So....here you go:
Galectin's GR-MD-02 Positive in Phase Ib Study With Keytruda
Why Yervoy's Resurgence Will Gain Momentum
Adoptive transfer of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes in melanoma: a viable treatment option
Lifestyle Modifications and Policy Implications for Primary and Secondary Cancer Prevention: Diet, Exercise, Sun Safety, and Alcohol Reduction
New Era in the Management of Melanoma Brain Metastases
| Combination Immunotherapy Development in Melanoma Practice-Changing Developments in Stage III Melanoma: Surgery, Adjuvant Targeted Therapy, and Immunotherapy Patterns of Response and Progression to Immunotherapy Emerging Strategies in Systemic Therapy for the Treatment of Melanoma Challenging Cases: Management of Immune-Related Toxicity The Role of Completion Lymph Node Dissection for Sentinel Lymph Node-Positive Melanoma.
Completion lymph node dissection (CLND) for sentinel lymph node (SLN)-positive melanoma patients has been guideline-concordant standard of care since adoption of lymphatic mapping and SLN biopsy for the management of clinically node-negative melanoma patients more than 20 years ago. However, a trend for omission of CLND has been observed over the past decade, and we now have randomized, controlled clinical trial data to help guide treatment recommendations. Publication of these data prompted an American Society of Clinical Oncology-Society of Surgical Oncology 2018 clinical practice guideline update for these patients.
Systematic review of current evidence supports a selective, individualized approach to CLND for SLN-positive melanoma. For low-risk, low-volume micrometastatic disease, SLN biopsy may be both diagnostic and therapeutic, and close clinical follow-up with imaging or CLND are reasonable options for appropriately selected patients. For higher-risk patients, omission of CLND requires careful consideration of risks versus benefits, relevant histopathology, and individualized patient discussion. This should address patient comorbidities and life expectancy, the predicted likelihood of additional positive nodes, availability of imaging surveillance, likelihood of adherence to imaging and clinical follow-up, consequences of regional recurrence, and the prognostic value of complete nodal staging and its impact on adjuvant therapy recommendations or clinical trial participation. Data on long-term outcomes, cost, and patient-reported quality of life measures are not yet available. Prognostic Value of Low Tumor Burden in Patients With Melanoma.
Poklepovic, Carvajal. Oncology (Williston Park). 2018 Sep 15.
The therapeutic landscape for cutaneous melanoma has dramatically advanced in the last several years with the development, validation, and approval by the US Food and Drug Administration of several new therapies that have proven effective in treating metastatic disease. Considerable effort has been put into identifying prognostic and predictive markers of therapeutic response to better delineate the patient populations most likely to benefit from treatment. Baseline tumor burden has been described as a common clinical factor associated with treatment response: lower tumor burden at the time of therapeutic intervention is associated with improved responses and survival outcomes on several therapies. Some therapies have shown efficacy as adjuvant interventions in patients with subclinical disease following definitive treatment, further supporting their role in patients with minimal tumor burden. The increasing evidence that patients with lower tumor burden may be the ones who derive maximal benefit from several melanoma-directed therapies points toward the critical need for risk-tailored surveillance to permit early identification of melanoma metastasis in patients at high risk for recurrence.Predictors of Sentinel Lymph Node Positivity in Thin Melanoma Using the National Cancer Database.
Following melanoma excision, patients often receive sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) for further staging. Limited data regarding predictors of SLNB positivity in thin melanoma are available. To evaluate predictors of SLNB positivity in thin melanoma. Patients with cutaneous melanoma, Breslow thickness great than/= to 1.00 mm who received a SLNB were identified from the National Cancer Database in the period from 2004-2014 (n=9,186). Predictors of SLNB positivity were analyzed using logistic regression. In a multivariate analysis, patients with age less than 60 and Breslow thickness greater than 0.8mm were at increased risk for positive SLN. Moreover, on multivariate analysis, presence dermal mitoses increased odds of SLN positivity by 95%, ulceration by 63% and Clark level IV-V by 48%. Patients without ulceration but with dermal mitoses had 92% increased SLN positivity. Limited survival data available. Younger age, Breslow thickness greater than 0.8 mm, presence of dermal mitoses, ulceration and Clark level IV-V are positive predictors of positive SLN. While the new AJCC system has removed dermal mitotic rate from staging, continued evaluation of dermal mitotic rate could be valuable for guiding surgical decision making about SLNB.
Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are now a mainstay of cancer treatment. Although rare, fulminant and fatal toxic effects may complicate these otherwise transformative therapies; characterizing these events requires integration of global data. To determine the spectrum, timing, and clinical features of fatal ICI-associated toxic effects. We retrospectively queried a World Health Organization (WHO) pharmacovigilance database (Vigilyze) comprising more than 16 000 000 adverse drug reactions, and records from 7 academic centers. We performed a meta-analysis of published trials of anti-programmed death-1/ligand-1 (PD-1/PD-L1) and anti-cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen-4 (CTLA-4) to evaluate their incidence using data from large academic medical centers, global WHO pharmacovigilance data, and all published ICI clinical trials of patients with cancer treated with ICIs internationally.
Anti-CTLA-4 (ipilimumab or tremelimumab), anti-PD-1 (nivolumab, pembrolizumab), or anti-PD-L1 (atezolizumab, avelumab, durvalumab).
Timing, spectrum, outcomes, and incidence of ICI-associated toxic effects.
Internationally, 613 fatal ICI toxic events were reported from 2009 through January 2018 in Vigilyze. The spectrum differed widely between regimens: in a total of 193 anti-CTLA-4 deaths, most were usually from colitis (135 [70%]), whereas anti-PD-1/PD-L1-related fatalities were often from pneumonitis (333 [35%]), hepatitis (115 [22%]), and neurotoxic effects (50 [15%]). Combination PD-1/CTLA-4 deaths were frequently from colitis (32 [37%]) and myocarditis (22 [25%]). Fatal toxic effects typically occurred early after therapy initiation for combination therapy, anti-PD-1, and ipilimumab monotherapy (median 14.5, 40, and 40 days, respectively). Myocarditis had the highest fatality rate (52 [39.7%] of 131 reported cases), whereas endocrine events and colitis had only 2% to 5% reported fatalities; 10% to 17% of other organ-system toxic effects reported had fatal outcomes. Retrospective review of 3545 patients treated with ICIs from 7 academic centers revealed 0.6% fatality rates; cardiac and neurologic events were especially prominent (43%). Median time from symptom onset to death was 32 days. A meta-analysis of 112 trials involving 19 217 patients showed toxicity-related fatality rates of 0.36% (anti-PD-1), 0.38% (anti-PD-L1), 1.08% (anti-CTLA-4), and 1.23% (PD-1/PD-L1 plus CTLA-4).
In the largest evaluation of fatal ICI-associated toxic effects published to date to our knowledge, we observed early onset of death with varied causes and frequencies depending on therapeutic regimen. Clinicians across disciplines should be aware of these uncommon lethal complications.
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Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of the Prognostic Significance of miRNAs in Melanoma Patients.
Melanoma is the most aggressive and deadly form of skin cancer. The molecular variability involving microRNA (miRNA) expression plays a significant role in melanogenesis, which leads to poor prognostic effects in melanoma. Since there is a scarcity of comprehensive data on the prognostic role of miRNAs in melanoma patients, this study focuses on filling this knowledge gap through a systematic review and meta-analysis.
The included studies were extracted from several bibliographic databases between 2012 and 2018 using multiple keywords according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. The hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for different survival endpoints were compared to the high and low expression levels of miRNAs. The mean effect size of HR values was estimated using a random-effects model of meta-analysis. Inverted funnel plot symmetry was used to assess publication bias. Subgroup analysis was carried out individually for multiple miRNAs across different studies.
A total of 24 studies across eight countries were included, of which 16 studies were eligible for meta-analysis. Twenty-five miRNA expression levels were studied from 2669 melanoma patients to estimate the association between the prognostic role of miRNAs and survival outcome in these 16 studies. The overall pooled effect size (HR) for up- and downregulated miRNAs was 1.043, indicating that the miRNA expression increased the likelihood of death in melanoma patients by 4.3%. Subgroup analysis for miRNA10b, miRNA16 and miRNA21 showed a poor prognosis. The quality assessment revealed that 16 studies were good quality and eight studies were of fair quality.
This is one of the first pooled meta-analysis studies on the role of miRNAs in the prognosis of melanoma. Our findings are inconclusive but suggest that miRNA expression could predict poor survival in melanoma patients. Therefore, miRNA expression could act as promising prognostic marker for melanoma.
The accrual of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) represents a major obstacle to effective immunotherapy in cancer patients, but the mechanisms underlying this process in the human setting remain elusive. Here, we describe a set of microRNAs (miR-146a, miR-155, miR-125b, miR-100, let-7e, miR-125a, miR-146b, miR-99b) that are associated with MDSCs and with resistance to treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors in melanoma patients. The miRs were identified by transcriptional analyses as being responsible for the conversion of monocytes into MDSCs (CD14+HLA-DRneg cells) mediated by melanoma extracellular vesicles (EVs) and were shown to recreate MDSC features upon transfection. In melanoma patients, these miRs are increased in circulating CD14+ monocytes, plasma and tumor samples, where they correlate with the myeloid cell infiltrate. In plasma, their baseline level clusters with the clinical efficacy of CTLA-4 or PD-1 blockade. Hence, MDSC-related miRs represent an indicator of MDSC activity in cancer patients and a potential blood marker of a poor immunotherapy outcome.
Tumors may evade immunosurveillance through upregulation of the indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase 1 (IDO1) enzyme. Epacadostat is a potent and highly selective IDO1 enzyme inhibitor. The open-label phase I/II ECHO-202/KEYNOTE-037 trial evaluated epacadostat plus pembrolizumab, a programmed death protein 1 inhibitor, in patients with advanced solid tumors. Phase I results on maximum tolerated dose, safety, tolerability, preliminary antitumor activity, and pharmacokinetics are reported.
Patients received escalating doses of oral epacadostat (25, 50, 100, or 300 mg) twice per day plus intravenous pembrolizumab 2 mg/kg or 200 mg every 3 weeks. During the safety expansion, patients received epacadostat (50, 100, or 300 mg) twice per day plus pembrolizumab 200 mg every 3 weeks.
Sixty-two patients were enrolled and received one or more doses of study treatment. The maximum tolerated dose of epacadostat in combination with pembrolizumab was not reached. Fifty-two patients (84%) experienced treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs), with fatigue (36%), rash (36%), arthralgia (24%), pruritus (23%), and nausea (21%) occurring in greater than/ = to 20%. Grade 3/4 TRAEs were reported in 24% of patients. Seven patients (11%) discontinued study treatment because of TRAEs. No TRAEs led to death. Epacadostat 100 mg twice per day plus pembrolizumab 200 mg every 3 weeks was recommended for phase II evaluation. Objective responses (per Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors [RECIST] version 1.1) occurred in 12 (55%) of 22 patients with melanoma and in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer, renal cell carcinoma, endometrial adenocarcinoma, urothelial carcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. The pharmacokinetics of epacadostat and pembrolizumab and antidrug antibody rate were comparable to historical controls for monotherapies.
Epacadostat in combination with pembrolizumab generally was well tolerated and had encouraging antitumor activity in multiple advanced solid tumors.
Immune-checkpoint blockade (ICB), in particular PD-1 inhibition, has rapidly changed the treatment landscape and altered therapeutic paradigms across many tumor types, with unprecedented rates of durable clinical responses in a number of cancers. Despite this success, only a subset of patients responds to ICB and, as a result, predictive biomarkers would be useful to guide the selection of patients for these therapies. This article highlights currently used biomarkers, as well as several promising novel candidates, and also discusses the challenges involved in establishing their analytic validity and clinical utility. Progress is being evaluated in melanoma and non-small cell lung cancer, for which PD-1 ± CTLA-4 inhibitors have become standard therapy, to other malignancies for which PD-L1 inhibitors remain investigational. Although single biomarkers have substantial limitations, a combination of biomarkers that reflect the interaction of host and tumor will likely be needed to provide a reproducible surrogate for the benefit of checkpoint modulation.
And because y'all know I've been yelling about biomarkers for years, here are links to my prior posts on the subject:
And here is an update on the Columbus Trial....with my prior notes:
Overall survival in patients with BRAF-mutant melanoma receiving encorafenib plus binimetinib versus vemurafenib or encorafenib (COLUMBUS): a multicentre, open-label, randomised, phase 3 trial. Dummer, Ascierto, Gogas, et al. Lancet Oncol. 2018 Sep 12.
Encorafenib plus binimetinib and encorafenib alone improved progression-free survival compared with vemurafenib in patients with BRAFV600-mutant melanoma in the COLUMBUS trial. Here, we report the results of the secondary endpoint of overall survival.
COLUMBUS was a two-part, randomised, open-label, phase 3 study done at 162 hospitals in 28 countries. Eligible patients were aged at least 18 years with histologically confirmed, locally advanced, unresectable, or metastatic cutaneous melanoma, or unknown primary melanoma, BRAFV600E or BRAFV600Kmutation, an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0 or 1, and were treatment naive or had progressed on or after first-line immunotherapy. In part 1 of the study, patients were randomly assigned (1:1:1) by use of interactive response technology to receive oral encorafenib 450 mg once daily plus oral binimetinib 45 mg twice daily (encorafenib plus binimetinib group), oral encorafenib 300 mg once daily (encorafenib group), or oral vemurafenib 960 mg twice daily (vemurafenib group). Randomisation was stratified by the American Joint Committee on Cancer stage, ECOG performance status, and BRAF mutation status. The primary outcome of the trial, progression-free survival with encorafenib plus binimetinib versus vemurafenib, was reported previously. Here we present the prespecified interim overall survival analysis. Efficacy analyses were by intent to treat. Safety was analysed in patients who received at least one dose of study drug. Part 2 of the study was initiated at the request of the US Food and Drug Administration to better understand the contribution of binimetinib to the combination therapy by comparing encorafenib 300 mg once daily plus binimetinib 45 mg twice daily with encorafenib 300 mg once daily alone. Results of part 2 will be published separately. This trial is ongoing and is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01909453, and EudraCT, number 2013-001176-38.
Between Dec 30, 2013, and April 10, 2015, 577 of 1345 screened patients were randomly assigned to receive encorafenib plus binimetinib (n=192), encorafenib (n=194), or vemurafenib (n=191). Median follow-up for overall survival was 36·8 months (35·9-37·5). Median overall survival was 33·6 months (24·4-39·2) with encorafenib plus binimetinib and 16·9 months (14·0-24·5) with vemurafenib. The most common grade 3 or 4 adverse events did not change substantially from the first report; those seen in more than 5% of patients treated with encorafenib plus binimetinib were increased γ-glutamyltransferase (18 [9%] of 192 patients), increased blood creatine phosphokinase (14 [7%]), and hypertension (12 [6%]); those seen with encorafenib alone were palmar-plantar erythrodysaesthesia syndrome (26 [14%] of 192 patients), myalgia (19 [10%]), and arthralgia (18 [9%]); and with vemurafenib the most common grade 3 or 4 adverse event was arthralgia (11 [6%] of 186 patients). One death in the combination treatment group was considered by the investigator to be possibly related to treatment.
The combination of encorafenib plus binimetinib provided clinically meaningful efficacy with good tolerability as shown by improvements in both progression-free survival and overall survival compared with vemurafenib. These data suggest that the combination of encorafenib plus binimetinib is likely to become an important therapeutic option in patients with BRAFV600-mutant melanoma.
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