Citations

507 Background: Navitoclax (ABT-263) is an oral Bcl-2 homology-3 mimetic that binds with high affinity to pro-survival Bcl-2 proteins, resulting in apoptosis. Sorafenib, an oral multi kinase inhibitor inhibits tumor angiogenesis and also promotes apoptosis. The efficacy of either agent alone is limited; however, preclinical studies demonstrate synergy with the combination of navitoclax and sorafenib. Methods: In this phase 1 pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic study (NCT01364051), we evaluated the combination of navitoclax and sorafenib in a dose escalation cohort of patients with refractory solid tumors, with an expansion cohort in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The study agents were provided by the Cancer Therapy Evaluation Program at National Cancer Institute under CRADA. Navitoclax and sorafenib were administered continuously on days 1 through 21 of 21-day cycles. The maximum tolerated dose (MTD) was determined using the continual reassessment method. Results: Ten patients were enrolled in the dose escalation cohort and 15 patients with HCC were enrolled in the expansion cohort. Two dose levels were tested, dose level 1 (navitoclax 150 mg daily plus sorafenib 400 mg twice daily) and dose level 2 (navitoclax 200 mg daily plus sorafenib 400 mg twice daily). At dose level 1, one dose limiting toxicity (DLT) [grade 3 aspartate aminotransferase elevation] was observed among 6 patients treated at this dose level. In a cohort of 3 patients treated at dose level 2, two DLTs were observed (grade 3 hypertension, and grade 3 rash), hence dose level 1 was identified as the MTD. Among all patients, the most common grade 3 toxicity was thrombocytopenia (5 patients, 20%): there were no grade 4 or 5 toxicities (Table). Patients received a median of 2 cycles (range 1-36 cycles) and all patients were off study treatment at data cut off. Six patients in the expansion cohort had stable disease, 5 had progressive disease and 4 with unavailable data. There were no partial or complete responses. Drug-drug interaction between navitoclax and sorafenib was not observed. The combination of navitoclax and sorafenib did not increase induction of apoptosis compared with navitoclax alone. Conclusions: Navitoclax plus sorafenib resulted in manageable, but not ideal toxicities for continuous oral administration which precluded dose escalation. The lack of clinical benefit in the HCC expansion cohort does not support further development of this combination for the treatment of advanced HCC. Clinical trial information: NCT01364051 . [Table: see text]

269 Background: There are strong data showing that patients (pts) with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) receiving chemotherapy experience better quality of life (QOL) and longer overall survival (OS) when palliative care (PC) services are integrated early in their treatment course. Therefore, at our cancer center, pts with stage IV NSCLC have been referred to PC by oncology providers. In this study, we evaluated the uptake of PC services, specifically in pts with NSCLC who received immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs). ICIs have been considered to have less severe or less frequent adverse effects as compared to chemotherapy, possibly leading to fewer referrals to PC. Methods: We conducted a retrospective review of all pts at the Mayo Clinic Cancer Center in Florida who received single-agent ICI therapy for the treatment of stage IV NSCLC at any point between July 1, 2015, and July 1, 2022. The primary aim was to evaluate the uptake of PC services before or during treatment with ICIs. Descriptive statistics were used to characterize pt demographics and outcomes. Results: 129 pts were identified. 53.4% were male, and 46.6% were female. The majority of pts (84.4%) were white. 62 pts (48.0%) were seen by a PC provider before or during ICI treatment; 41 of these (31.7%) were seen by PC after starting ICI therapy. When grouped by year of ICI initiation, 30/73 pts (41.0%) treated between 2015 and June 2018 were seen by a PC provider, as compared to 15/31 pts (48.3%) treated between July 2018 and June 2020 and 17/25 pts (68.0%) treated between July 2020 and July 2022. Interestingly, the majority of pts who received PC services in the 2020-2022 group (12/17, or 70.5%) were seen by a PC provider for the first time prior to ICI initiation, whereas the majority of pts who received PC services prior to July 2020 (37/45, or 82.2%) were seen by a PC provider for the first time after ICI initiation. The mean number of PC visits increased from 1.59 in the 2015-2018 group to 1.84 in the 2018-2020 group and 4.96 in the 2020-2022 group. Conclusions: Uptake of PC services in pts with stage IV NSCLC receiving single-agent ICIs at our cancer center has increased over time, which is encouraging. Nevertheless, the numbers remain suboptimal, with less than 70% of pts receiving PC services. We plan to develop a multidisciplinary quality improvement project involving implementation of a mechanism to ensure that most patients with stage IV NSCLC, regardless of the type of systemic treatment they receive, are receiving PC services.

AbstractBackgroundClinical trials are an essential part of advancing care for cancer patients. Historically, however, racial minorities and females have been underrepresented in these trials. Efforts like the National Institute of Health Revitalization Act attempted to mitigate these disparities, but despite these efforts, they continue to exist. These disparities can subsequently lead to minorities and females receiving suboptimal care.AimsThe purpose of our study was to understand the changing trends in reporting of participant race and sex as a demographic variable in phase III lung cancer clinical trials published over the last 35 years given these consequences of poor representation.Methods and resultsA total of 426 articles reporting the results of phase III lung cancer clinical trials published from 1984 to 2019 were identified in PubMed. From these articles, data on participant sex and race were collected from the demographic tables to construct the database for this study. This database was subsequently used to determine the rate of reporting of demographic factors like race and sex and the participation trends over the time of minority and female participation in lung cancer phase III clinical trials. The SciPy Stats package for Python was used to calculate descriptive statistics, 95% confidence intervals, two sample t‐test, one‐way analysis of variance test, and Pearson's correlation coefficients. The Matplotlib package for Python was used for figure generation. Only 137 (32.2%) of the 426 studies analyzed reported the race of participants. Among those studies, we found that the mean participation rate of White participants was significantly higher (82.65%; p < .001). We found a decrease in African American participants and an increase in Asian participants over time. When looking at sex, we found that although the rate of male participation (69.02%) was significantly higher than that of female participation (30.98%), female participation has improved with time at a rate of 0.65% per year.ConclusionWe found that the reporting and participation of minority races continue to lag that of other demographic factors like sex in phase III clinical trials in lung cancer. Based on our analysis, we note a decline in participation of African Americans in lung cancer phase III clinical trials despite the rising incidence of lung cancer.

12051 Background: The combination of ipilimumab and nivolumab (Ipi-Nivo) is a standard of care regimen in many malignancies. However, immune-related adverse events (irAE) are common and are of great concern, especially when treating the elderly population. This subgroup of patients may be at greater risk for serious irAEs and be less able to tolerate the potential treatment side effects. We sought to retrospectively evaluate our experience treating elderly patients ≥ 80 years with Ipi-Nivo to characterize adverse events. Methods: A retrospective chart review of the electronic medical records of all patients treated with Ipi-Nivo at the Mayo Clinic Health System was performed. Patients with any solid tumor who received their first dose of Ipi-Nivo at the age of ≥ 80 were included. Records were analyzed for baseline characteristics, cancer type, toxicity, and response to therapy. Differences between continuous and categorical variables were assessed using the students’ t-test and the chi-squared test, respectively. Overall survival (OS) was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Cox proportional hazard models assessed the relative contribution of factors to survival after treatment. P values < 0.05 were considered statistically significant. All analyses were performed using SAS V.9.4. Results: Forty-six patients met inclusion criteria, 13 females and 33 males. Median age of first dose was 83 (Range: 80 - 94). Sixty-seven percent had an ECOG performance status (PS) 0-1 and 33% had an ECOG PS 2-3. Thirteen (28.3%) patients received 4 cycles of Ipi-Nivo. Cancers included: 18 (40%) melanomas, 10 (21%) mesothelioma, 9 (19.5%) lung cancers, and 9 (19.5%) other types. Thirty-one patients (67%) developed at least one irAE. Of the irAEs, 8 (17.4%) were grade 1, 20 (43.5%) were grade 2, 14 (30.4%) were grade 3, and 3 (6.5%) were grade 4. Systemic steroids were used in 29 (63%) patients. Twenty-six (56.5%) patients were hospitalized for any cause, and 12 (26.1%) were hospitalized due to an irAE. Of the 26 patients hospitalized during treatment, 19 (73%) died within 1 year of discharge; 11 (42%) died within < 1 month of discharge and 3 (12%) died within 1-3 months of discharge. Median OS from the date of first Ipi-Nivo dose was 14.6 months in the ECOG PS 0-1 and 6.5 months in the ECOG PS 2-3. ECOG PS of 0-1 was associated with a significantly decreased risk of mortality (HR [hazard ratio] 0.33, 95 % CI [confidence interval]: 0.15-0.70; p=0.0025) compared to ECOG PS of 2-3. Conclusions: This is the first analysis to evaluate the outcomes of Ipi-Nivo in patients ≥ 80 years. Approximately 60% of the patients required systemic steroids and a quarter were hospitalized with grade 3-4 irAEs. As expected, patients with ECOG PS 2-3 did significantly worse than ECOG PS 0-1. Ipi-Nivo should be used with caution in patients ≥ 80 years.

e21161 Background: Patients with stage IV NSCLC undergo frequent restaging scans (RS). While vital to assess treatment response, RS add anxiety and financial burdens to patients. The ideal frequency of RS is unclear. The numerous treatment options available, such as targeted therapy (TT) and immunotherapy (IO), and the variability in frequency of RS in the trials that led to their approval reflect this uncertainty. Due to the lack of clear guidelines about their ideal interval in daily practice, we reviewed the heterogeneity in frequency of RS in those trials, comparing it to the reported progression-free survival (PFS). Methods: In this study, we reviewed the FDA-approved drugs for stage IV NSCLC since 10/18/2016 and selected the TT and IO. Each trial that led to approval was reviewed, collecting the frequency of RS and the median PFS for the intervention (IA) and control arms (CA). Results: 18 TT drugs and 12 IO regimens, with and without chemotherapy (chemo), were found. Among them, the frequency of RS varied from every 4 to 9 weeks (w) upfront, later modified to every 6 to 12 w until disease progression. The median PFS for both groups in the IA ranged from 2.8 to 19.4 months (m), and from 3.0 to 12.4 m in the CA. The TT group had drugs directed at 7 different mutations, and it presented more discrepancy in terms of restaging frequency. The period between RS varied from every 4 to 8 w initially, later modified to every 6 to 12 w. However, 11 of 18 trials had an interval of every 6 w. The shortest median PFS in the IA arm was 5.4 m, and 5.6 m in the CA. While the longest median PFS was 19.4 m in the IA and 12.4 m in the CA. The IO group included 5 regimens with chemo and 7 without. The interval between RS varied from 6 to 9 w originally, to every 8 to 12 w later. Yet, 8 of 12 regimens’ trials scanned patients every 6 w initially. The median PFS in the IA ranged from 2.8 to 10.3 m, and between 3.0 to 6.5 m in the CA. Conclusions: We observed notable heterogeneity among trials regarding the frequency of RS in patients treated for stage IV NSCLC. When comparing these intervals to the median PFS, we noted the shortest PFS reported is longer than most adopted intervals. This may indicate RS were obtained more frequently than needed. The increased frequency of RS raises a burden for patients and the medical system, while contributing to disparities. This finding, coupled with further comparisons between the frequency of RS in trials and in daily practice, may pave the way for prospective studies analyzing the ideal interval for RS. This can lead to a more efficacious and less burdensome strategy for patients. [Table: see text]

e21157 Background: Atezolizumab is superior to docetaxel for patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who are pretreated with platinum-based chemotherapy based on the POPLAR and OAK trials. However, patients who received prior immunotherapy (IO) were excluded from these trials. The preferred subsequent therapy for these patients remains to be docetaxel +/- ramucirumab. The efficacy and safety of atezolizumab as a subsequent therapy in IO-pretreated patients are unknown. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of all patients with locally advanced/metastatic NSCLC who were pretreated with IO at Mayo Clinic Florida/Rochester in 2016 - 2022. Patients who received subsequent therapy of atezolizumab alone (Atezo), docetaxel (Doce), or docetaxel + ramucirumab (Doce+Ram) were included. Kaplan-Meier method and log-rank test were used for survival analysis. Results: Among 169 patients included, 51.5% were female, 91.7% were Caucasian. The median age was 67 (35 – 92). The histology was predominantly adenocarcinoma (76.3%). The most common metastatic sites were bone (51.5%), followed by CNS (44.4%). The median number of prior therapies was 2 (1 – 8). Pembrolizumab was the most used prior IO (87%), followed by durvalumab (10.7%) and nivolumab (8.3%). 13.6% (n = 23), 49.1% (n = 83), and 37.2% (n = 63) patients received subsequent Atezo, Doce, and Doce+Ram, respectively. PFS was improved in the Atezo group compared with Doce group (median PFS 3.9 vs. 3.7 months, HR 0.57, 95% CI 0.37 – 0.87, p = 0.015*). Notably, a prominent percentage of patients in the Atezo group appear to have long-term PFS benefits, demonstrated by 1-year PFS rates of 26.1%, 3.6%, and 4.8% (p = 0.003**), and 2-year PFS rates of 17.4%, 0%, and 0% (p = 0.002**), in the Atezo, Doce, and Doce+Ram groups, respectively. The median OS (months) in the Atezo, Doce, and Doce+Ram groups were 17.5, 7.6, and 11.5, respectively; and were 29.5, 7.2, and 6.9, respectively in the PD-L1 > 50% subgroups. The Atezo group showed significantly greater OS improvement compared with the Doce group (HR 0.42, 95% CI 0.26 – 0.66, p = 0.001**). This benefit appears greater and remains statistically significant in the PD-L1 > 1% (HR 0.39, 95% CI 0.22 – 0.71, p = 0.005**) and PD-L1 > 50% (HR 0.37, 95% CI 0.15 – 0.91, p = 0.022*) subgroups. 5 of 23 (21.7%) patients in the Atezo group developed immune-related adverse events. 3 patients were grade 3 or 4. No grade 5 event. Conclusions: We observed statistically significant and clinically meaningful PFS and OS benefits of atezolizumab monotherapy compared with docetaxel in patients with advanced NSCLC who were pretreated with IO. The OS benefits of atezolizumab over docetaxel +/- ramucirumab was greater in PD-L1 > 1% and PD-L1 > 50% subgroups. Atezolizumab appears to be tolerable in IO-pretreated patients. These findings need to be verified in a prospective study.

e21156 Background: Immunotherapy (IO) is one of the major treatments for patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (mNSCLC). IO may be discontinued in patients for many reasons, the most common being progression of disease (POD). For those patients who discontinued IO for reasons other than POD, such as immune-related adverse event (irAE), there is limited data that compare progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) when IO is continued vs. stopped. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of all patients with mNSCLC (stage IV) treated with IO at our institution from 2011 to 2022. Patients who discontinued IO due to POD were excluded from the analysis. The clinical outcomes, including PFS, OS, and irAE were investigated among patients with no POD who stopped IO prior to 6 or 12 months (m) vs. those that continued IO > 6 or 12m. Results: The analysis at the 6m timepoint included 92 patients, 82.6% were white, 50% were male, 67.4% had adenocarcinoma, and 82.6% used tobacco. The most common site of metastasis was bone (28.3%), followed by CNS (20.7%). 51.2% of patients had received IO as the first line systemic therapy and 32.6% received it as their second. Pembrolizumab was the most used IO (84.78%). Among these patients, 25 discontinued IO before 6m, and 67 patients continued IO beyond 6m. irAE, of any grade, occurred in 44.0% vs 37.3% when comparing IO discontinued with IO continued group at 6m. Patients who continued treatment beyond 6m had a longer duration of PFS (22.8m vs 11.8m, p = 1.14E-04) with a significant increase in OS (34.5m vs 14.0m, p = 1.34E-07). The analysis at the 12m timepoint included 71 patients, 87.3% were white, 46.5% were male, 78.9% had adenocarcinoma, and 80.3% used tobacco. The most common site of metastasis was bone (29.9%), followed by CNS (22.5%). 62.0% of patients had received IO as the first line systemic therapy and 28.7% received it as their second. Pembrolizumab was the most used IO (87.3%). Among these patients, 30 discontinued IO before 12m, and 41 patients continued IO beyond 12m. irAE, of any grade, occurred in 36.7% vs 41.5% when comparing IO discontinued with IO continued group at 12m. Similarly, patients who continued treatment beyond 12m had a longer duration of PFS (28.4m vs 14.2m, p = 1.91E-06) with a significant increase in OS (39.9m vs 17.6m, p = 3.45E-09). Conclusions: We observed that patients with mNSCLC and no POD, who continued IO beyond 6m and 12m, experienced a significant increase in PFS and OS than those who discontinued IO, with more significant increases in those who continued IO past 12m. These findings need to be verified in a larger cohort.

e21030 Background: Docetaxel +/- ramucirumab remains the standard of care therapy after progression on platinum doublet and immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) in patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, the clinical benefit from docetaxel is short-lived with substantial toxicity. Additionally, whether cancer gene mutation status impacts the benefit from docetaxel has not been systemically studied. In this real-world study, we aim to investigate whether cancer gene mutation status is associated with benefit from docetaxel. We also explored whether IMPOWER150-based regimens (ABCP-atezolizumab + bevacizumab + carboplatin + paclitaxel; ACP-atezolizumab + carboplatin + paclitaxel; BCP-bevacizumab + carboplatin+paclitaxel) may serve as alternative options with better efficacy in this patient population. Methods: We retrospectively queried MD Anderson Cancer Center GEMINI database for patients with metastatic NSCLC who received docetaxel, docetaxel+ramucirumab, or one of the above-mentioned IMPOWER150-based regimens after progression on concomitant or sequential platinum-doublet and ICI. Primary endpoints include progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Results: 274 patients were analyzed (docetaxel n = 99; docetaxel +ramucirumab n = 142; ABCP n = 28; BCP n = 4, ACP n = 1). No significant difference was observed in mPFS (3.00m versus 3.93m, P = 0.156) or mOS (8.40m vs.8.67m, P = 0.737) between patients from docetaxel monotherapy group and docetaxel+ ramucirumab group. Cancer gene mutations in EGFR, KRAS, TP53 or PD-L1 expression (0-1%; 1-49%; ≥50%) were not associated with PFS or OS in the 241 patients treated with docetaxel +/- ramucirumab. Furthermore, there was no difference in mPFS (5.50m versus 3.47m, P = 0.516) or mOS (10.40m versus 8.83m, P = 0.737) in patients who received IMPOWER 150-based regimens compared to those who were treated with docetaxel+/- ramucirumab. The median treatment duration was 1.60m (0.70m-20.23m), 1.90m (0.70m-32.90m), 4.80m(0.70m-33.47m) and 11 patients (11.11%), 20 patients (14.08%), and 3 patients (9.09%) discontinued treatment due to adverse events in the patients treated with docetaxel monotherapy, docetaxel+ramucirumab combined therapy, and the IMPOWER150 regimens, respectively. Conclusions: These results from this real-world study suggested that unlike for ICI therapy, where onco-driver mutations have profound impact on the clinical benefit, the cancer gene mutation status does not impact the benefit from docetaxel +/- ramucirumab in NSCLC patients who progressed on platinum doublets and ICI. Furthermore, the clinical benefit from docetaxel +/- ramucirumab is short-lived. Novel treatment regimens are urgently needed in this clinical setting.

9122 Background: Initial treatment selection for advanced NSCLC patients without driver mutations is mainly based on evaluating PD-L1 expression levels in the tumor tissue. However, PD-L1 assays are only moderately predictive. In addition, the guidelines for the PD-L1≥50% subpopulation are not definitive, enabling the usage of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) either as a monotherapy or combined with chemotherapy. Here we aim to provide a decision-making tool for the first-line treatment of advanced NSCLC patients based on plasma derived biomarkers obtained before treatment initiation. Methods: Pre-treatment plasma samples were collected from 545 NSCLC patients receiving ICI-based therapy. Clinical benefit was evaluated based on progression-free survival (PFS) at 12 months as a threshold. Deep plasma proteomic profiling was performed using aptamer technology. Based on the proteomic profiles, a computational model, termed PROphet, was developed and evaluated in a blinded manner on the validation subset (n = 272). The model output, clinical benefit probability, was used to stratify the patients into two groups, PROphet-positive or -negative. Results: The model displayed good performance with a high correlation between the predicted clinical benefit and the observed clinical benefit rate (R2= 0.97), outperforming a PD-L1-based prediction model (R2= 0.35). Patients classified as PROphet-positive achieved significantly longer overall survival (OS) than PROphet-negative patients, with a median OS of 25.9 versus 10.8 months (hazard ratio, HR = 0.51; 95% confidence interval, CI = 0.37-0.70; p-value < 0.001). Next, we examined the clinical utility of combining the PROphet output with PD-L1 levels by comparing different treatment modalities. Focusing on PD-L1≥50%, patients with PROphet-positive results displayed similar OS and PFS when receiving ICI monotherapy or ICI-chemotherapy (OS HR = 0.77; CI = 0.42-1.43; p-value = 0.4096), suggesting that these patients may consider monotherapy, thus avoiding chemotherapy-related toxicity. Conversely, PD-L1≥50% patients with a PROphet-negative result displayed a significantly longer OS and PFS when receiving ICI-chemotherapy in comparison to ICI monotherapy, with a median OS that was not reached versus 11.10 months in the combination therapy and monotherapy groups, respectively (HR = 0.29; CI = 0.14-0.59; p-value < 0.001). These patients should consider combination therapy, avoiding a treatment that is suboptimal for them. Results for PD-L1 1-49% and < 1% provide additional clinical information for each subgroup. Conclusions: Plasma proteomic profiling can provide biomarkers that accurately predict the benefit of ICI-based treatment. The model output complements tissue PD-L1 expression levels as a tool to assist therapeutic decisions.

9093 Background: Pembrolizumab interrupts PD-1/-L1 interaction and is efficacious in many cancers. However, resistance invariably emerges in the majority of patients. Potential mechanisms include activation of compensatory pathways. The inhibition of sonic hedgehog signaling (sHH) was previously shown to induce intra-tumoral (IT) infiltration by CD4+, CD8+ and HLA-DR class II cells. Our preclinical data showed sHH inhibitor enhanced IT penetration by monoclonal antibodies and induced PD-L1 expression. We conducted a phase I study using a novel sequential pulse dosing of sonedegib followed by pembrolizumab in aST with an expansion cohort to determine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD), tolerability and preliminary efficacy. Methods: The dose escalation utilized a 3+3 design to determine the MTD and proceeded to expansion cohort upon determination of the MTD. Patients enrolled to each dose level were observed for dose limiting toxicities (DLTs) during the 1st cycle. The expansion cohort consisted of NSCLC and head/neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) previously treated by anti-PD1/-L1. The recommended phase 2 dose (RP2D) was determined following the review of the toxicity profile of the combination from all cycles. The study treatment consisted of sonidegib oral daily from day 1 to 8 and pembrolizumab I.V. 200 mg on day 8 on an every 3-week cycle. The sonidegib dose levels explored were 400, 600 and 800 mg. Archival tumor and blood specimens were collected for correlative studies. Adverse events (AEs) were categorized and graded per CTCAE v5.0, and tumor response by RECIST v1.1. Results: The study enrolled a total of 33 patients and 29 received treatment (13 in escalation and 16 in expansion), including patients with NSCLC, HNSCC, skin cancer, gastric cancer and melanoma. The enrollment to the NSCLC cohort is complete and HNSCC continues. No DLT was encountered during dose escalation and the MTD was not reached. The highest planned dose level was selected to proceed to expansion (sonidegib 800mg days 1-8 in combination with pembrolizumab I.V. 200 mg on day 8 on an every 3-week cycle). The expansion cohort proceeded to enroll 15 patients evaluable for AEs (10 NSCLC and 5 HSNCC). Grade 3 and above treatment-related AEs across all patients were hyperglycemia, fatigue, dyspepsia, abdominal pain. The mature efficacy data will be reported at the meeting. Conclusions: The study successfully determined the RP2D of sonidegib when dosed sequentially with pembrolizumab in advanced solid tumors. The AE profile of the combination is similar to that for respective agents given individually. The efficacy data among anti-PD1/-PDL1-treated NSCLC will be reported at the meeting. Clinical trial information: NCT04007744 .