Citations 336

Long-term outcomes of liver transplantation (LT) for the treatment of neuroendocrine liver metastases (NELM): The Mayo Clinic experience.

Journal of Clinical Oncology | January 2, 2019 | Volume: 36 | Issue: 4_suppl | Pages: 355-355

10.1200/jco.2018.36.4_suppl.355

355 Background: In this study, we sought to determine the prognostic factors impacting survival of patients with NELM who underwent LT at Mayo Clinic. Methods: We performed a three-site retrospective analysis of patients with unresectable NELM treated with LT from 1990 -2017. Cases were identified from clinical databases at Mayo Clinic. Data on demographics, timing of diagnosis and transplant, extent of liver involvement, and tumor grade, were extracted. Extent of liver involvement was calculated using previously validated standardized volumetry with high defined as > 25% increase in the weight of the extracted liver at the time of the transplant as compared to the standard liver volume. Survival was calculated using the Kaplan–Meier method. Results: We identified 37 patients. Median age at LT was 47 (range 17.0-64.0), male: female (73% vs. 27%, respectively). Primary tumor site was in the pancreas in 51.3% and in the small bowels in 43.2%; 78.4% had NELM at presentation. While primary tumor resection was done at the time of LT in 5 (13.9%) cases, most patients (80.6%) had ˃6-months interval between primary tumor resection and LT surgery. Prior to LT, 25 (74.3%) patients received somatostatin analogues and 18 (61.3%) had liver-directed therapy. Median time from diagnosis to transplant was 33.6 months (0-246). High extent of liver involvement was identified in 12 patients (33.3%). Disease-Free Survival (DFS) at 3, 5, and 10 years was 56.8%, 43.1%, and 22.4% respectively. Overall-survival (OS) at 3, 5, and 10 years was 86.9%, 79.6%, and 52.6% respectively. High extent of liver involvement at the time of transplantation was associated with inferior DFS and OS and patients˃45 years-old at the time of transplantation had worse DFS. Patients whose disease met the OPTN (Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network) criteria for NELM transplantation had significantly better DFS and OS with median 10-year OS of 80.7 % vs. 17%. Conclusions: LT is a reasonable therapeutic option for selected patients with unresectable NELM with 10-year OS of 52.6%. High extent of liver involvement was associated with worse long-term outcomes while meeting OPTN criteria resulted in best outcomes.
A phase II trial of gemcitabine (G), cisplatin (C), and nab-paclitaxel (N) in advanced biliary tract cancers (aBTCs): Updated survival analysis.

Journal of Clinical Oncology | January 2, 2019 | Volume: 36 | Issue: 4_suppl | Pages: 350-350

10.1200/jco.2018.36.4_suppl.350

350 Background: BTCs are often diagnosed at an advanced stage and have a poor prognosis. The standard therapy for aBTCs is the combination of GC. However, the median overall survival (mOS) is dismal at 11.7 months (mos) with a median progression free survival (mPFS) of 8 mos. Methods: A single arm, phase II study was conducted at MD Anderson and Mayo Clinic Arizona. Patients (pts) with aBTC were treated at initial dose level of G/C/N (in mg/m2) at 1000/25/125 (n = 30) which was reduced to lower doses due to grade 3/4 hematological (heme) toxicity (tox) - G/C/N: 800/25/100 (n = 30). Cycles were q21 days with restaging q3 cycles until progression. PFS was the primary endpoint (endpt). Using a Bayesian hypothesis test-based design, we assumed mPFS of 8 mos under the null hypothesis (H0), 10 mos under the alternative (H1). Secondary endpts included mOS, RECIST v1.1 response rate (RR), safety and CA19-9 response. Results: 60 pts were enrolled with 51 being response-evaluable having received more than 1 cycle of therapy (age: median 60 yrs [range 31-77], ECOG PS 0/1 (22/38), M/F (33/27), intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma/extrahepatic/gallbladder (38/9/13). Median follow-up was 14 mos and median number of treatment (trmt) cycles = 5.24. Pts at initial dose level had significant grade 3/4 heme tox: neutropenia, febrile neutropenia, anemia, and thrombocytopenia leading to trmt discontinuation in 6/30 pts. After dose reduction to G/C/N (in mg/m2) at 800/25/100, trmt was better tolerated with only 3 pts experiencing grade 4 heme tox. Non-heme tox were grade 3 in 19 pts: nausea/vomiting, diarrhea, thromboembolic event/CVA, hypokalemia, constipation, cystitis, LFT elevations. The mPFS = 11.4 mos (95% CI: 6.1, 16.1) and mOS = 19.2 (95%CI: 13.6, NA), 1-year survival rate 67.6%. 51 pts evaluable for response: disease control rate (PR+CR+SD)-84.3% and RR-39%. 12 unresectable cases were operated post trmt with 1 pathologic CR. Conclusions: The combination of GCN was well tolerated at adjusted doses and demonstrates encouraging efficacy having met its mPFS endpt and an impressive mOS higher than historical control. These results merit evaluating GC +/-N in a randomized controlled study. Clinical trial information: NCT02392637.
Pilot evaluation of PD-1 inhibition in metastatic cancer patients with liver transplantations (LT): The Mayo Clinic experience.

Journal of Clinical Oncology | January 2, 2019 | Volume: 36 | Issue: 4_suppl | Pages: 328-328

10.1200/jco.2018.36.4_suppl.328

328 Background: Patients with a history of solid organ transplants have been excluded from PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor clinical trials due to concern for graft rejection. Only 2 case reports of PD-1 inhibitor use in patients with liver transplantation (LT) have been reported thus far. Here, we report our experience with using checkpoint inhibitors in metastatic cancer patients with LT. Methods: A single center pilot evaluation was conducted to evaluate the safety and efficacy of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors in patients with LT. PD-L1 staining on both the tumor and allograft were assessed if there was available tissue. The primary endpoint was evaluation of the risk for allograft rejection. Secondary endpoints included RECIST v1.1 and Immune-Related Response criteria (iRC) response rates, progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Translational objectives included the relationship of PD-L1/PD-1 staining of tumor/allograft with response and rejection. Results: Six metastatic cancer patients with a history of LT received PD-1 inhibitor therapy (hepatocellular n=5, melanoma n=1). 3 patients were on mTOR inhibitor as immunosuppressive regimen and 3 on calcineurin inhibitor. Overall, allograft rejection was observed in 1/6 patients (on mTOR inhibitor). One patient achieved a CR (melanoma), 3 patients had PD and 2 patients discontinued therapy prior to restaging assessments. A single response (by both RECIST v1.1 and iRC) and rejection were reported in patients who received mTOR inhibitors (1 of 3). Three patients were tested for PD-L1 staining in the allograft tissue and all of them were negative (0% staining) with no graft rejections observed. Four patients had tumor PD-L1 evaluated (2 patients tested positive with 1 patient obtained a CR). The median OS, PFS and duration of therapy were 1.2, 1.8 and 1.2 months respectively. Conclusions: In this pilot evaluation of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors in LT patients both preliminary efficacy (1 of 4) and allograft rejection (1 of 6) was exhibited. Larger, prospective trials are needed to elucidate optimal patient and immunosuppressive regimen selection in these patients.
Detection of copy number aberrations in cholangiocarcinoma using shallow whole genome sequencing of plasma DNA.

Journal of Clinical Oncology | January 2, 2019 | Volume: 36 | Issue: 4_suppl | Pages: 293-293

10.1200/jco.2018.36.4_suppl.293

293 Background: Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is a deadly cancer with ~20% five year survival. Obtaining tissue to confirm diagnosis of CCA is often challenging. This also limits the use of tumor genotyping that could guide potential molecularly targeted treatment (such as FGFR inhibitors for a subset of cases). We investigated whether circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) analysis in plasma is feasible for noninvasive tumor genotyping in patients with advanced CCA. Methods: We collected and processed plasma samples for ctDNA analysis from 17 patients with CCA at presentation and from 11 healthy volunteers. Following cell-free DNA extraction and quality assessment using digital PCR, we performed low-pass, shallow whole genome sequencing (sWGS). We analyzed sequencing data to identify copy number aberrations and quantify tumor fraction in plasma using recently published computational approaches. Results: Median total cfDNA concentration in patients with CCA was 7,003 genome equivalents (GEs)/mL plasma (range: 1,512- 107,707 GEs/mL) and significantly higher than healthy volunteers (two tailed t-test p < 0.04, median: 1,658 GEs/mL, range: 661-4,938 GEs/mL). We successfully sequenced all tumor libraries, generating a median of 173 million paired-end reads. ctDNA was detectable in 10/17 samples using sWGS. In these 10 samples, median tumor fraction in plasma DNA was 7.1% (range: 3.9%-44.6%). We found recurrent copy number aberrations expected in CCA including 1q gain in 80%, 7p gain in 50%, 1p loss in 70% and 3p loss in 50% of cases. Conclusions: ctDNA analysis for noninvasive tumor genotyping is feasible in patients with advanced cholangiocarcinoma. On-going work is focused on expanding these results using targeted and whole-exome sequencing.
Evaluation of pharmacodynamic (PD) biomarkers in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer treated with BL-8040, a novel CXCR4 antagonist.

Journal of Clinical Oncology | January 2, 2019 | Volume: 36 | Issue: 4_suppl | Pages: 276-276

10.1200/jco.2018.36.4_suppl.276

276 Background: BL-8040 is a novel CXCR4 antagonist being developed for multiple oncology indications. Preclinical studies demonstrated that BL-8040 increases the number of immune cells in peripheral blood and promotes CD8+ T cell infiltration into orthotropic pancreatic mouse tumors, reducing tumor load. BL-8040 is being evaluated in a Phase 2a, multicenter, open label trial in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer (the COMBAT study). Patients are undergoing a 5-day period of monotherapy in which they receive daily doses of BL-8040, followed by 21-day cycles in which patients receive one dose of pembrolizumab and 3 doses/week of BL-8040 until disease progression or discontinuation. To date, 32 patients have been enrolled. Methods: On Day 1 and Day 5, blood samples were taken at pre- and post-dosing, to evaluate peripheral immune cell subset frequency by flow cytometry. In addition, core biopsies were taken from liver metastases, where possible, to assess immune cell infiltration into tumors and the tumor microenvironment (TME). Results: Here we present interim PD biomarker data from the BL-8040 monotherapy portion of the trial. Flow cytometry shows that BL-8040 monotherapy caused an approximately two-fold reduction in frequency of peripheral T regulatory cells, but had no effect on the frequency of T cells, NKT cells or cell populations that contain B cells (CD3- CD56-). Additionally, BL-8040 remained bound to CXCR4 on peripheral immune cells throughout the period of monotherapy. Analysis of available biopsies (N = 7) shows an up to 15-fold increase in the CD3+ population, and up to two-fold increase of CD8+ cells, in the tumor periphery and TME of 43% (3/7) of the patients after five days of BL-8040 monotherapy compared to baseline. Conclusions: In summary, the PD biomarker results in humans support the proposed mechanism of action for BL-8040 that was based on preclinical mouse models. Analysis of tumor biopsies is ongoing, with an emphasis on investigating the effects of BL-8040 on tumor-resident immune cells and the TME. Clinical trial information: NCT02826486.
Variations in DNA repair genomic alterations and tumor mutation burden in biliary tract cancer (BTC) subtypes.

Journal of Clinical Oncology | January 2, 2019 | Volume: 36 | Issue: 4_suppl | Pages: 263-263

10.1200/jco.2018.36.4_suppl.263

263 Background: DNA repair genomic alterations (GAs) have been identified in 12% of Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (IHCCA), 26% of extrahepatic CCA (EHCCA) and 8% of gallbladder cancer (GBC) patients (pts) ( Cancer 2016;122:3838–3847). Recently, the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) has described more than 20 mutated DNA repair genes, many of which were not previously represented in prior reports. DNA repair GAs including MSI are associated with higher tumor mutational burden (TMB). Our study aim is to identify variations in the frequency of DNA repair GAs in IHCCA, EHCCA, and GBC. Methods: Hybrid capture-based next-generation sequencing of 422 fixed formalin paraffin embedded (FFPE) tissue blocks of BTC including; 270 IHCCA, 60 EHCCA, and 92 GBC was performed. We included 20 DNA repair genes and classified them as "direct" DNA repair genes ( ATM, ATR, BRCA1, BRCA2, FANCA, FANCD2, MLH1, MSH2, MSH6, PALB2, POLD1, POLE, PRKDC, RAD50, SLX4) and "caretaker" genes that induce genomic instability ( BAP1, CDK12, MLL3, TP53, BLM). We calculated TMB on 1.1 Mb of sequenced DNA in 205 tissue specimens [138 IHCCA, 23 EHCCA, and 44 GBC] and classified into three groups; high (TMB-H; ≥ 20 mut/Mb), intermediate (TMB-I; 6-19mut/Mb) and low (TMB-L; < 6mut/Mb). Results: A distinct pattern of DNA repair GAs in each tumor type was detected. (Table 1). DNA repair GAs were more commonly noted in both EHCCA and GB (63%) as compared with IHCAA (45.2%) (p= .002). Direct DNA repair GAs were highest within EHCCA (25%), while indirect DNA GAs were predominant in GBC (59.8%) (p= 0.04 and 0.001, respectively). The frequency of TMB-H and TMB-I differed significantly between BTC subtypes. Pts with EHCCA and GBC had significantly higher TMB-H and TMB-I versus IHCCA. Conclusions: The frequency of DNA repair GA’s is higher in EHCCA and GBC as compared with IHCCA. These results may have implications for clinical trials with DNA repair inhibitors and immune checkpoint blockers. [Table: see text]
Evofosfamide combined with gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel in patients with previously untreated locally advanced or metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAC): Results of a phase I trial.

Journal of Clinical Oncology | September 6, 2018 | Volume: 34 | Issue: 15_suppl | Pages: 4114-4114

10.1200/jco.2016.34.15_suppl.4114

First-in-human trial of microRNA cancer therapy with MRX34, a liposomal miR-34 mimic: Phase Ia expansion in patients with advanced solid tumors.

Journal of Clinical Oncology | September 6, 2018 | Volume: 34 | Issue: 15_suppl | Pages: TPS2597-TPS2597

10.1200/jco.2016.34.15_suppl.tps2597

MRX34, a liposomal miR-34 mimic, in patients with advanced solid tumors: Final dose-escalation results from a first-in-human phase I trial of microRNA therapy.

Journal of Clinical Oncology | September 6, 2018 | Volume: 34 | Issue: 15_suppl | Pages: 2508-2508

10.1200/jco.2016.34.15_suppl.2508

Assessment of treatment response to immunotherapy in melanoma patients with pathogenic mutations of NRAS, BRAF, CDKN2A and P53.

Journal of Clinical Oncology | September 6, 2018 | Volume: 35 | Issue: 15_suppl | Pages: e21057-e21057

10.1200/jco.2017.35.15_suppl.e21057

e21057 Background: BRAF, NRAS, CDKN2A and P53 mutations are commonly observed pathogenic mutations in cutaneous melanoma. The influence of mutations such as BRAF, NRAS, CDKN2A and P53 on treatment response in the PD1 inhibitor era has not been well defined. Methods: This study included patients with melanoma with a cutaneous or unknown primary. All patients had genomic profiling with the Mayo Clinic 50-gene solid tumor mutation panel. Treatment response to first line immunotherapy with PD1, CTLA-4, or combination PD1/CTLA-4 inhibitors were assessed by response rate and time-to-progression (TTP) rate at 12 months. Each patient outcome was stratified by non-mutually exclusive gene mutation status into BRAF, NRAS, P53, CDKN2A, or quadruple negative (N4) groups. Results: Genomic profiling was performed on 208 patients, of whom 102 received first line immunotherapy. Most patients received a PD1 inhibitor (n = 62), followed by CTLA-4 inhibitor (n = 34), and combination therapy (n = 6). A trend towards improved outcomes was observed in CDKN2A and BRAF mutated patients with worse outcomes noted in P53, N4, and NRAS patients. The percent without progression at 12 months were BRAF 52.2%, CDKN2A 58.2%, NRAS 30.5%, P53 37.7%, and N4 26.7% (see table below). Response rates were BRAF 46.4%, CDKN2A 38.5%, NRAS 22.2%, P53 40.0%, and N4 33.3%. Conclusions: There is a trend towards improved outcomes with immunotherapy in BRAF and CDKN2A mutated patients while P53, NRAS and N4 patients have inferior outcomes. [Table: see text]