Citations

Multiple myeloma (MM) is a neoplasm thought to arise from a damaged germinal center B-cell that progresses to a plasma cell clone arising in bone marrow. MM comprises 20% of all hematologic cancer deaths. Persons of African ancestry (AA) have a 1.5 to 2-fold higher risk compared to individuals of European ancestry (EA). Genetically driven differences in hematopoiesis may lead to variation in the levels white blood cell (WBC) subsets which could, in turn, be associated with MM etiology. There are differences in genetic determinants of WBC traits between EA and AA populations, with possible implications for the racial disparity in risk. We tested the above hypothesis using Mendelian randomization (MR), an approach that leverages genetic determinants of specific traits (i.e. WBC counts) to estimate their effects on the risk of an outcome; and a transcriptome-wide association study (TWAS), which utilizes genetic predictors of gene expression to identify susceptibility genes. These analytic approaches were applied to data from the African American Multiple Myeloma Study (AAMMS) consisting of 1813 cases and 8871 AA cancer-free controls to examine how differences in heritable WBC gene expression profiles influence MM risk. Genetic determinants of variation in WBC subsets in AA were obtained from the literature and supplemented with new genome-wide association findings in AA subjects from the UK Biobank cohort (n=6108). Odds ratios (OR) for MM per 1 standard deviation (SD) increase in each WBC phenotype were estimated using independent (linkage disequilibrium (LD) r2<0.10) variants with P<10-6 as genetic instruments. Analyses based on variants associated with WBC traits in AA populations did not identify any statistically-significant associations between MM risk and WBC overall (p=0.81, using 15 SNPs) or subsets (lymphocytes, monocytes, eosinophils, neutrophils and basophils, p>0.05 for each). However, when we applied genetic determinants of WBC identified in 330,000 cancer-free EA UK Biobank participants (P<10-8, replication P<0.05, LD r2<0.05), a statistically significant inverse relationship emerged between increasing lymphocyte counts and MM risk (OR=0.80, 95% CI: 0.66-0.97, p=0.02, using 385 SNPs), as well as increasing basophil counts (OR=0.63, 95% CI: 0.41-0.96, p=0.03, using 140 SNPs). Next, we examined the association between WBC gene expression profiles and MM risk in AAMMS data. We applied published and validated ancestry-specific models developed using the PrediXcan approach, which leverage germline genetic and transcriptomic data from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) (Mogil et al. PMID: 30096133). The primary TWAS used gene expression models trained in AA subjects (n=233), with sensitivity analyses using models developed in AA and Hispanic subjects (n=585). The TWAS significance threshold was based on the number of genes with significant germline prediction models (p<0.05 and R2 ≥0.05) in AA, corresponding to P < 0.05/2700 = 1.85×10-5. The expression of two genes was significantly associated with MM risk: KANK1at 9p24.3 (P = 1.01×10-5) and DNAJC27at 2p23.3 (P = 1.56×10-5). KANK1is a candidate tumor suppressor gene for renal cell carcinoma and has recently been associated with MM risk in AA [Du, Blood 2017 130:3058]. Here we provide additional evidence for its role in MM etiology via gene expression-mediated mechanisms. DNAJC27 (previously known as RBJ) is a novel MM risk gene linked to constitutive activation of ERK in solid tumors. We also identified two suggestively associated genes: PRR14 (P = 1.34×10-4; combined AA-Hispanic sample: P = 1.56×10-6), which has been linked to MM risk in EA populations, and PARP16 (P = 9.46×10-5). To our knowledge this is the first study to comprehensively examine variation in WBC traits and gene expression profiles with respect to MM risk in AA. Our TWAS analysis leveraged data from the largest collection of genetic and gene expression data in AA, enabling ancestry-matched inference and identification of two novel risk genes. Although the limited availability of genetic instruments for WBC limited the power of MR analysis, findings using variants identified in European populations may offer some insight into trans-ethnic etiologic pathways and contribute to risk stratification strategies using genetic and blood cell count biomarkers. Future studies, particularly with MGUS-free controls, are needed to validate these results. Disclosures Song: Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc: Employment. Rand:Ancestry.com: Employment. Ailawadhi:Cellectar: Research Funding; Janssen: Consultancy, Research Funding; Celgene: Consultancy; Pharmacyclics: Research Funding; Amgen: Consultancy, Research Funding; Takeda: Consultancy. Nooka:Takeda: Honoraria, Other: advisory board participation; Janssen: Honoraria, Other: advisory board participation; GSK: Honoraria, Other: advisory board participation; Spectrum pharmaceuticals: Honoraria, Other: advisory board participation; Adaptive technologies: Honoraria, Other: advisory board participation; Amgen: Honoraria, Other: advisory board participation; Celgene: Honoraria, Other: advisory board participation; BMS: Honoraria, Other: advisory board participation. Singhal:Bureau of Millennium/Takeda, Celgene, Janssen, Celgene, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Bluebird: Speakers Bureau. van Rhee:Takeda: Consultancy; Sanofi Genzyme: Consultancy; Castleman Disease Collaborative Network: Consultancy; EUSA: Consultancy; Adicet Bio: Consultancy; Kite Pharma: Consultancy; Karyopharm Therapeutics: Consultancy. Mehta:Millennium/Takeda, Celgene; stock in Celgene, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Bluebird: Speakers Bureau. Wolf:Takeda: Consultancy; Celgene: Consultancy; Novartis: Consultancy; Janssen: Consultancy; Amgen: Consultancy. Martin:Roche and Juno: Consultancy; Amgen, Sanofi, Seattle Genetics: Research Funding. Fiala:Incyte: Research Funding. Terebelo:Jannsen: Speakers Bureau; Celgene: Honoraria; Newland Medical Asociates: Employment. Anderson:Bristol-Myers Squibb: Other: Scientific Founder; Oncopep: Other: Scientific Founder; Amgen: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Janssen: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Takeda: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Celgene: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Sanofi-Aventis: Other: Advisory Board. Vij:Bristol-Myers Squibb: Honoraria, Research Funding; Celgene: Honoraria, Research Funding; Genentech: Honoraria; Janssen: Honoraria; Karyopharm: Honoraria; Sanofi: Honoraria; Takeda: Honoraria, Research Funding. Bernal-Mizrachi:TAKEDA: Research Funding; Kodikas Therapeutic Solutions, Inc: Equity Ownership; Winship Cancer Institute: Employment, Patents & Royalties. Morgan:Amgen, Roche, Abbvie, Takeda, Celgene, Janssen: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Celgene: Other: research grant, Research Funding. Zonder:Celgene Corporation: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Takeda: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Amgen: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Intellia: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Caelum: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Alnylam: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; BMS: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Janssen: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Oncopeptides: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Huff:Member of Safety Monitoring Board for Johnson and Johnson: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Karyopharm, Sanofi, MiDiagnostics: Consultancy. Lonial:Karyopharm: Consultancy; Takeda: Consultancy, Research Funding; Amgen: Consultancy; BMS: Consultancy; Janssen: Consultancy, Research Funding; GSK: Consultancy; Celgene Corporation: Consultancy, Research Funding; Genentech: Consultancy. Orlowski:Poseida Therapeutics, Inc.: Research Funding.

Introduction: Most patients with newly diagnosed FL treated with rituximab (R) alone or R + chemotherapy will experience prolonged progression-free survival and overall survival (OS), but it remains unclear what factors have the greatest influence on FL-associated and other causes of death in this patient population. We utilized individual patient data from 13 first-line randomized clinical trials from the FLASH database to perform a comprehensive multistate survival analysis to examine and quantify the relationships between clinical characteristics, treatment response, and early, intermediate, and late FL outcomes. Methods: The multistate survival analysis model defined states for "Alive after beginning Induction Treatment (TX)", "Alive after beginning Maintenance TX", "Death due to FL", and "Death from Other Causes" (Figure 1). We used the Aalen-Johansen estimator, a generalization of the Kaplan-Meier estimator, to calculate the likelihood of being in each model state and estimate the course of FL over time. Making no assumptions on the probability distributions and capable of coping with censored observations, the Aalen-Johansen estimator is a convenient and reliable nonparametric estimator for clinical data. Results: Among 7,465 FL patients with median age 56 (range 18-90) years, 49.2% were female; 28.7% Stage I-III, 71.3% Stage IV, and FLIPI was 0-1 (20.0%), 2 (36.8%), ≥ 3 (43.2%). Following initiation of induction treatment, 2-, 5- and 10-year death rates were 1.7%, 3.8%, and 5.8% due to FL, and 0.7%, 2.1%, and 4.8% from other causes (Figure 2). Death rates at 2, 5, and 10 years due to FL and other causes for subgroups based on clinical characteristics and treatment response are shown in Table 1. Notably, patients > 70 years and patients with FLIPI ≥ 3 had worse outcomes and patients achieving CR at 18, 24, and 30 months experienced improved outcomes. Conclusion: This is the largest study using data from randomized trials to quantify the impact of clinical factors on early, intermediate and late mortality by cause of death. We demonstrated that age > 70 years and FLIPI ≥ 3 were linked to increased FL-associated death and response to TX distinguished patients with favorable and poor outcomes. Future analyses should quantify the impact of predictors on the rate/time of FL outcomes in multivariable models. Disclosures Salles: Roche, Janssen, Gilead, Celgene: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: Educational events; Amgen: Honoraria, Other: Educational events; BMS: Honoraria; Merck: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Novartis, Servier, AbbVie, Karyopharm, Kite, MorphoSys: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: Educational events; Epizyme: Consultancy, Honoraria; Autolus: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Takeda: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: Educational events. Hoster:Janssen: Research Funding; Roche Pharma AG: Other: Travel Support. Hiddemann:Bayer: Research Funding; Gilead: Consultancy, Honoraria; Vector Therapeutics: Consultancy, Honoraria; Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Roche: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Celgene: Consultancy, Honoraria. Herold:Roche: Honoraria, Research Funding; Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria; Gilead: Honoraria; Celgene: Honoraria. Morschhauser:Servier: Consultancy; Gilead: Consultancy; Janssen: Honoraria; Roche/Genentech: Consultancy; BMS: Honoraria; Celgene: Honoraria. Rummel:Roche Pharma AG: Honoraria, Research Funding; Celgene: Honoraria; Janssen: Honoraria; Sandoz: Honoraria. Kimby:AbbVie,: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Celgene: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Roche: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Jansen: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Gilead: Other: educational lectures. Vitolo:Abbvie: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Kite: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Celgene: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Janssen: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Gilead: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Juno Therapeutics: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; F. Hoffmann-La Roche: Speakers Bureau; Novartis: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau. Gyan:Pfizer: Honoraria. Ladetto:Celgene: Honoraria; Roche: Honoraria; Janssen: Honoraria; Abbvie: Honoraria; Acerta: Honoraria; Sandoz: Honoraria. Nielsen:F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd: Employment, Equity Ownership. Flowers:AstraZeneca: Consultancy; BeiGene: Consultancy, Research Funding; Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group: Research Funding; Burroughs Wellcome Fund: Research Funding; AbbVie: Consultancy, Research Funding; Optimum Rx: Consultancy; V Foundation: Research Funding; Pharmacyclics/Janssen: Consultancy, Research Funding; Bayer: Consultancy; Gilead: Consultancy, Research Funding; TG Therapeutics: Research Funding; Denovo Biopharma: Consultancy; Acerta: Research Funding; National Cancer Institute: Research Funding; Millenium/Takeda: Research Funding; Genentech, Inc./F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd: Consultancy, Research Funding; Celgene: Consultancy, Research Funding; Spectrum: Consultancy;

Abstract Pathogenic sequence variants (PSV) in BRCA1 or BRCA2 (BRCA1/2) are associated with increased risk and severity of prostate cancer. We evaluated whether PSVs in BRCA1/2 were associated with risk of overall prostate cancer or high grade (Gleason 8+) prostate cancer using an international sample of 65 BRCA1 and 171 BRCA2 male PSV carriers with prostate cancer, and 3,388 BRCA1 and 2,880 BRCA2 male PSV carriers without prostate cancer. PSVs in the 3′ region of BRCA2 (c.7914+) were significantly associated with elevated risk of prostate cancer compared with reference bin c.1001-c.7913 [HR = 1.78; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.25–2.52; P = 0.001], as well as elevated risk of Gleason 8+ prostate cancer (HR = 3.11; 95% CI, 1.63–5.95; P = 0.001). c.756-c.1000 was also associated with elevated prostate cancer risk (HR = 2.83; 95% CI, 1.71–4.68; P = 0.00004) and elevated risk of Gleason 8+ prostate cancer (HR = 4.95; 95% CI, 2.12–11.54; P = 0.0002). No genotype–phenotype associations were detected for PSVs in BRCA1. These results demonstrate that specific BRCA2 PSVs may be associated with elevated risk of developing aggressive prostate cancer. Significance: Aggressive prostate cancer risk in BRCA2 mutation carriers may vary according to the specific BRCA2 mutation inherited by the at-risk individual.

Abstract With increasing epidemiological and biological studies on meningiomas, standardized clinical data capture will be necessary to interpret results across studies and to translate them to clinical practice. To meet this need for consistent clinical data capture, the International Consortium on Meningioma, has developed a set of common data elements (CDEs), to be used across clinical and biological research. Building from terminology used in clinical practice and ongoing studies, we used a consensus-of-experts approach to arrive at a set of standardized and vetted data elements. Areas of focus include patient characteristics, patient history, radiological and intra-operative description, histological diagnosis and molecular testing, non-surgical interventions, and surveillance. These data elements are implemented in Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) forms. With REDCap implementation, components of the CDE set can be selected and instituted in a local REDCap instance for efficient study start-up. The scope of the current CDE set focuses on surgically treated meningioma. However, modular forms provide flexibility and to allow the scope to be expanded to include non-surgically treated meningioma. Dissemination plans are underway to introduce the CDEs to neuro-oncology researchers and clinicians through publication and presentations, where feedback will be solicited. Adoption of CDEs for research will improve consistency and interpretability across studies, expediting research in this frequently occurring tumor.

Abstract BACKGROUND Treatment of temporal lobe glioma (TLG) frequently includes partial or complete temporal lobectomy (TL) followed by radiotherapy (RT). However, there are two approaches for temporal resection cavity RT, 1) standard target volumes (STV) targeting the entire TL resection cavity, dura, and peri-tumoral brain parenchyma or 2) modified target volumes (MTV) targeting only the adjacent peri-tumoral brain parenchyma. We report patterns of failure and a dosimetric comparison of these approaches. MATERIALS AND METHODS This was a retrospective review of 49 patients with WHO grade II-IV TLG who underwent partial or complete TL and post-operative RT between 1998 and 2018. Progression-free survival (PFS) was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS The median patient age was 56 years (range,21–76). Patients were diagnosed with glioblastoma (n=32,65%), anaplastic glioma (n=10,20%) and low-grade glioma (n=7,14%). Treatment included partial TL with STV (n=33,67%), partial TL with MTV (n=5,10%), complete TL with STV (n=8,16%) and complete TL with MTV (n=3,6%). Mean RT dose was 60 Gy (range,40–76) in 30 fractions (range,15–39). At median follow-up time of 18 months (range, 3–161), 44 patients (90%) experienced recurrence: 34 (77%) in-field, 5 (11%) out-of-field, and 5 (11%) both in- and out-of-field. Among the 39 in-field failures, the location of recurrence included brain parenchyma (n=38,97%), ventricle (n=6,15%), and dura (n=5,13%). No patient experienced isolated dural recurrence regardless of tumor grade, extent of TL, or radiation volume. Median PFS was 20 months (95% confidence interval [CI]: 15–24). RT volume (STV vs. MTV) was not associated with worsened PFS (hazard ratio: 1.1, 95% CI: 0.5–2.6). MTV was associated with significant reductions in mean or max doses to brain stem, optic chiasm, optic nerves, hippocampus, and pituitary compared to STV. CONCLUSION Omitting RT to the entire TL cavity may reduce dose to multiple normal tissues with no detriments in dural recurrence or PFS.

Abstract INTRODUCTION Prospective studies for adult medulloblastoma (MB) are scarce and management guidelines are largely derived from pediatric experience and retrospective data. However, adult MB is a distinct disease for which limited data exist regarding clinical characteristic, prognostic factors, outcome based on upfront treatment, or patterns of recurrence. METHODS 200 patients (≥18 years at diagnosis) were identified from 1978 to 2017. Survival analysis was performed using the Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS Median age at diagnosis 29 (18–63); 111 (55.5%) standard-risk (SR), 59 (29.5%) high-risk (HR), 30 (15%) unknown. 188 (94%) and 97 (48.5%) underwent radiotherapy and upfront chemotherapy, respectively. Median PFS: 6.28 years (4.9–11.2); median OS: 8.8 (7.8–12.4) years. Median time to first recurrence: 8.2 (5.1-not reached); 5-year recurrence-free rate: 71% in SR and 45% in HR patients. Survival after first recurrence: 2 years (1.64–2.4). Documented recurrence and risk group were associated with survival (HR 30.4, p< 0.0001 and 2.33, p< 0.001), but metastatic status and local vs. distant recurrence were not. The effect of upfront chemotherapy on survival did not reach statistical significance in SR patients. The use of chemotherapy regimens with or without vincristine or containing cisplatin vs. carboplatin, did not alter the survival outcome. In a subgroup of 57 SR patients who were seen at initial diagnosis and for whom complete staging and treatment information were available 3 and 5-year PFS were 94% (88%, 100%) and 76% (66%, 86%); OS at 5 years, 94% (87%, 100%). CONCLUSION No statistically significant difference was noted in outcome of patients treated without vincristine or with carboplatin instead of cisplatin, suggesting attenuated upfront regimens could be considered to reduce toxicity. Adult MB patients recur late and have a poor post-recurrence survival, therefore long-term follow-up, development of molecular risk-adjusted upfront treatment, and optimization of rescue treatments are needed.

Abstract BACKGROUND NRG-CC001 sought to evaluate the neuro-protective effects of avoiding the peri-hippocampal stem cell niche using intensity-modulated radiotherapy during WBRT. METHODS Patients with brain metastasis were stratified by RPA class and prior radiosurgery/surgery and randomized to WBRT+M or HA-WBRT+ Memantine (M) (30Gy in 10 fractions). Standardized NCF tests and the M.D. Anderson Symptom Inventory Brain Tumor (MDASI-BT) were obtained at baseline, 2, 4, 6, and 12 months (mos). The primary endpoint was NCF failure defined using the reliable change index. Pre-specified secondary endpoints included patient-reported symptoms using the MDASI-BT. Time to NCF was reported as cumulative incidence (with death without NCF failure as a competing risk); between-arms differences were tested using Gray’s test. Deterioration at discrete time-points were tested using chi-square tests. MDASI-BT symptom burden, interference, and cognitive and neurologic burden were analyzed using mixed effects models and t-tests within the model using Hochberg’s multiplicity adjustment. RESULTS A total of 518 patients were randomized from 7/2016 to 3/2018. Median follow-up for alive patients was 12.1 mos, with no difference between arms in terms of toxicity, overall survival or intracranial progression-free survival. HA-WBRT+M was associated with lower risk of NCF failure (adjusted HR=0.739, 95% CI: 0.577–0.945, p=0.0.016), with differences first noted at 4 mos in Trail Making Test Part-B (23.3% vs. 40.4% deteriorated, p=0.012). Age did not dilute treatment effect. HA-WBRT+M was associated with reduced cognitive symptom burden in an imputed model (estimate=-0.29, p=0.0425), and also reduced overall symptom burden (p< 0.0001) and interference (p< 0.0016) at 6 mos. CONCLUSIONS The addition of HA to WBRT+M preserved NCF and reduced patient reported cognitive symptom burden, overall symptom burden and symptom interference and should be considered standard of care for any patient fit enough to have WBRT. Supported by grants UG1CA189867 (NCORP), U10CA180868 (NRG Oncology Operations), DCP from the National Cancer Institute.

Rapid advances in technology are revealing previously unknown organization, cooperation, and limitations within the population of nontumor cells surrounding the tumor epithelium known as the tumor microenvironment (TME). Nowhere are these findings more pertinent than in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract where exquisite cell specialization supports a complex microenvironmental niche characterized by rapid stemness-associated cell turnover, pathogen sensing, epithelial orchestration of immune signaling, and other facets that maintain the complex balance between homeostasis, inflammation, and disease. Here, we summarize and discuss select emerging concepts in the precancerous microenvironment, TME, and tumor epithelial-TME crosstalk as well as their implications for the management of GI cancers.