Citations

512 Background: The tumor microenvironment in PDA is heterogeneous and immunosuppressive given the presence of regulatory T cells and exhausted effector T cells. Despite the upsurge of effective immunotherapeutic agents (IA) in other tumor types, the role in PDA remains unknown. We conducted a meta-analysis of IA in PDA. Methods: Following PRISMA guidelines, we searched PubMed/MEDLINE, Elsevier/Embase, Wiley/Cochrane Library and ClinicalTrials.gov. Articles were selected per the following criteria: (1) Study participants had a diagnosis of PDA; (2) An IA was used in the trial. Titles, abstracts and full text articles were reviewed by 2 independent reviewers; disagreements were resolved by a third. Data extraction and analysis were performed by 3 independent reviewers. Descriptive analysis, mean, median, confidence interval and forest plots were used for statistical analysis. Results: We found 20,792 studies through the database, 16,105 remained after duplicates were removed and 15,889 were excluded due to irrelevance. Strict inclusion criteria were applied to the full text of 216 articles. The most common reason for exclusion were conference abstracts (44%) and ongoing trials (16%). Fifty-four trials (39 metastatic (met), 12 adjuvant (Ad) and 3 neoadjuvant (nAd) met criteria for further analysis. Age range was 27-86 (median 61) and 52.3% were males. IA included cytokine therapy (33%), peptide vaccines (22%), dendritic cell vaccine (13%), oncolytic viruses (9%), CTLA-4 inhibitors (2%) and others. IA in met-PDA had a median overall survival (mOS) of 8.1 months (ms) and a disease control rate (DCR) of 55.4% (95% CI, 51.85-58.95). There was no statistical difference in DCR among IA subtypes (range 49-60%) (p = 0.22). The mOS of Ad-PDA trials was 25 ms (historically comparable to gemcitabine, p = 0.75) and 18 ms for nAd-PDA. The most common Gr1/2 toxicities were skin reactions, fever, and chills and Gr3/4 were cytopenias, diarrhea, and mucositis. One death occurred due to neutropenic sepsis. Conclusions: IA demonstrates modest efficacy in the treatment of met-PDA albeit exhibits a favorable toxicity profile. Many trial results are available only in abstract format and some are ongoing.

Chondrosarcoma is a cancer of cartilage cells, and despite being a common primary bone tumor, tracheal chondrosarcoma is rare with only 18 cases reported in the literature prior to mid-2016. A 60-year-old gentleman presented with progressively increasing cough, severe stridor, and production of phlegm for approximately 2 years. On admission to our tertiary care hospital, he developed complete obstructive apnea within an hour, and was intubated. A tracheal biopsy was performed, followed by resection. Histopathology confirmed chondrosarcoma of the trachea. The patient tolerated the procedure very well and is currently symptom-free on follow-up, with no signs of recurrence.

Purpose: To describe atypical cases of multiple evanescent white dot syndrome (MEWDS) associated with foveal exudation, increased choroidal thickness, and secondary Type 2 (subretinal) neovascularization. Methods: Four cases of atypical MEWDS were studied at a retina referral center. Patients underwent evaluation with multimodal retinal imaging, including fluorescein angiography, indocyanine green angiography, spectral-domain and enhanced depth imaging optical coherence tomography (OCT). Two patients were imaged with OCT angiography. Results: Four patients (3 female, 1 male) with a median age of 23.5 years presented with acute onset, painless, decreased central vision. All cases demonstrated fundus findings consistent with MEWDS on color photography, indocyanine green angiography, fluorescein angiography, fundus autofluorescence, and structural OCT imaging. On structural OCT, all 4 patients were noted to have hyperreflective subretinal material and increased subfoveal choroidal thickness ranging from 307 μm to 515 μm. Type 2 neovascularization was diagnosed in all four patients using fluorescein angiography, indocyanine green angiography, and/or OCT angiography. Two patients had poor visual acuity at the last follow-up despite resolution of characteristic clinical findings of MEWDS. Conclusion: A subset of patients with atypical MEWDS may develop persistent poor vision due to subfoveal exudation and secondary Type 2 neovascularization. Patients showing increased choroidal thickness at presentation may be more susceptible to this unusual presentation.

AbstractMyelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are clonal hematopoietic stem cell disorders characterized by abnormal cellular differentiation and maturation with variable progression to acute leukemia. Over the last decade, scientific discoveries have unraveled specific pathways involved in the complex pathophysiology of MDS. Prominent examples include aberrations in cytokines and their signaling pathways (such as tumor necrosis factor‐alpha, interferon‐gamma, SMAD proteins), mutations in genes encoding the RNA splicing machinery (SF3B1, SRSF2, ZRSR2, and U2AF1 genes), mutations in genes disrupting the epigenetic machinery (TET2, DNMT3A, DNMT3B, EZH2, ASXL1). In addition, abnormalities in regulatory T‐cell dynamics and atypical interactions between the bone marrow microenvironment, stroma and progenitor cells, and abnormal maintenance of telomeres are also notable contributors to the complex pathogenesis of MDS. These pathways represent potential targets for novel therapies. Specific therapies include drugs targeting aberrant DNA methylation and chromatin remodeling, modulating/activating the immune system to enhance tumor‐specific cellular immune responses and reduce anomalous cytokine signaling, and blocking abnormal interaction between hematopoietic progenitors and stromal cells.

AbstractCentral nervous system (CNS) involvement with diffuse large B‐cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is a relatively uncommon manifestation; with most cases of CNS involvement occuring during relapse after primary therapy. CNS dissemination typically occurs early in the disease course and is most likely present subclinically at the time of diagnosis in many patients who later relapse in the CNS. CNS relapse in these patients is associated with poor outcomes. Based on a CNS relapse rate of 5% in DLBCL and weighing the benefits against the toxicities, universal application of CNS prophylaxis is not justified. The introduction of rituximab has significantly reduced the incidence of CNS relapse in DLBCL. Different studies have employed other agents for CNS prophylaxis, such as intrathecal chemotherapy and high‐dose systemic agents with sufficient CNS penetration. If CNS prophylaxis is to be given, it should be preferably administered during primary chemotherapy. However, there is no strong evidence that supports any single approach for CNS prophylaxis. In this review, we outline different strategies of administering CNS prophylaxis in DLBCL patients reported in literature and discuss their advantages and drawbacks.