Roberts, Lewis R.

Background: Patients with cholangiocarcinoma often have indwelling biliary stents or catheters which are prone to obstructions and/or infections; studies show that 20–40% present with fever and/or jaundice requiring urgent treatment in the outpatient setting for which there are no uniform guidelines. The goal was to develop an expert panel consensus on this topic using the modified RAND/UCLA Delphi process to rate treatment appropriateness. Methods: Thirteen expert physicians from relevant specialties, geography, and practice settings were recruited for the panel. Patient scenarios were developed and panelists rated the therapies before and after a face-to-face discussion. The appropriateness of various therapies was rated on a scale from 1–9 and classified as appropriate, inappropriate, or uncertain. Scenarios with greater than 2 (>2) ratings of 1–3 (inappropriate) and greater than 2 (>2) ratings of 7–9 (appropriate) were considered to have disagreement and were not assigned an appropriateness rating. Results: Panelists were from all US regions and the UK (8%) and had practiced for a mean 16.5 years (4–33 years). Panelists rated 480 scenarios before the meeting and re-rated 288 of the clinical scenarios after the meeting. The panelists agreed that ongoing treatment with chemotherapy did not influence decision-making and, therefore, 192 scenarios were excluded from the final list. Disagreement decreased from 37.5% before to 10.4% after the meeting. Consensus on stent/tube manipulation and inpatient antibiotic therapy was obtained and summarized in patients as “appropriate” or “maybe appropriate” based on a patient’s bilirubin level at presentation. Conclusions: The Delphi process produced consensus guidelines to fill an unmet need in the urgent management of ascending cholangitis in patients with cholangiocarcinoma.

We report for the first time that in wild-type (WT) mice, fast-food diet (FFD) induced a threefold increase in hepatic Sulf2 mRNA and a 2.2-fold increase in sulfatase 2 (SULF2) protein expression compared with WT mice on standard chow diet (SC). We showed that knockout of SULF2 ameliorates FFD-induced obesity, hyperlipidemia, steatohepatitis, and fibrosis. These data, along with work from other laboratories, suggest that SULF2 may be critical to the ability of the liver to progress to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and fibrosis in conditions of overnutrition.

4577 Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Though biannual ultrasound surveillance with or without alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) testing is recommended for at-risk patients, its sensitivity for early-stage HCC detection is suboptimal. We therefore evaluated performance of a biomarker panel incorporating methylated DNA markers (MDMs) and proteins for early HCC detection in at-risk patients with chronic liver disease. Methods: In an international, multicenter, case-control study, blood specimens were collected from patients with HCC per AASLD criteria and controls matched for age and liver disease etiology. All patients had underlying cirrhosis or chronic HBV infection. Whole blood was collected in cell-free DNA stabilizing and serum-separation tubes and shipped to a central laboratory for processing. The levels of 5 MDMs, AFP, and AFP-L3 were assessed along with age and sex. We used 537 samples in a 5-fold validation for developing a LASSO regression algorithm to classify samples as HCC positive or negative. Model robustness was tested by perturbing the data in silico and analyzing results with the predictive algorithm. Algorithm performance was compared to AFP alone and the GALAD score (Gender, Age, AFP-L3, AFP, and DCP). Results: The study included 136 HCC cases (81 early-stage—BCLC stage 0/A) and 401 controls. With specificity set at 89%, we developed a model using sex, AFP, and 3 MDMs (HOXA1, TSPYL5, B3GALT6) with higher sensitivity (70%) for early-stage HCC compared to GALAD (54%) or AFP (31% at 20 ng/mL or 52% at ≥7.7 ng/mL) (Table). The AUC for the HCC marker panel was 0.91 (95% CI 0.89 – 0.94) compared to GALAD (0.88; 95% CI 0.85 – 0.91) or AFP (0.84; 95% CI 0.81 – 0.87). The panel performed similarly in viral (AUC = 0.94) and non-viral (AUC = 0.89) etiologies. Conclusions: The robust algorithm based on novel blood-based biomarkers presented here provides higher sensitivity for early-stage HCC compared to other available blood-based biomarkers and, therefore, could significantly impact HCC clinical management and patient outcomes. Further clinical studies to validate the algorithm are ongoing. Clinical trial information: NCT03628651 . [Table: see text]

AbstractDeficient intake of micronutrients involved in one‐carbon metabolism (eg, choline, methionine, vitamin B12 and folic acid) leads to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development in rodents, but is under‐investigated in humans. We investigated the association between one‐carbon metabolism‐related micronutrient intake and HCC risk in a prospective cohort of 494 860 participants with 16 years of follow‐up in the NIH‐AARP study. Dietary intakes and supplement use were ascertained at baseline using a food‐frequency questionnaire. Total intake (diet plus supplements) of the following one‐carbon metabolism‐related micronutrients were calculated: folate, methionine and vitamins B2 (riboflavin), B3 (niacin), B6 and B12. These micronutrients were examined both individually and simultaneously, with adjustment for covariates. Cox proportional hazard models were used to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Over the 16‐year follow‐up period, 647 incident HCC cases were diagnosed. When examined individually, higher total vitamin B3 intake was associated with a lower HCC risk (HRQ5 vs Q1 = 0.60; 95% CI = 0.42‐0.85; Ptrend = .008), and the association remained significant when all six micronutrients were examined simultaneously (HRQ5 vs Q1 = 0.32; 95% CI = 0.18‐0.55; Ptrend < .0001). Among participants with >3 years of follow‐up, higher total vitamin B3 intake was again associated with lower risk (HRQ5 vs Q1 = 0.37; 95% CI = 0.20‐0.68; Ptrend = .001), whereas higher total vitamin B6 intake was associated with higher risk (HRQ5 vs Q1 = 2.04; 95% CI = 1.02‐4.07; Ptrend = .04). Restricted cubic spline analyses showed a dose‐response inverse association between total vitamin B3 intake and HCC risk, and dose‐response positive association between total vitamin B6 intake and HCC risk. The study suggests that higher vitamin B3 intake is associated with lower HCC risk, whereas higher vitamin B6 intake is associated with increased risk.

Abstract Background: End-stage liver disease (ESLD) is a major burden on public health, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, where hepatitis B virus (HBV) is an important risk factor. We aimed to describe clinical characteristics of ESLD from cirrhosis or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and the performance of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) - platelet ratio index (APRI) and alpha fetoprotein (AFP) in Ghana. Methods: We performed an observational cross-sectional study in outpatient hepatology clinics at three teaching hospitals in Ghana, West Africa. One hundred and forty-one HCC, 216 cirrhosis and 218 chronic HBV patients were recruited by convenience sampling. Sociodemographic, history and examination, laboratory, and disease staging information were shown using descriptive statistics. Performance of the APRI score in diagnosis of cirrhosis and Alpha fetoprotein in the diagnosis of HCC was determined using AUROC analysis.Results: Median age at presentation was 44 years for HCC and 46 years for cirrhosis. HBV was found in 69.5% of HCC and 47.2% of cirrhosis cases, and HCV in 6.4% and 3.7% respectively. APRI cut-off of 2 had sensitivity of 45.4% and specificity of 95% in diagnosis of cirrhosis, and cut-off of 1 had sensitivity of 75.9% and specificity of 89%. AUC of AFP was 0.88 (95% CI 0.81-0.94) in diagnosis of HCC. Low monthly income was associated with lower odds of undertaking AFP. Thirty one percent of cirrhotic persons were Child-Pugh C, and 67.9% of HCC patients had advanced or terminal disease at presentation. Conclusions: Our findings emphasize the young age of ESLD patients in Ghana and the advanced nature at presentation. It highlights shortcomings in surveillance and the need for policies to address the burden and improve outcomes in Ghana.

4033 Background: HCC is a major health problem across the world. The global HCC BRIDGE study is the first global, large-scale, observational study to document the real-world experience of HCC patients from diagnosis to death. Methods: This longitudinal cohort study (started March 2009) includes HCC patients newly diagnosed between January 2005 and June 2011 and treated at major medical centers, with data collected retrospectively and prospectively as recorded in patient charts. Full patient enrollment is expected at the end of January 2012. Results: At the time of the first interim analysis (July 2011), 12,442 treated HCC patients were enrolled at 42 sites in Asia (n=8909, 72% [China: n=6295, 71%; Japan: n=295, 3%]), Europe (n=2040, 16%) and North America 1493 (n=1493, 12%). Mean age was 57 years; 82% were male. The predominant risk factor was HBV in Asia (76%) and HCV in Europe (48%), North America (45%) and Japan (69%). Most patients were diagnosed without surveillance (Asia, 82%; Europe, 73%; North America, 69%; Japan, 64%). In Asia, Europe and North America, the predominant BCLC stage at diagnosis was C (48%, 46%, 46%) followed by A (34%, 28%, 26%). First recorded treatments in Asia, Europe and North America were resection (31%, 15%, 21%), transplantation (1%, 3%, 1%), TACE (49%, 30%, 36%), other locoregional therapy (12%, 35%, 23%) and systemic therapy (3%, 10%, 8%). Treatments ever used (2005–2011) in Asia, Europe and North America were resection (33%, 17%, 24%), transplantation (2%, 6%, 12%), TACE (57%, 35%, 48%), other locoregional therapy (20%, 42%, 37%) and systemic therapy (9%, 20%, 21%). These results will be updated with data from the full study population (approx. 19,000 patients), and preliminary survival data will be presented. Conclusions: As the largest study of its type, in 19,000 patients worldwide, the HCC BRIDGE study provides valuable insights into global HCC disease characteristics and patient management. Based on prior analyses, differences in risk factors among regions confirm well-known trends, while other observed differences (e.g., treatment variations) may be related to country- and site-specific practices and patient characteristics.

3587 Background: The Insulin like Growth Factor I receptor (IGF-IR), a tyrosine kinase, is widely expressed in human tissues. IGF- IR and its ligands (IGF-I and IGF-II) are expressed by many human cancers (e.g., breast, prostate, colorectal and non-small cell lung). Binding of the ligands to the IGF-IR activates key cellular signaling pathways important for stimulating cellular proliferation and inhibiting apoptosis. IGF- I and IGF-II are present in the circulation, but also locally expressed in neoplastic tissue. Bioavailability of these ligands is regulated by a family of IGF binding proteins (IGFBPs1–6). CP-751,871, a fully human monoclonal antibody, is a highly specific and potent inhibitor of IGF-IR activation. In vitro experiments show that binding of CP 751,871 to IGF-IR induces receptor internalization and degradation. This antibody has been shown to have antineoplastic activity using both in vivo and in vitro pre-clinical models. Methods: Blood samples were collected for characterization of the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of CP-751,871 in phase 1 trials of this agent given to cancer patients either alone or in combination with chemotherapy. The endpoints assessed included among others: CP-751,871 plasma concentrations, total and free IGF-I, IGFBP-3, soluble IGF-IR and IGF-IR expression on granulocytes and tumor cells. Results: CP 751,871 exposure increased with dose over the 800-fold dose range investigated. Pharmacokinetic profiles were consistent with target-mediated disposition. A dose-dependent downregulation of soluble IGF-IR serum concentration and IGF-IR expression was observed, with sustained inhibition for the entire dosing period (3–4 week cycles) observed at doses ≥ 1.5 mg/kg. As predicted for an agent that interferes with IGF-I action, IGF-I and IGFBP-3 serum levels were up-regulated in a similar dose-dependent manner. Conclusions: The pharmacodynamic endpoints of clinical trials provide evidence that CP-751,871 targets IGF-IR in granulocytes, tumor cells and tissues involved in regulation of the growth hormone -IGF-I axis. These data provide proof of principle for the use of CP-751,871 as a first-in-class therapeutic approach to inhibit the IGF-IR pathway in cancer patients. No significant financial relationships to disclose.