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Brown PA, Kairalla JA, Hilden JM, Dreyer ZE, Carroll AJ, Heerema NA, Wang C, Devidas M, Gore L, Salzer WL, Winick NJ, Carroll WL, Raetz EA, Borowitz MJ, Small D, Loh ML, Hunger SP. FLT3 inhibitor lestaurtinib plus chemotherapy for newly diagnosed KMT2A-rearranged infant acute lymphoblastic leukemia: Children's Oncology Group trial AALL0631. Leukemia 2021; 35:1279-1290. [PMID: 33623141 DOI: 10.1038/s41375-021-01177-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2020] [Revised: 01/11/2021] [Accepted: 01/29/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Infants with KMT2A-rearranged acute lymphoblastic leukemia (KMT2A-r ALL) have a poor prognosis. KMT2A-r ALL overexpresses FLT3, and the FLT3 inhibitor (FLT3i) lestaurtinib potentiates chemotherapy-induced cytotoxicity in preclinical models. Children's Oncology Group (COG) AALL0631 tested whether adding lestaurtinib to post-induction chemotherapy improved event-free survival (EFS). After chemotherapy induction, KMT2A-r infants received either chemotherapy only or chemotherapy plus lestaurtinib. Correlative assays included FLT3i plasma pharmacodynamics (PD), which categorized patients as inhibited or uninhibited, and FLT3i ex vivo sensitivity (EVS), which categorized leukemic blasts as sensitive or resistant. There was no difference in 3-year EFS between patients treated with chemotherapy plus lestaurtinib (n = 67, 36 ± 6%) vs. chemotherapy only (n = 54, 39 ± 7%, p = 0.67). However, for the lestaurtinib-treated patients, FLT3i PD and FLT3i EVS significantly correlated with EFS. For FLT3i PD, EFS for inhibited/uninhibited was 59 ± 10%/28 ± 7% (p = 0.009) and for FLTi EVS, EFS for sensitive/resistant was 52 ± 8%/5 ± 5% (p < 0.001). Seventeen patients were both inhibited and sensitive, with an EFS of 88 ± 8%. Adding lestaurtinib did not improve EFS overall, but patients achieving potent FLT3 inhibition and those whose leukemia blasts were sensitive FLT3-inhibition ex vivo did benefit from the addition of lestaurtinib. Patient selection and PD-guided dose escalation may enhance the efficacy of FLT3 inhibition for KMT2A-r infant ALL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick A Brown
- Division of Pediatric Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
| | - John A Kairalla
- Department of Biostatistics, Colleges of Medicine, Public Health & Health Professions, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Joanne M Hilden
- Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders, Children's Hospital Colorado, Aurora, CO, USA
| | | | - Andrew J Carroll
- Department of Genetics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | - Nyla A Heerema
- The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbus, OH, USA
| | - Cindy Wang
- Department of Biostatistics, Colleges of Medicine, Public Health & Health Professions, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Meenakshi Devidas
- Department of Global Pediatric Medicine, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Lia Gore
- Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders, Children's Hospital Colorado, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Wanda L Salzer
- U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Fort Detrick, MD, USA
| | - Naomi J Winick
- Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, University of Texas Southwestern School of Medicine, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - William L Carroll
- Department of Pediatrics and Perlmutter Cancer Center, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY, USA
| | - Elizabeth A Raetz
- Department of Pediatrics and Perlmutter Cancer Center, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY, USA
| | - Michael J Borowitz
- Departments of Pathology and Oncology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Donald Small
- Division of Pediatric Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Mignon L Loh
- Department of Pediatrics, Benioff Children's Hospital and the Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Stephen P Hunger
- Department of Pediatrics and the Center for Childhood Cancer Research, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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Jackson TR, Ling RE, Roy A. The Origin of B-cells: Human Fetal B Cell Development and Implications for the Pathogenesis of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Front Immunol 2021; 12:637975. [PMID: 33679795 PMCID: PMC7928347 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.637975] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2020] [Accepted: 01/28/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Human B-lymphopoiesis is a dynamic life-long process that starts in utero by around six post-conception weeks. A detailed understanding of human fetal B-lymphopoiesis and how it changes in postnatal life is vital for building a complete picture of normal B-lymphoid development through ontogeny, and its relevance in disease. B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) is one of the most common cancers in children, with many of the leukemia-initiating events originating in utero. It is likely that the biology of B-ALL, including leukemia initiation, maintenance and progression depends on the developmental stage and type of B-lymphoid cell in which it originates. This is particularly important for early life leukemias, where specific characteristics of fetal B-cells might be key to determining how the disease behaves, including response to treatment. These cellular, molecular and/or epigenetic features are likely to change with age in a cell intrinsic and/or microenvironment directed manner. Most of our understanding of fetal B-lymphopoiesis has been based on murine data, but many recent studies have focussed on characterizing human fetal B-cell development, including functional and molecular assays at a single cell level. In this mini-review we will give a short overview of the recent advances in the understanding of human fetal B-lymphopoiesis, including its relevance to infant/childhood leukemia, and highlight future questions in the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas R Jackson
- Department of Paediatrics and MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Rebecca E Ling
- Department of Paediatrics and MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Anindita Roy
- Department of Paediatrics and MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom.,National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, Oxford, United Kingdom
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Abstract
PURPOSE OF THE REVIEW Infant leukemia is a rare, distinct subgroup of pediatric acute leukemias diagnosed in children under 1 year of age and characterized by unique, aggressive biology. Here, we review its clinical presentation, underlying molecular biology, current treatment strategies, and novel therapeutic approaches. RECENT FINDINGS Infant leukemias are associated with high-risk molecular features and high rates of chemotherapy resistance. International collaborative clinical trials have led to better understanding of the underlying molecular biology, refined risk-based stratification, and investigated the use of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. However, intensification of chemotherapy has failed to improve outcomes, and current regimens are associated with significant treatment-related and long-term toxicities. Infants with leukemia remain a challenging group to treat. We must continue collaborative efforts to move beyond traditional cytotoxic chemotherapy, incorporate molecularly targeted strategies and immunotherapy, and increase access to clinical trials to improve outcomes for this high-risk group of patients.
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de Groot AP, Saito Y, Kawakami E, Hashimoto M, Aoki Y, Ono R, Ogahara I, Fujiki S, Kaneko A, Sato K, Kajita H, Watanabe T, Takagi M, Tomizawa D, Koh K, Eguchi M, Ishii E, Ohara O, Shultz LD, Mizutani S, Ishikawa F. Targeting critical kinases and anti-apoptotic molecules overcomes steroid resistance in MLL-rearranged leukaemia. EBioMedicine 2021; 64:103235. [PMID: 33581643 PMCID: PMC7878180 DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2021.103235] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2019] [Revised: 01/10/2021] [Accepted: 01/22/2021] [Indexed: 10/26/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia with mixed lineage leukaemia gene rearrangement (MLL-ALL) frequently affects infants and is associated with a poor prognosis. Primary refractory and relapsed disease due to resistance to glucocorticoids (GCs) remains a substantial hurdle to improving clinical outcomes. In this study, we aimed to overcome GC resistance of MLL-ALL. METHODS Using leukaemia patient specimens, we performed bioinformatic analyses to identify target genes/pathways. To test inhibition of target pathways in vivo, we created pre-clinical therapeutic mouse patient-derived xenograft (PDX)-models by transplanting human MLL-ALL leukaemia initiating cells (LIC) into immune-deficient NSG mice. Finally, we conducted B-cell lymphoma-2 (BCL-2) homology domain 3 (BH3) profiling to identify BH3 peptides responsible for treatment resistance in MLL-leukaemia. FINDINGS Src family kinases (SFKs) and Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) signaling pathway were over-represented in MLL-ALL cells. PDX-models of infant MLL- ALL recapitulated GC-resistance in vivo but RK-20449, an inhibitor of SFKs and FLT3 eliminated human MLL-ALL cells in vivo, overcoming GC-resistance. Further, we identified BCL-2 dependence as a mechanism of treatment resistance in MLL-ALL through BH3 profiling. Furthermore, MLL-ALL cells resistant to RK-20449 treatment were dependent on the anti-apoptotic BCL-2 protein for their survival. Combined inhibition of SFKs/FLT3 by RK-20449 and of BCL-2 by ABT-199 led to substantial elimination of MLL-ALL cells in vitro and in vivo. Triple treatment combining GCs, RK-20449 and ABT-199 resulted in complete elimination of MLL-ALL cells in vivo. INTERPRETATION SFKs/FLT3 signaling pathways are promising targets for treatment of treatment-resistant MLL-ALL. Combined inhibition of these kinase pathways and anti-apoptotic BCL-2 successfully eliminated highly resistant MLL-ALL and demonstrated a new treatment strategy for treatment-resistant poor-outcome MLL-ALL. FUNDING This study was supported by RIKEN (RIKEN President's Discretionary Grant) for FI, Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (the Basic Science and Platform Technology Program for Innovative Biological Medicine for FI and by NIH CA034196 for LDS. The funders had no role in the study design, data collection, data analysis, interpretation nor writing of the report.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne P de Groot
- Laboratory for Human Disease Models, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, 1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Yoriko Saito
- Laboratory for Human Disease Models, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, 1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Eiryo Kawakami
- Healthcare and Medical Data Driven AI based Predictive Reasoning Development Unit, RIKEN Medical Sciences Innovation Hub Program, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Mari Hashimoto
- Laboratory for Human Disease Models, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, 1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Yuki Aoki
- Department of Pediatrics, National Cancer Center Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Rintaro Ono
- Laboratory for Human Disease Models, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, 1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Ikuko Ogahara
- Laboratory for Human Disease Models, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, 1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Saera Fujiki
- Laboratory for Human Disease Models, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, 1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Akiko Kaneko
- Laboratory for Human Disease Models, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, 1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Kaori Sato
- Laboratory for Human Disease Models, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, 1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Kajita
- Laboratory for Human Disease Models, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, 1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Takashi Watanabe
- Laboratory for Integrative Genomics, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Masatoshi Takagi
- Department of Pediatrics and Developmental Biology, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Daisuke Tomizawa
- Division of Leukaemia and Lymphoma, Children's Cancer Center, National Center for Child Health and Development, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Katsuyoshi Koh
- Department of Hematology/Oncology, Saitama Children's Medical Center, Saitama, Japan
| | - Mariko Eguchi
- Department of Pediatrics, Ehime University Graduate School of Medicine, Ehime, Japan
| | - Eiichi Ishii
- Department of Pediatrics, Ehime University Graduate School of Medicine, Ehime, Japan
| | - Osamu Ohara
- Laboratory for Integrative Genomics, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Yokohama, Japan; Kazusa DNA Research Institute, Kisarazu, Chiba, Japan
| | | | - Shuki Mizutani
- Department of Pediatrics and Developmental Biology, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Fumihiko Ishikawa
- Laboratory for Human Disease Models, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, 1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan.
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Fusion genes as biomarkers in pediatric cancers: A review of the current state and applicability in diagnostics and personalized therapy. Cancer Lett 2020; 499:24-38. [PMID: 33248210 DOI: 10.1016/j.canlet.2020.11.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2020] [Revised: 11/09/2020] [Accepted: 11/11/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The incidence of pediatric cancers is rising steadily across the world, along with the challenges in understanding the molecular mechanisms and devising effective therapeutic strategies. Pediatric cancers are presented with diverse molecular characteristics and more distinct subtypes when compared to adult cancers. Recent studies on the genomic landscape of pediatric cancers using next-generation sequencing (NGS) approaches have redefined this field by providing better subtype characterization and novel actionable targets. Since early identification and personalized treatment strategies influence therapeutic outcomes, survival, and quality of life in pediatric cancer patients, the quest for actionable biomarkers is of great value in this field. Fusion genes that are prevalent and recurrent in several pediatric cancers are ideally suited in this context due to their disease-specific occurrence. In this review, we explore the current status of fusion genes in pediatric cancer subtypes and their use as biomarkers for diagnosis and personalized therapy. We discuss the technological advancements made in recent years in NGS sequencing and their impact on fusion detection algorithms that have revolutionized this field. Finally, we also discuss the advantages of pairing liquid biopsy protocols for fusion detection and their eventual use in diagnosis and treatment monitoring.
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