-free survival was 0.51 (95% CI, 0.26 to 0.97) for 18 to 26.9 MET-hours per week and 0.55 (95% CI, 0.33 to 0.91) for 27 or more MET-hours per week. The adjusted P for trend was .01. Postdiagnosis activity was associated with similar improvements in recurrence-free survival (P for trend = .03) and overall survival (P for trend = .01). The benefit associated with physical activity was not significantly modified by sex, body mass index, number of positive lymph nodes, age, baseline performance status, or chemotherapy received. Moreover, the benefit remained unchanged even after excluding participants who developed cancer recurrence or died within 6 months of activity assessment. Conclusion Beyond surgical resection and postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy for stage III colon cancer, for patients who survive and are recurrence free approximately 6 months after adjuvant chemotherapy, physical activity appears to reduce the risk of cancer recurrence and mortality.