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Zhang QS, Hayes JP, Gondi V, Pollack SM. Immunotherapy and Radiotherapy Combinations for Sarcoma. Semin Radiat Oncol 2024; 34:229-242. [PMID: 38508787 DOI: 10.1016/j.semradonc.2023.12.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/22/2024]
Abstract
Sarcomas are a heterogeneous group of bone and soft tissue tumors. Survival outcomes for advanced (unresectable or metastatic) disease remain poor, so therapeutic improvements are needed. Radiotherapy plays an integral role in the neoadjuvant and adjuvant treatment of localized disease as well as in the treatment of metastatic disease. Combining radiotherapy with immunotherapy to potentiate immunotherapy has been used in a variety of cancers other than sarcoma, and there is opportunity to further investigate combining immunotherapy with radiotherapy to try to improve outcomes in sarcoma. In this review, we describe the diversity of the tumor immune microenvironments for sarcomas and describe the immunomodulatory effects of radiotherapy. We discuss studies on the timing of radiotherapy relative to immunotherapy and studies on the radiotherapy dose and fractionation regimen to be used in combination with immunotherapy. We describe the impact of radiotherapy on the tumor immune microenvironment. We review completed and ongoing clinical trials combining radiotherapy with immunotherapy for sarcoma and propose future directions for studies combining immunotherapy with radiotherapy in the treatment of sarcoma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qian S Zhang
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL
| | - John P Hayes
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL
| | - Vinai Gondi
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL
| | - Seth M Pollack
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL..
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2
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Kawai A, Ishihara M, Nakamura T, Kitano S, Iwata S, Takada K, Emori M, Kato K, Endo M, Matsumoto Y, Kakunaga S, Sato E, Miyahara Y, Morino K, Tanaka S, Takahashi S, Matsuo F, Matsumine A, Kageyama S, Ueda T. Safety and Efficacy of NY-ESO-1 Antigen-Specific T-Cell Receptor Gene-Transduced T Lymphocytes in Patients with Synovial Sarcoma: A Phase I/II Clinical Trial. Clin Cancer Res 2023; 29:5069-5078. [PMID: 37792433 PMCID: PMC10722137 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-23-1456] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2023] [Revised: 09/20/2023] [Accepted: 10/02/2023] [Indexed: 10/05/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE To determine, for patients with advanced or recurrent synovial sarcoma (SS) not suitable for surgical resection and resistant to anthracycline, the safety and efficacy of the infusion of autologous T lymphocytes expressing NY-ESO-1 antigen-specific T-cell receptor (TCR) gene and siRNA to inhibit the expression of endogenous TCR (product code: TBI-1301). PATIENTS AND METHODS Eligible Japanese patients (HLA-A*02:01 or *02:06, NY-ESO-1-positive tumor expression) received cyclophosphamide 750 mg/m2 on days -3 and -2 (induction period) followed by a single dose of 5×109 (±30%) TBI-1301 cells as a divided infusion on days 0 and 1 (treatment period). Primary endpoints were safety-related (phase I) and efficacy-related [objective response rate (ORR) by RECIST v1.1/immune-related RECIST (irRECIST); phase II]. Safety- and efficacy-related secondary endpoints were considered in both phase I/II parts. RESULTS For the full analysis set (N = 8; phase I, n = 3; phase II, n = 5), the ORR was 50.0% (95% confidence interval, 15.7-84.3) with best overall partial response in four of eight patients according to RECIST v1.1/irRECIST. All patients experienced adverse events and seven of eight patients (87.5%) had adverse drug reactions, but no deaths were attributed to adverse events. Cytokine release syndrome occurred in four of eight patients (50.0%), but all cases recovered with prespecified treatment. Immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome, replication-competent retrovirus, and lymphocyte clonality were absent. CONCLUSIONS Adoptive immunotherapy with TBI-1301 to selectively target NY-ESO-1-positive tumor cells appears to be a promising strategy for the treatment of advanced or recurrent SS with acceptable toxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akira Kawai
- Department of Musculoskeletal Oncology, National Cancer Center Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
| | | | - Tomoki Nakamura
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Mie University Graduate School of Medicine, Mie, Japan
| | - Shigehisa Kitano
- Department of Advanced Medical Development, The Cancer Institute Hospital of JFCR, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Shintaro Iwata
- Department of Musculoskeletal Oncology, National Cancer Center Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Kohichi Takada
- Department of Medical Oncology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Makoto Emori
- Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Koji Kato
- Department of Hematology, Oncology and Cardiovascular Medicine, Kyushu University Hospital, Fukuoka, Japan
| | - Makoto Endo
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
| | - Yoshihiro Matsumoto
- Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Shigeki Kakunaga
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, National Hospital Organization Osaka National Hospital, Osaka, Japan
| | - Eiichi Sato
- Department of Pathology, Institute of Medical Science, Tokyo Medical University, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yoshihiro Miyahara
- Department of Personalized Cancer Immunotherapy, Mie University Graduate School of Medicine, Mie, Japan
| | | | | | | | | | - Akihiko Matsumine
- Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Fukui, Fukui, Japan
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3
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Okada S, Muraoka D, Yasui K, Tawara I, Kawamura A, Okamoto S, Mineno J, Seo N, Shiku H, Eguchi S, Ikeda H. T cell receptor gene-modified allogeneic T cells with siRNA for endogenous T cell receptor induce efficient tumor regression without graft-versus-host disease. Cancer Sci 2023; 114:4172-4183. [PMID: 37675556 PMCID: PMC10637063 DOI: 10.1111/cas.15954] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2023] [Revised: 08/04/2023] [Accepted: 08/23/2023] [Indexed: 09/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Adoptive immunotherapy using genetically engineered patient-derived lymphocytes to express tumor-reactive receptors is a promising treatment for malignancy. However, utilization of autologous T cells in this therapy limits the quality of gene-engineered T cells, thereby inhibiting the timely infusion of the cells into patients. In this study, we evaluated the anti-tumor efficacy and the potential to induce graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) in T cell receptor (TCR) gene-engineered allogeneic T cells that downregulate the endogenous TCR and HLA class I molecules with the aim of developing an "off-the-shelf" cell product with expanded application of genetically engineered T cells. We transduced human lymphocytes with a high-affinity TCR specific to the cancer/testis antigen NY-ESO-1 using a novel retrovirus vector with siRNAs specific to the endogenous TCR (siTCR vector). These T cells showed reduced expression of endogenous TCR and minimized reactivity to allogeneic cells in vitro. In non-obese diabetic/SCID/γcnull mice, TCR gene-transduced T cells induced tumor regression without development of GVHD. A lentivirus-based CRISPR/Cas9 system targeting β-2 microglobulin in TCR gene-modified T cells silenced the HLA class I expression and prevented allogeneic CD8+ T cell stimulation without disrupting their anti-tumor capacity. This report is the first demonstration that siTCR technology is effective in preventing GVHD. Adoptive cell therapy with allogeneic T cells engineered with siTCR vector may be useful in developing an "off-the-shelf" therapy for patients with malignancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Satomi Okada
- Department of OncologyNagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical SciencesNagasakiJapan
- Department of SurgeryNagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical SciencesNagasakiJapan
| | - Daisuke Muraoka
- Department of OncologyNagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical SciencesNagasakiJapan
- Division of Translational OncoimmunologyAichi Cancer Center Research InstituteNagoyaJapan
| | - Kiyoshi Yasui
- Department of OncologyNagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical SciencesNagasakiJapan
| | - Isao Tawara
- Department of Hematology and OncologyMie University Graduate School of MedicineMieJapan
| | | | | | | | - Naohiro Seo
- Department of Personalized Cancer ImmunotherapyMie University Graduate School of MedicineMieJapan
- Department of Bioengineering, School of EngineeringThe University of TokyoTokyoJapan
| | - Hiroshi Shiku
- Department of Personalized Cancer ImmunotherapyMie University Graduate School of MedicineMieJapan
| | - Susumu Eguchi
- Department of SurgeryNagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical SciencesNagasakiJapan
| | - Hiroaki Ikeda
- Department of OncologyNagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical SciencesNagasakiJapan
- Leading Medical Research Core UnitNagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical SciencesNagasakiJapan
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4
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Jeong S, Afroz S, Kang D, Noh J, Suh J, Kim JH, You HJ, Kang HG, Kim YJ, Kim JH. Sarcoma Immunotherapy: Confronting Present Hurdles and Unveiling Upcoming Opportunities. Mol Cells 2023; 46:579-588. [PMID: 37853684 PMCID: PMC10590708 DOI: 10.14348/molcells.2023.0079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2023] [Revised: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 08/10/2023] [Indexed: 10/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Sarcomas are rare and heterogeneous mesenchymal neoplasms originating from the bone or soft tissues, which pose significant treatment challenges. The current standard treatment for sarcomas consists of surgical resection, often combined with chemo- and radiotherapy; however, local recurrence and metastasis remain significant concerns. Although immunotherapy has demonstrated promise in improving long-term survival rates for certain cancers, sarcomas are generally considered to be relatively less immunogenic than other tumors, presenting substantial challenges for effective immunotherapy. In this review, we examine the possible opportunities for sarcoma immunotherapy, noting cancer testis antigens expressed in sarcomas. We then cover the current status of immunotherapies in sarcomas, including progress in cancer vaccines, immune checkpoint inhibitors, and adoptive cellular therapy and their potential in combating these tumors. Furthermore, we discuss the limitations of immunotherapies in sarcomas, including a low tumor mutation burden and immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, and explore potential strategies to tackle the immunosuppressive barriers in therapeutic interventions, shedding light on the development of effective and personalized treatments for sarcomas. Overall, this review provides a comprehensive overview of the current status and potential of immunotherapies in sarcoma treatment, highlighting the challenges and opportunities for developing effective therapies to improve the outcomes of patients with these rare malignancies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sehan Jeong
- Center for RNA Research, Institute for Basic Science, Seoul 08826, Korea
- Department of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Korea
| | - Sharmin Afroz
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Ewha Womans University College of Medicine, Seoul 07985, Korea
| | - Donghyun Kang
- Center for RNA Research, Institute for Basic Science, Seoul 08826, Korea
- Department of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Korea
| | - Jeonghwan Noh
- Center for RNA Research, Institute for Basic Science, Seoul 08826, Korea
- Department of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Korea
| | - Jooyeon Suh
- Center for RNA Research, Institute for Basic Science, Seoul 08826, Korea
- Department of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Korea
| | - June Hyuk Kim
- Orthopaedic Oncology Clinic, Center for Rare Cancer, Research Institute and Hospital, Graduate School of Cancer Science and Policy, National Cancer Center, Goyang 10408, Korea
| | - Hye Jin You
- Cancer Microenvironment Branch, Division of Cancer Biology, Research Institute, National Cancer Center, Goyang 10408, Korea
| | - Hyun Guy Kang
- Orthopaedic Oncology Clinic, Center for Rare Cancer, Research Institute and Hospital, Graduate School of Cancer Science and Policy, National Cancer Center, Goyang 10408, Korea
| | - Yi-Jun Kim
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Ewha Womans University College of Medicine, Seoul 07985, Korea
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Ewha Womans University College of Medicine, Seoul 07985, Korea
| | - Jin-Hong Kim
- Center for RNA Research, Institute for Basic Science, Seoul 08826, Korea
- Department of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Korea
- Bio-MAX Institute, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Korea
- Institute of Green-Bio Science and Technology, Seoul National University, Pyeongchang 25354, Korea
- Interdisciplinary Program in Bioinformatics, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Korea
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5
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Zhou H, Ma Y, Liu F, Li B, Qiao D, Ren P, Wang M. Current advances in cancer vaccines targeting NY-ESO-1 for solid cancer treatment. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1255799. [PMID: 37731507 PMCID: PMC10508181 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1255799] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2023] [Accepted: 08/22/2023] [Indexed: 09/22/2023] Open
Abstract
New York-esophageal cancer 1 (NY-ESO-1) belongs to the cancer testis antigen (CTA) family, and has been identified as one of the most immunogenic tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) among the family members. Given its ability to trigger spontaneous humoral and cellular immune response and restricted expression, NY-ESO-1 has emerged as one of the most promising targets for cancer immunotherapy. Cancer vaccines, an important element of cancer immunotherapy, function by presenting an exogenous source of TAA proteins, peptides, and antigenic epitopes to CD4+ T cells via major histocompatibility complex class II (MHC-II) and to CD8+ T cells via major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC-I). These mechanisms further enhance the immune response against TAAs mediated by cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) and helper T cells. NY-ESO-1-based cancer vaccines have a history of nearly two decades, starting from the first clinical trial conducted in 2003. The current cancer vaccines targeting NY-ESO-1 have various types, including Dendritic cells (DC)-based vaccines, peptide vaccines, protein vaccines, viral vaccines, bacterial vaccines, therapeutic whole-tumor cell vaccines, DNA vaccines and mRNA vaccines, which exhibit their respective benefits and obstacles in the development and application. Here, we summarized the current advances in cancer vaccines targeting NY-ESO-1 for solid cancer treatment, aiming to provide perspectives for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hong Zhou
- Center for Energy Metabolism and Reproduction, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China
- Department of Research and Development, Shenzhen Innovation Immunotechnology Co., Ltd, Shenzhen, China
- Department of Research and Development, Shenzhen Institute for Innovation and Translational Medicine, Shenzhen, China
| | - Yipeng Ma
- Department of Research and Development, Shenzhen Innovation Immunotechnology Co., Ltd, Shenzhen, China
- Department of Research and Development, Shenzhen Institute for Innovation and Translational Medicine, Shenzhen, China
| | - Fenglan Liu
- Department of Research and Development, Shenzhen Innovation Immunotechnology Co., Ltd, Shenzhen, China
- Department of Research and Development, Shenzhen Institute for Innovation and Translational Medicine, Shenzhen, China
| | - Bin Li
- Department of Research and Development, Shenzhen Innovation Immunotechnology Co., Ltd, Shenzhen, China
- Department of Research and Development, Shenzhen Institute for Innovation and Translational Medicine, Shenzhen, China
| | - Dongjuan Qiao
- Department of Research and Development, Shenzhen Innovation Immunotechnology Co., Ltd, Shenzhen, China
- Department of Research and Development, Shenzhen Institute for Innovation and Translational Medicine, Shenzhen, China
| | - Peigen Ren
- Center for Energy Metabolism and Reproduction, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Mingjun Wang
- Department of Research and Development, Shenzhen Innovation Immunotechnology Co., Ltd, Shenzhen, China
- Department of Research and Development, Shenzhen Institute for Innovation and Translational Medicine, Shenzhen, China
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6
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Al-Marayaty R, Pollack SM. Pushing forward in sarcoma with a new TCR targeting NY-ESO-1. Cell Rep Med 2023; 4:101159. [PMID: 37586326 PMCID: PMC10439265 DOI: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2023.101159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2023] [Revised: 07/19/2023] [Accepted: 07/20/2023] [Indexed: 08/18/2023]
Abstract
A phase 1 trial demonstrating the safety and efficacy of a novel NY-ESO-1-specific TCR-T cells by Pan et al.1 is a major step forward for adoptive T cell therapy in the clinical practice of advanced soft tissue sarcomas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rusul Al-Marayaty
- Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Seth M Pollack
- Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Chicago, IL, USA.
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7
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Landuzzi L, Manara MC, Pazzaglia L, Lollini PL, Scotlandi K. Innovative Breakthroughs for the Treatment of Advanced and Metastatic Synovial Sarcoma. Cancers (Basel) 2023; 15:3887. [PMID: 37568703 PMCID: PMC10416854 DOI: 10.3390/cancers15153887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2023] [Revised: 07/25/2023] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 08/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Synovial sarcoma (SyS) is a rare aggressive soft tissue sarcoma carrying the chromosomal translocation t(X;18), encoding the fusion transcript SS18::SSX. The fusion oncoprotein interacts with both BAF enhancer complexes and polycomb repressor complexes, resulting in genome-wide epigenetic perturbations and a unique altered genetic signature. Over 80% of the patients are initially diagnosed with localized disease and have a 5-year survival rate of 70-80%, but metastatic relapse occurs in 50% of the cases. Advanced, unresectable, or metastatic disease has a 5-year survival rate below 10%, representing a critical issue. This review summarizes the molecular mechanisms behind SyS and illustrates current treatments in front line, second line, and beyond settings. We analyze the use of immune check point inhibitors (ICI) in SyS that do not behave as an ICI-sensitive tumor, claiming the need for predictive genetic signatures and tumor immune microenvironment biomarkers. We highlight the clinical translation of innovative technologies, such as proteolysis targeting chimera (PROTAC) protein degraders or adoptive transfer of engineered immune cells. Adoptive cell transfer of engineered T-cell receptor cells targeting selected cancer/testis antigens has shown promising results against metastatic SyS in early clinical trials and further improvements are awaited from refinements involving immune cell engineering and tumor immune microenvironment enhancement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorena Landuzzi
- Experimental Oncology Laboratory, IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, 40136 Bologna, Italy; (M.C.M.); (L.P.)
| | - Maria Cristina Manara
- Experimental Oncology Laboratory, IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, 40136 Bologna, Italy; (M.C.M.); (L.P.)
| | - Laura Pazzaglia
- Experimental Oncology Laboratory, IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, 40136 Bologna, Italy; (M.C.M.); (L.P.)
| | - Pier-Luigi Lollini
- Laboratory of Immunology and Biology of Metastasis, Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences (DIMEC), University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy;
| | - Katia Scotlandi
- Experimental Oncology Laboratory, IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, 40136 Bologna, Italy; (M.C.M.); (L.P.)
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8
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Cui W, Liao YJ, Su P, Yang H, Zhang N. Synovial sarcoma of female urethra: a case report and review of the literature. Diagn Pathol 2023; 18:78. [PMID: 37400856 DOI: 10.1186/s13000-023-01367-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2023] [Accepted: 06/20/2023] [Indexed: 07/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Synovial sarcoma (SS) is a rare malignant soft tissue sarcoma that originates from primitive mesenchymal cells with epithelial differentiation potential. It is most commonly found in the limbs and trunk. In the urinary system, it is mostly found in the kidneys. However, synovial sarcomas originating from the external urethra are extremely rare. Only one case of synovial sarcoma arising from the vulvar urethral orifice has been reported previously, and we report a second case of synovial sarcoma of the urethral orifice. In addition, a total of 16 vulvar synovial sarcomas were identified and the literature are analyzed in this report reviews from 1966 to the present.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Cui
- Department of Urology, The Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, No.149 Dalian Road, Zunyi, Guizhou, China
| | - Yuan-Jian Liao
- Department of Urology, The Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, No.149 Dalian Road, Zunyi, Guizhou, China
| | - Peng Su
- Department of Urology, The Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, No.149 Dalian Road, Zunyi, Guizhou, China
| | - Hua Yang
- Department of Pathology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi, Guizhou, China.
| | - Neng Zhang
- Department of Urology, The Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, No.149 Dalian Road, Zunyi, Guizhou, China.
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Seong G, D’Angelo SP. New therapeutics for soft tissue sarcomas: Overview of current immunotherapy and future directions of soft tissue sarcomas. Front Oncol 2023; 13:1150765. [PMID: 37007160 PMCID: PMC10052453 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1150765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2023] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 03/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Soft tissue sarcoma is a rare and aggressive disease with a 40 to 50% metastasis rate. The limited efficacy of traditional approaches with surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy has prompted research in novel immunotherapy for soft tissue sarcoma. Immune checkpoint inhibitors such as anti-CTLA-4 and PD-1 therapies in STS have demonstrated histologic-specific responses. Some combinations of immunotherapy with chemotherapy, TKI, and radiation were effective. STS is considered a ‘cold’, non-inflamed tumor. Adoptive cell therapies are actively investigated in STS to enhance immune response. Genetically modified T-cell receptor therapy targeting cancer testis antigens such as NY-ESO-1 and MAGE-A4 demonstrated durable responses, especially in synovial sarcoma. Two early HER2-CAR T-cell trials have achieved stable disease in some patients. In the future, CAR-T cell therapies will find more specific targets in STS with a reliable response. Early recognition of T-cell induced cytokine release syndrome is crucial, which can be alleviated by immunosuppression such as steroids. Further understanding of the immune subtypes and biomarkers will promote the advancement of soft tissue sarcoma treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gyuhee Seong
- Department of Medicine, SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University, Brooklyn, NY, United States
| | - Sandra P. D’Angelo
- Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, United States
- *Correspondence: Sandra P. D’Angelo,
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10
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Fuchs JR, Schulte BC, Fuchs JW, Agulnik M. Emerging targeted and cellular therapies in the treatment of advanced and metastatic synovial sarcoma. Front Oncol 2023; 13:1123464. [PMID: 36761952 PMCID: PMC9905840 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1123464] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2022] [Accepted: 01/09/2023] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Synovial sarcoma is a soft tissue sarcoma accounting for approximately 1,000 cases per year in the United States. Currently, standard treatment of advanced and metastatic synovial sarcoma is anthracycline-based chemotherapy. While advanced synovial sarcoma is more responsive to chemotherapy compared to other soft tissue sarcomas, survival rates are poor, with a median survival time of less than 18 months. Enhanced understanding of tumor antigen expression and molecular mechanisms behind synovial sarcoma provide potential targets for treatment. Adoptive Cell Transfer using engineered T-cell receptors is in clinical trials for treatment of synovial sarcoma, specifically targeting New York esophageal squamous cell carcinoma-1 (NY-ESO-1), preferentially expressed antigen in melanoma (PRAME), and melanoma antigen-A4 (MAGE-A4). In this review, we explore the opportunities and challenges of these treatments. We also describe artificial adjuvant vector cells (aAVCs) and BRD9 inhibitors, two additional potential targets for treatment of advanced synovial sarcoma. This review demonstrates the progress that has been made in treatment of synovial sarcoma and highlights the future study and qualification needed to implement these technologies as standard of care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph R. Fuchs
- Department of Medicine, McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Brian C. Schulte
- Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Jeffrey W. Fuchs
- Department of Medicine, McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Mark Agulnik
- Medical Oncology and Therapeutics Research, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA, United States,*Correspondence: Mark Agulnik,
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11
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Crombé A, Roulleau‐Dugage M, Italiano A. The diagnosis, classification, and treatment of sarcoma in this era of artificial intelligence and immunotherapy. CANCER COMMUNICATIONS (LONDON, ENGLAND) 2022; 42:1288-1313. [PMID: 36260064 PMCID: PMC9759765 DOI: 10.1002/cac2.12373] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2022] [Revised: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 10/08/2022] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Soft-tissue sarcomas (STS) represent a group of rare and heterogeneous tumors associated with several challenges, including incorrect or late diagnosis, the lack of clinical expertise, and limited therapeutic options. Digital pathology and radiomics represent transformative technologies that appear promising for improving the accuracy of cancer diagnosis, characterization and monitoring. Herein, we review the potential role of the application of digital pathology and radiomics in managing patients with STS. We have particularly described the main results and the limits of the studies using radiomics to refine diagnosis or predict the outcome of patients with soft-tissue sarcomas. We also discussed the current limitation of implementing radiomics in routine settings. Standard management approaches for STS have not improved since the early 1970s. Immunotherapy has revolutionized cancer treatment; nonetheless, immuno-oncology agents have not yet been approved for patients with STS. However, several lines of evidence indicate that immunotherapy may represent an efficient therapeutic strategy for this group of diseases. Thus, we emphasized the remarkable potential of immunotherapy in sarcoma treatment by focusing on recent data regarding the immune landscape of these tumors. We have particularly emphasized the fact that the development of immunotherapy for sarcomas is not an aspect of histology (except for alveolar soft-part sarcoma) but rather that of the tumor microenvironment. Future studies investigating immunotherapy strategies in sarcomas should incorporate at least the presence of tertiary lymphoid structures as a stratification factor in their design, besides including a strong translational program that will allow for a better understanding of the determinants involved in sensitivity and treatment resistance to immune-oncology agents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amandine Crombé
- Department of ImagingInstitut BergoniéBordeauxNouvelle‐AquitaineF‐33076France,Faculty of MedicineUniversity of BordeauxBordeauxNouvelle‐AquitaineF‐33000France
| | | | - Antoine Italiano
- Faculty of MedicineUniversity of BordeauxBordeauxNouvelle‐AquitaineF‐33000France,Early Phase Trials and Sarcoma UnitInstitut BergoniéBordeauxNouvelle‐AquitaineF‐33076France
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12
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Song Z, Lu L, Gao Z, Zhou Q, Wang Z, Sun L, Zhou Y. Immunotherapy for liposarcoma: emerging opportunities and challenges. Future Oncol 2022; 18:3449-3461. [PMID: 36214331 DOI: 10.2217/fon-2021-1549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Liposarcoma (LPS) is a rare adipocyte-derived malignancy accounting for 20% of all soft tissue sarcomas. Although surgery and chemotherapy are the standard treatment for LPS, the large tumor burden and high recurrence rate make it difficult to treat, especially when the disease progresses. With the progress of immunotherapies in other tumors such as melanoma and lung cancer, interest has been risen in exploring immunotherapy for LPS. This review discusses the understanding of the tumor microenvironment of LPS; the current status of immunotherapy in LPS, including immune checkpoint inhibitors, adoptive cell therapy, cancer vaccines, oncolytic viruses and combination therapies; and the future directions for exploiting strategies to make the effect of immunotherapy stronger and more durable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhengqing Song
- Department of Medical Oncology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Lili Lu
- Biotherapy Centre, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Zixu Gao
- Department of Plastic Surgery, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Qiwen Zhou
- Department of Medical Oncology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Zhiming Wang
- Department of Medical Oncology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Lei Sun
- Department of Medical Oncology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China.,Institute of Developmental Biology and Molecular Medicine, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Yuhong Zhou
- Department of Medical Oncology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China.,Biotherapy Centre, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
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13
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Thirasastr P, Brahmi M, Dufresne A, Somaiah N, Blay JY. New Drug Approvals for Sarcoma in the Last 5 Years. Surg Oncol Clin N Am 2022; 31:361-380. [PMID: 35715139 DOI: 10.1016/j.soc.2022.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Sarcoma and locally aggressive connective tissue tumors are a complex group of diseases with a growing number of histotypes in the most recent WHO classification. Most of these tumors are rare (incidence <6/105/y) or ultrarare (<1/106/y). Despite their rarity, sarcomas are often good models for the development of personalized medicine, and a large number of new clinical trials in select histotypes and molecular subsets were reported during the past 5 years, leading to a faster rate of new drug approvals. We analyzed the published literature and the abstracts reported in major congresses dedicated to sarcoma and connective tissue tumor management in the last 5 years. Several targeted therapies, cytotoxic treatments, and immunotherapies have demonstrated activity in dedicated histologic and molecular subtypes of sarcomas. The majority of the studies for ultrarare entities are uncontrolled studies, as a consequence of the rarity of histotypes, but randomized controlled trials were available in the less rare histotypes. Most successful trials were based on biomarker selection, which were often driver molecular alterations, while a large number of ongoing research programs aim to identify biomarkers in parallel to new drug development. Availability of the new agents varies across countries. This article describes the new drugs that made it through to the finish line and new agents with promising activity that are in later stages of investigation in the large family of malignant connective tissue tumors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Prapassorn Thirasastr
- University of Texas M D Anderson Cancer Center, 1400 Holcombe Blvd., Unit 450, Houston, TX-77030, USA
| | - Mehdi Brahmi
- CLCC Léon Bérard, 28 Rue Laënnec, 69373 LYON CEDEX 8, FRANCE
| | | | - Neeta Somaiah
- University of Texas M D Anderson Cancer Center, 1400 Holcombe Blvd., Unit 450, Houston, TX-77030, USA.
| | - Jean-Yves Blay
- CLCC Léon Bérard, 28 Rue Laënnec, 69373 LYON CEDEX 8, FRANCE.
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14
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Moreno Tellez C, Leyfman Y, D'Angelo SP, Wilky BA, Dufresne A. Immunotherapy in Sarcoma: Where Do Things Stand? Surg Oncol Clin N Am 2022; 31:381-397. [PMID: 35715140 DOI: 10.1016/j.soc.2022.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Early experiences with modern immunotherapy have been disappointing in trials of unselected sarcoma subtypes. However, remarkable efficacy has been observed with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in a subset of patients, with the most promising outcomes to date in alveolar soft part sarcoma, cutaneous angiosarcoma, undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma (UPS), and dedifferentiated liposarcoma (dLPS). Adoptive cellular therapies targeting cancer testis antigens have shown promising activity, but only synovial sarcoma (SS) and myxoid/round cell liposarcomas reliably express these targets. The majority of sarcomas are immunologically "cold" with sparse immune infiltration, which may explain the poor response to immunotherapy. Current immunotherapy trials for sarcomas explore combination therapies with checkpoint inhibitors to overcome immune evasion and novel targets in adoptive cellular therapies. The role of tertiary lymphoid structures, PD-L1 expression, tumor mutational burden, microsatellite instability, and tumor lymphocytes as biomarkers for response are areas of active investigation. In this review, we highlight prior and ongoing clinical efforts to improve outcomes with immunotherapy and discuss the current state of understanding for biomarkers to select patients most likely to benefit from this approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cristiam Moreno Tellez
- Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, 12801 E 17th Avenue, Mailstop 8117, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Yan Leyfman
- Department of Hematology Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, 1468 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Sandra P D'Angelo
- Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Weill Cornell Medical College, 300 East 66th Street, New York, NY 10065, USA
| | - Breelyn A Wilky
- Department of Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, 12801 E 17th Avenue, Mailstop 8117, Aurora, CO 80045, USA.
| | - Armelle Dufresne
- Department of Medical Oncology, Centre Leon Berard, 28 rue Laennec, Lyon 69008, France
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15
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Banks LB, D'Angelo SP. The Role of Immunotherapy in the Management of Soft Tissue Sarcomas: Current Landscape and Future Outlook. J Natl Compr Canc Netw 2022; 20:834-844. [PMID: 35830892 DOI: 10.6004/jnccn.2022.7027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2022] [Accepted: 05/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Soft tissue sarcomas (STS) are a subset of sarcoma, a rare group of heterogeneous malignancies of mesenchymal origin. Current standard of care involves surgical resection with systemic chemotherapy used to treat high-risk localized and metastatic disease. Though classically thought to be immunologically quiet tumors, STS interact with the immune system, undergoing immunoediting that alters tumor immunogenicity and the tumor microenvironment. Recent advances with immune checkpoint inhibition have led to clinical trials exploring the efficacy of immunotherapy in treating STS. Results from these trials point to histologic subtype-specific clinical activity of immune checkpoint blockade. In addition, combinatorial strategies adding immune checkpoint inhibition to local or systemic therapies for STS have further increased their efficacy. Targeted immunotherapies using engineered T-cell receptor-based approaches also show increasing promise as treatment options for some patients with STS. Adoptive transfer of autologous T cells targeting NY-ESO-1 and MAGE-A4 have high response rates in sarcomas expressing these antigens, although recurrence is often seen in responding patients. Future work must focus on identifying primary and acquired mechanisms of resistance to these therapies, and extend T-cell receptor discovery to other tumor-associated antigens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren B Banks
- 1Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
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16
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Hindi N, Haas RL. Management of Synovial Sarcoma and Myxoid Liposarcoma. Surg Oncol Clin N Am 2022; 31:547-558. [PMID: 35715149 DOI: 10.1016/j.soc.2022.03.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Synovial sarcoma and myxoid liposarcoma are translocation-related sarcomas, with a high risk of developing distant metastasis, which often affect young patients and which are sensitive to chemo and radiotherapy. Surgery is the mainstay of therapy in localized disease. In these entities, perioperative radiotherapy is frequently administered, and chemotherapy is evaluated in patients with high-risk limb/trunk wall tumors in which an advantage in overall survival has been shown in the latest clinical trials. In the advanced setting, new strategies, such as cellular therapy are being developed in these histologic types, with promising, although still preliminary, results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nadia Hindi
- Department of Oncology, Fundación Jimenez Diaz University Hospital and Hospital General de Villalba, Madrid, Spain; Health Research Institute Fundación Jimenez Diaz, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid (IIS-FJD, UAM), Madrid, Spain.
| | - Rick L Haas
- Department of Radiotherapy at the Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Department of Radiotherapy at the Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
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17
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Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW To summarize the development of modified T-cell therapies in sarcomas and discuss relevant published and ongoing clinical trials to date. RECENT FINDINGS Numerous clinical trials are underway evaluating tumor-specific chimeric antigen receptor T cells and high affinity T-cell receptor (TCR)-transduced T cells in sarcomas. Notably, translocation-dependent synovial sarcoma and myxoid/round cell liposarcoma are the subject of several phase II trials evaluating TCRs targeting cancer testis antigens New York esophageal squamous cell carcinoma-1 (NY-ESO-1) and melanoma antigen-A4 (MAGE A4), and response rates of up to 60% have been observed for NY-ESO-1 directed, modified T cells in synovial sarcoma. Challenges posed by modified T-cell therapy include limitations conferred by HLA-restriction, non-immunogenic tumor microenvironments (TME), aggressive lymphodepletion and immune-mediated toxicities restricting coinfusion of cytokines. SUMMARY Cellular therapy to augment the adaptive immune response through delivery of modified T cells is an area of novel therapeutic development in sarcomas where a reliably expressed, ubiquitous target antigen can be identified. Therapeutic tools to improve the specificity, signaling, proliferation and persistence of modified TCRs and augment clinical responses through safe manipulation of the sarcoma TME will be necessary to harness the full potential of this approach.
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18
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Raj SKS, Routh ED, Chou JW, Votanopoulos KI, Triozzi PL, Miller LD. Prognostic attributes of immune signatures in soft tissue sarcomas show differential dependencies on tumor mutational burden. Cancer 2022; 128:3254-3264. [PMID: 35767280 PMCID: PMC9544607 DOI: 10.1002/cncr.34333] [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: 12/06/2021] [Revised: 03/14/2022] [Accepted: 04/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Background Cellular and intrinsic markers of sarcoma immunogenicity are poorly understood. To gain insight into whether tumor–immune interactions correlate with clinical aggressiveness, the authors examined the prognostic significance of immune gene signatures in combination with tumor mutational burden (TMB) and cancer–testis antigen (CTA) expression. Methods RNA sequencing and clinical data of 259 soft tissue sarcomas from The Cancer Genome Atlas project were used to investigate associations between published immune gene signatures and patient overall survival (OS) in the contexts of TMB, as computed from whole‐exome sequencing data, and CTA gene expression. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression models and log‐rank tests were used to assess survival associations. Results Immune signature scores that reflected in part the intratumoral abundance of cytotoxic T cells showed significant positive associations with OS. However, the prognostic power of the T‐cell signatures was highly dependent on TMB‐high status, consistent with protective effects of tumor‐infiltrating T cells in tumors with elevated antigenicity. In TMB‐low tumors, a signature of infiltrating plasma B cells was significantly and positively associated with OS, independent of T‐cell signature status. Although tumor subtypes based on differential expression patterns of CTA genes showed different survival associations within leiomyosarcoma and myxofibrosarcoma histologies, neither CTA nor histologic subtype interacted with the T‐cell–survival association. Conclusions Signatures of T‐cell and plasma B‐cell infiltrates were associated with a survival benefit in soft tissue sarcomas. TMB, but not CTA expression, influenced the prognostic power of T‐cell–associated, but not plasma B‐cell–associated, survival. Lay summary Clinical data and RNA analysis of 259 soft tissue sarcomas from The Cancer Genome Atlas project were used to investigate associations between five published gene immune cell expression signatures and survival in the context of tumor mutations. Activated T cells had a significant positive association with patient survival. Although high tumor mutation burden was associated with good survival, the prognostic power of T‐cell signatures was highly dependent on tumor mutational status, consistent with protective effects of tumor‐infiltrating T cells in tumors with high levels of antigens. In low tumor mutation‐bearing tumors, plasma B cells were positively associated with survival.
Signatures of T‐cell and plasma B‐cell infiltrates are associated with survival benefit in soft tissue sarcomas, and tumor mutational burden (TMB), but not cancer–testis antigen expression, is a tumor‐intrinsic determinant of T‐cell–associated survival, but not plasma B‐cell–associated survival. Although high TMB trended toward an association with good survival, the prognostic power of the T‐cell signatures was highly dependent on TMB‐high status, consistent with the protective effects of tumor‐infiltrating T cells in tumors with elevated antigenicity; however, in TMB‐low tumors, a signature of infiltrating plasma B cells was positively associated with overall survival, independent of T‐cell signature status.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shailaja K S Raj
- Section of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, Winston Salem, North Carolina, USA
| | - Eric D Routh
- Department of Cancer Biology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston Salem, North Carolina, USA.,Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Jeff W Chou
- Department of Biostatistics and Data Science, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston Salem, North Carolina, USA
| | - Konstantinos I Votanopoulos
- Department of Surgery, Division of Surgical Oncology, Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, Winston Salem, North Carolina, USA.,Wake Forest Baptist Comprehensive Cancer Center, Winston Salem, North Carolina, USA
| | - Pierre L Triozzi
- Section of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, Winston Salem, North Carolina, USA.,Wake Forest Baptist Comprehensive Cancer Center, Winston Salem, North Carolina, USA
| | - Lance D Miller
- Department of Cancer Biology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston Salem, North Carolina, USA.,Wake Forest Baptist Comprehensive Cancer Center, Winston Salem, North Carolina, USA
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19
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Papanikolaou NA, Hytiroglou P, Pantelidou P, Papavassiliou AG, Old LL. Systems-Level Mapping of Cancer Testis Antigen 1b/a to Sarcoma Pathways Identifies Activated Ran Binding-2 E3 SUMO-Protein Ligase and Transducin-Like Enhancer Protein 1. Front Genet 2022; 13:834445. [PMID: 35664317 PMCID: PMC9158115 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2022.834445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2022] [Accepted: 03/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Here we describe the identification of genes and their encoded proteins that are expressed in advanced grade tumors by reconstruction of a sarcoma cancer testis gene 1b/a (catg1b/a) network. CTAG1B/A is an ortholog of the yeast/Drosophila transcription factor Pcc1p, and a member of the KEOPS transcription complex. It has been implicated in telomere maintenance and transcriptional regulation through association with chromatin remodeling factors and is only expressed during adult testis germ cell differentiation. Ctag1b/a is re-activated in synovial sarcomas and myxoid liposarcomas but not in differentiated liposarcomas. We mapped CTAG1B/A protein to sarcoma transcription pathways with gene set expression analysis (GSEA) and using independent samples, we immunohistochemically identified expression of at least two network neighbors, RANBP2, and TLE1, thus validating our approach. This work demonstrates that mapping unknown genes to functional pathways by network re-construction is a powerful tool that can be used to identify candidate oncoproteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikolaos A. Papanikolaou
- Laboratory of Biological Chemistry, Department of Medicine, Section of Biological Sciences and Preventive Medicine, School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Macedonia, Greece
- *Correspondence: Nikolaos A. Papanikolaou,
| | - Prodromos Hytiroglou
- Department of Medicine, Laboratory of Pathology, School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Macedonia, Greece
| | - Pavlina Pantelidou
- Department of Medicine, Laboratory of Pathology, School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Macedonia, Greece
| | - Athanasios G. Papavassiliou
- Department of Biological Chemistry, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
| | - Lloyd L. Old
- Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Memorial Sloan Kettering Institute for Cancer Research, New York City, NY, United States
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20
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Immunologic Gene Signature Analysis Correlates Myeloid Cells and M2 Macrophages with Time to Trabectedin Failure in Sarcoma Patients. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14051290. [PMID: 35267598 PMCID: PMC8909887 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14051290] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2022] [Revised: 02/21/2022] [Accepted: 02/26/2022] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Patients with metastatic soft tissue sarcoma (STS) have a poor prognosis and few available systemic treatment options. Trabectedin is currently being investigated as a potential adjunct to immunotherapy as it has been previously shown to kill tumor-associated macrophages. In this retrospective study, we sought to identify biomarkers that would be relevant to trials combining trabectedin with immunotherapy. We performed a single-center retrospective study of sarcoma patients treated with trabectedin with long-term follow-up. Multiplex gene expression analysis using the NanoString platform was assessed, and an exploratory analysis using the lasso-penalized Cox regression and kernel association test for survival (MiRKAT-S) methods investigated tumor-associated immune cells and correlated their gene signatures to patient survival. In total, 147 sarcoma patients treated with trabectedin were analyzed, with a mean follow-up time of 5 years. Patients with fewer prior chemotherapy regimens were more likely to stay on trabectedin longer (pairwise correlation = -0.17, p = 0.04). At 5 years, increased PD-L1 expression corresponded to worse outcomes (HR = 1.87, p = 0.04, q = 0.199). Additionally, six immunologic gene signatures were associated with up to 7-year survival by MiRKAT-S, notably myeloid-derived suppressor cells (p = 0.023, q = 0.058) and M2 macrophages (p = 0.03, q = 0.058). We found that the number of chemotherapy regimens prior to trabectedin negatively correlated with the number of trabectedin cycles received, suggesting that patients may benefit from receiving trabectedin earlier in their therapy course. The correlation of trabectedin outcomes with immune cell infiltrates supports the hypothesis that trabectedin may function as an immune modulator and supports ongoing efforts to study trabectedin in combination with immunotherapy. Furthermore, tumors with an immunosuppressive microenvironment characterized by macrophage infiltration and high PD-L1 expression were less likely to benefit from trabectedin, which could guide clinicians in future treatment decisions.
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21
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Kerrison WGJ, Lee ATJ, Thway K, Jones RL, Huang PH. Current Status and Future Directions of Immunotherapies in Soft Tissue Sarcomas. Biomedicines 2022; 10:573. [PMID: 35327375 PMCID: PMC8945421 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines10030573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2022] [Revised: 02/22/2022] [Accepted: 02/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Immunotherapy in soft tissue sarcoma (STS) has experienced a surge of interest in the past decade, contributing to an expanding number of therapeutic options for this extremely heterogenous group of rare malignancies. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (CPIs) targeting the PD-1 and CTLA-4 axes have demonstrated promising responses in a select number of STS subtypes, including rarer subtypes, such as alveolar soft part sarcoma, SWI/SNF-deficient sarcomas, clear cell sarcoma, and angiosarcoma. Multiple pan-subtype sarcoma trials have facilitated the study of possible predictive biomarkers of the CPI response. It has also become apparent that certain therapies, when combined with CPIs, can enhance response rates, although the specific mechanisms of this possible synergy remain unconfirmed in STS. In addition to CPIs, several other immune targeting agents, including anti-tumour-associated macrophage and antigen-directed therapies, are now under assessment in STS with promising efficacy in some subtypes. In this article, we review the state of the art in immunotherapy in STS, highlighting the pre-clinical and clinical data available for this promising therapeutic strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- William G. J. Kerrison
- Division of Molecular Pathology, The Institute of Cancer Research, Sutton SM2 5NG, UK; (W.G.J.K.); (K.T.)
| | | | - Khin Thway
- Division of Molecular Pathology, The Institute of Cancer Research, Sutton SM2 5NG, UK; (W.G.J.K.); (K.T.)
- The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, London SW3 6JJ, UK;
| | - Robin L. Jones
- The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, London SW3 6JJ, UK;
- Division of Clinical Studies, The Institute of Cancer Research, London SW3 6JB, UK
| | - Paul H. Huang
- Division of Molecular Pathology, The Institute of Cancer Research, Sutton SM2 5NG, UK; (W.G.J.K.); (K.T.)
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22
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Fujii SI, Yamasaki S, Hanada K, Ueda S, Kawamura M, Shimizu K. Cancer immunotherapy using artificial adjuvant vector cells to deliver NY-ESO-1 antigen to dendritic cells in situ. Cancer Sci 2021; 113:864-874. [PMID: 34971473 PMCID: PMC8898705 DOI: 10.1111/cas.15259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2021] [Revised: 12/19/2021] [Accepted: 12/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
NY‐ESO‐1 is a cancer/testis antigen expressed in various cancer types. However, the induction of NY‐ESO‐1‐specific CTLs through vaccines is somewhat difficult. Thus, we developed a new type of artificial adjuvant vector cell (aAVC‐NY‐ESO‐1) expressing a CD1d‐NKT cell ligand complex and a tumor‐associated antigen, NY‐ESO‐1. First, we determined the activation of invariant natural killer T (iNKT) and natural killer (NK) cell responses by aAVC‐NY‐ESO‐1. We then showed that the NY‐ESO‐1‐specific CTL response was successfully elicited through aAVC‐NY‐ESO‐1 therapy. After injection of aAVC‐NY‐ESO‐1, we found that dendritic cells (DCs) in situ expressed high levels of costimulatory molecules and produced interleukn‐12 (IL‐12), indicating that DCs undergo maturation in vivo. Furthermore, the NY‐ESO‐1 antigen from aAVC‐NY‐ESO‐1 was delivered to the DCs in vivo, and it was presented on MHC class I molecules. The cross‐presentation of the NY‐ESO‐1 antigen was absent in conventional DC‐deficient mice, suggesting a host DC‐mediated CTL response. Thus, this strategy helps generate sufficient CD8+ NY‐ESO‐1‐specific CTLs along with iNKT and NK cell activation, resulting in a strong antitumor effect. Furthermore, we established a human DC‐transferred NOD/Shi‐scid/IL‐2γcnull immunodeficient mouse model and showed that the NY‐ESO‐1 antigen from aAVC‐NY‐ESO‐1 was cross‐presented to antigen‐specific CTLs through human DCs. Taken together, these data suggest that aAVC‐NY‐ESO‐1 has potential for harnessing innate and adaptive immunity against NY‐ESO‐1‐expressing malignancies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shin-Ichiro Fujii
- Laboratory for Immunotherapy, RIKEN Research Center for Integrative Medicine (IMS), Yokohama, Japan.,RIKEN Program for drug discovery and medical technology platforms, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Satoru Yamasaki
- Laboratory for Immunotherapy, RIKEN Research Center for Integrative Medicine (IMS), Yokohama, Japan
| | - Kenichi Hanada
- Surgery Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Shogo Ueda
- Laboratory for Immunotherapy, RIKEN Research Center for Integrative Medicine (IMS), Yokohama, Japan
| | - Masami Kawamura
- Laboratory for Immunotherapy, RIKEN Research Center for Integrative Medicine (IMS), Yokohama, Japan
| | - Kanako Shimizu
- Laboratory for Immunotherapy, RIKEN Research Center for Integrative Medicine (IMS), Yokohama, Japan
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23
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Fiore M, Sambri A, Spinnato P, Zucchini R, Giannini C, Caldari E, Pirini MG, De Paolis M. The Biology of Synovial Sarcoma: State-of-the-Art and Future Perspectives. Curr Treat Options Oncol 2021; 22:109. [PMID: 34687366 PMCID: PMC8541977 DOI: 10.1007/s11864-021-00914-4] [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] [Accepted: 06/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
New molecular insights are being achieved in synovial sarcoma (SS) that can provide new potential diagnostic and prognostic markers as well as therapeutic targets. In particular, the advancement of research on epigenomics and gene regulation is promising. The concrete hypothesis that the pathogenesis of SS might mainly depend on the disruption of the balance of the complex interaction between epigenomic regulatory complexes and the consequences on gene expression opens interesting new perspectives. The standard of care for primary SS is wide surgical resection combined with radiation in selected cases. The role of chemotherapy is still under refinement and can be considered in patients at high risk of metastasis or in those with advanced disease. Cytotoxic chemotherapy (anthracyclines, ifosfamide, trabectedin, and pazopanib) is the treatment of choice, despite several possible side effects. Many possible drug-able targets have been identified. However, the impact of these strategies in improving SS outcome is still limited, thus making current and future research strongly needed to improve the survival of patients with SS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michele Fiore
- Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Andrea Sambri
- Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy. .,IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria di Bologna, via Massarenti 9, 40138, Bologna, Italy.
| | | | | | | | - Emilia Caldari
- IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria di Bologna, via Massarenti 9, 40138, Bologna, Italy
| | - Maria Giulia Pirini
- IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria di Bologna, via Massarenti 9, 40138, Bologna, Italy
| | - Massimiliano De Paolis
- IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria di Bologna, via Massarenti 9, 40138, Bologna, Italy
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24
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Watanabe K, Nishikawa H. Engineering strategies for broad application of TCR-T and CAR-T cell therapies. Int Immunol 2021; 33:551-562. [PMID: 34374779 DOI: 10.1093/intimm/dxab052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2021] [Accepted: 08/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Adoptive cell therapy, including the transfer of tumor-infiltrating T lymphocytes after in vitro expansion or T cells redirected to tumor antigens using antigen-specific transgenic T cell receptor T cells (TCR-T cells) or chimeric antigen receptor T cells (CAR-T cells), has shown a significant clinical impact. Particularly, several types of CAR-T cell therapies have been approved for the treatment of hematological malignancies. The striking success of CAR-T cell therapies in hematological malignancies motivates their further expansion to a wide range of solid tumors, yet multiple obstacles, including the lack of proper target antigens exhibiting a tumor-specific expression pattern and the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME) impairing the effector functions of adoptively transferred T cells, have prevented clinical application. Gene engineering technologies such as the CRISPR/Cas9 system have enabled flexible reprograming of TCR/CAR-T cell signaling or loading genes that are targets of the tumor immunosuppression as a payload to overcome the difficulties. Here, we discuss recent advances in TCR/CAR-T cell engineering: various promising approaches to enhance the antitumor activity of adoptively transferred T cells in the TME for maximizing the efficacy and the safety of adoptive cell therapy are now being tested in the clinic, especially targeting solid tumors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keisuke Watanabe
- Division of Cancer Immunology, Research Institute, National Cancer Center, Tokyo 104-0045, Japan
| | - Hiroyoshi Nishikawa
- Division of Cancer Immunology, Research Institute, National Cancer Center, Tokyo 104-0045, Japan.,Department of Immunology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya 466-8550, Japan
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25
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Kirtane K, Elmariah H, Chung CH, Abate-Daga D. Adoptive cellular therapy in solid tumor malignancies: review of the literature and challenges ahead. J Immunother Cancer 2021; 9:jitc-2021-002723. [PMID: 34301811 PMCID: PMC8311333 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2021-002723] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 27.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/21/2021] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
While immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have ushered in major changes in standards of care for many solid tumor malignancies, primary and acquired resistance is common. Insufficient antitumor T cells, inadequate function of these cells, and impaired formation of memory T cells all contribute to resistance mechanisms to ICI. Adoptive cellular therapy (ACT) is a form of immunotherapy that is rapidly growing in clinical investigation and has the potential to overcome these limitations by its ability to augment the number, specificity, and reactivity of T cells against tumor tissue. ACT has revolutionized the treatment of hematologic malignancies, though the use of ACT in solid tumor malignancies is still in its early stages. There are currently three major modalities of ACT: tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), genetically engineered T-cell receptors (TCRs), and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells. TIL therapy involves expansion of a heterogeneous population of endogenous T cells found in a harvested tumor, while TCRs and CAR T cells involve expansion of a genetically engineered T-cell directed toward specific antigen targets. In this review, we explore the potential of ACT as a treatment modality against solid tumors, discuss their advantages and limitations against solid tumor malignancies, discuss the promising therapies under active investigation, and examine future directions for this rapidly growing field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kedar Kirtane
- Department of Head and Neck-Endocrine Oncology, Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, Florida, USA
| | - Hany Elmariah
- Department of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Immunotherapy, Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, Florida, USA
| | - Christine H Chung
- Department of Head and Neck-Endocrine Oncology, Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, Florida, USA
| | - Daniel Abate-Daga
- Departments of Immunology, Cutaneous Oncology, and Gastrointestinal Oncology, Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, Florida, USA
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26
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Chawla SP, Van Tine BA, Pollack SM, Ganjoo KN, Elias AD, Riedel RF, Attia S, Choy E, Okuno SH, Agulnik M, von Mehren M, Livingston MB, Keedy VL, Verschraegen CF, Philip T, Bohac GC, Yurasov S, Yakovich A, Lu H, Chen M, Maki RG. Phase II Randomized Study of CMB305 and Atezolizumab Compared With Atezolizumab Alone in Soft-Tissue Sarcomas Expressing NY-ESO-1. J Clin Oncol 2021; 40:1291-1300. [PMID: 34260265 DOI: 10.1200/jco.20.03452] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE CMB305 is a heterologous prime-boost vaccination regimen created to prime NY-ESO-1-specific CD8 T-cell populations and then activate the immune response with a potent TLR-4 agonist. This open-label randomized phase II trial was designed to investigate the efficacy and safety of adding the CMB305 regimen to atezolizumab (anti-programmed death ligand-1 therapy) in comparison with atezolizumab alone in patients with synovial sarcoma or myxoid liposarcoma. PATIENTS AND METHODS Patients with locally advanced, relapsed, or metastatic synovial sarcoma or myxoid liposarcoma (any grade) were randomly assigned to receive CMB305 with atezolizumab (experimental arm) or atezolizumab alone (control arm). The primary end points were progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method. Safety and immune responses were assessed. RESULTS A total of 89 patients were enrolled; 55.1% had received ≥ 2 prior lines of chemotherapy. Median PFS was 2.6 months and 1.6 months in the combination and control arms, respectively (hazard ratio, 0.9; 95% CI, 0.6 to 1.3). Median OS was 18 months in both treatment arms. Patients treated with combination therapy had a significantly higher rate of treatment-induced NY-ESO-1-specific T cells (P = .01) and NY-ESO-1-specific antibody responses (P < .0001). In a post hoc analysis of all dosed patients, OS was longer (36 months) in the subset who developed anti-NY-ESO-1 T-cell immune response (hazard ratio, 0.3; P = .02). CONCLUSION Although the combination of CMB305 and atezolizumab did not result in significant increases in PFS or OS compared with atezolizumab alone, some patients demonstrated evidence of an anti-NY-ESO-1 immune response and appeared to fare better by imaging than those without such an immune response. Combining prime-boost vaccines such as CMB305 with anti-programmed death ligand-1 therapies merits further evaluation in other clinical contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Brian A Van Tine
- Siteman Cancer Center, Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis, St Louis, MO
| | - Seth M Pollack
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA.,Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL
| | | | | | | | | | - Edwin Choy
- Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA
| | | | - Mark Agulnik
- Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University, Chicago, IL.,City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | | | | | - Vicki L Keedy
- Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN
| | | | | | - G Chet Bohac
- Immune Design Corp, South San Francisco, CA.,MacroGenics Inc, Rockville, MD
| | - Sergey Yurasov
- Immune Design Corp, South San Francisco, CA.,Nuvation Bio Inc, San Francisco, CA
| | - Adam Yakovich
- Immune Design Corp, South San Francisco, CA.,Replimune Group Inc, Woburn, MA
| | - Hailing Lu
- Immune Design Corp, South San Francisco, CA.,Seattle Genetics Inc, Bothell, WA
| | - Michael Chen
- Immune Design Corp, South San Francisco, CA.,Sangamo Therapeutics Inc, Brisbane, CA
| | - Robert G Maki
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
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27
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Shenderov E, Kandasamy M, Gileadi U, Chen J, Shepherd D, Gibbs J, Prota G, Silk JD, Yewdell JW, Cerundolo V. Generation and characterization of HLA-A2 transgenic mice expressing the human TCR 1G4 specific for the HLA-A2 restricted NY-ESO-1 157-165 tumor-specific peptide. J Immunother Cancer 2021; 9:jitc-2021-002544. [PMID: 34088742 PMCID: PMC8183295 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2021-002544] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/16/2021] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Background NY-ESO-1 is a tumor-specific, highly immunogenic, human germ cell antigen of the MAGE-1 family that is a promising vaccine and cell therapy candidate in clinical trial development. The mouse genome does not encode an NY-ESO-1 homolog thereby not subjecting transgenic T-cells to thymic tolerance mechanisms that might impair in-vivo studies. We hypothesized that an NY-ESO-1 T cell receptor (TCR) transgenic mouse would provide the unique opportunity to study avidity of TCR response against NY-ESO-1 for tumor vaccine and cellular therapy development against this clinically relevant and physiological human antigen. Methods To study in vitro and in vivo the requirements for shaping an effective T cell response against the clinically relevant NY-ESO-1, we generated a C57BL/6 HLA-A*0201 background TCR transgenic mouse encoding the 1G4 TCR specific for the human HLA-A2 restricted, NY-ESO-1157-165 SLLMWITQC (9C), initially identified in an NY-ESO-1 positive melanoma patient. Results The HLA-A*0201 restricted TCR was positively selected on both CD4+ and CD8+ cells. Mouse 1G4 T cells were not activated by endogenous autoimmune targets or a large library of non-cognate viral antigens. In contrast, their activation by HLA-A2 NY-ESO-1157-165 complexes was evident by proliferation, CD69 upregulation, interferon-γ production, and interleukin-2 production, and could be tuned using a twofold higher affinity altered peptide ligand, NY-ESO-1157-165V. NY-ESO-1157-165V recombinant vaccination of syngeneic mice adoptively transferred with m1G4 CD8+ T cells controlled tumor growth in vivo. 1G4 transgenic mice suppressed growth of syngeneic methylcholanthrene (MCA) induced HHD tumor cells expressing the full-length human NY-ESO-1 protein but not MCA HHD tumor cells lacking NY-ESO-1. Conclusions The 1G4 TCR mouse model for the physiological human TCR against the clinically relevant antigen, NY-ESO-1, is a valuable tool with the potential to accelerate clinical development of NY-ESO-1-targeted T-cell and vaccine therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eugene Shenderov
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford, UK .,National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.,Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Matheswaran Kandasamy
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford, UK
| | - Uzi Gileadi
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford, UK
| | - Jili Chen
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford, UK
| | - Dawn Shepherd
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford, UK
| | - James Gibbs
- National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Gennaro Prota
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford, UK
| | - Jonathan D Silk
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford, UK.,Next Generation Research, Adaptimmune, Abingdon, UK
| | - Jonathan W Yewdell
- National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Vincenzo Cerundolo
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford, UK
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28
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Mitchell G, Pollack SM, Wagner MJ. Targeting cancer testis antigens in synovial sarcoma. J Immunother Cancer 2021; 9:jitc-2020-002072. [PMID: 34083416 PMCID: PMC8183285 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2020-002072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/04/2021] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Synovial sarcoma (SS) is a rare cancer that disproportionately affects children and young adults. Cancer testis antigens (CTAs) are proteins that are expressed early in embryonic development, but generally not expressed in normal tissue. They are aberrantly expressed in many different cancer types and are an attractive therapeutic target for immunotherapies. CTAs are expressed at high levels in SS. This high level of CTA expression makes SS an ideal cancer for treatment strategies aimed at harnessing the immune system to recognize aberrant CTA expression and fight against the cancer. Pivotal clinical trials are now underway, with the potential to dramatically alter the landscape of SS management and treatment from current standards of care. In this review, we describe the rationale for targeting CTAs in SS with a focus on NY-ESO-1 and MAGE-A4, the current state of vaccine and T-cell receptor-based therapies, and consider emerging opportunities for future development.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Seth M Pollack
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA.,Oncology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.,Lurie Cancer Center, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Michael J Wagner
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA .,Oncology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
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29
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Lu F, Ma XJN, Jin WL, Luo Y, Li X. Neoantigen Specific T Cells Derived From T Cell-Derived Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells for the Treatment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Potential and Challenges. Front Immunol 2021; 12:690565. [PMID: 34054880 PMCID: PMC8155510 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.690565] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2021] [Accepted: 04/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Immunotherapy has become an indispensable part of the comprehensive treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Immunotherapy has proven effective in patients with early HCC, advanced HCC, or HCC recurrence after liver transplantation. Clinically, the most commonly used immunotherapy is immune checkpoint inhibition using monoclonal antibodies, such as CTLA-4 and PD-1. However, it cannot fundamentally solve the problems of a weakened immune system and inactivation of immune cells involved in killing tumor cells. T cells can express tumor antigen-recognizing T cell receptors (TCRs) or chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) on the cell surface through gene editing to improve the specificity and responsiveness of immune cells. According to previous studies, TCR-T cell therapy is significantly better than CAR-T cell therapy in the treatment of solid tumors and is one of the most promising immune cell therapies for solid tumors so far. However, its application in the treatment of HCC is still being researched. Technological advancements in induction and redifferentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) allow us to use T cells to induce T cell-derived iPSCs (T-iPSCs) and then differentiate them into TCR-T cells. This has allowed a convenient strategy to study HCC models and explore optimal treatment strategies. This review gives an overview of the major advances in the development of protocols to generate neoantigen-specific TCR-T cells from T-iPSCs. We will also discuss their potential and challenges in the treatment of HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fei Lu
- The First School of Clinical Medicine, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.,Department of General Surgery, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.,Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Regenerative Medicine of Gansu Province, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Xiao-Jing-Nan Ma
- The First School of Clinical Medicine, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.,Department of General Surgery, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.,Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Regenerative Medicine of Gansu Province, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Wei-Lin Jin
- Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Regenerative Medicine of Gansu Province, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.,Institute of Cancer Neuroscience, Medical Frontier Innovation Research Center, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Yang Luo
- Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Regenerative Medicine of Gansu Province, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Xun Li
- The First School of Clinical Medicine, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.,Department of General Surgery, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.,Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Regenerative Medicine of Gansu Province, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.,Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery Institute of Gansu Province, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.,Health Science Center, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.,Medical Frontier Innovation Research Center, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
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30
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Kohli K, Yao L, Nowicki TS, Zhang S, Black RG, Schroeder BA, Farrar EA, Cao J, Sloan H, Stief D, Cranmer LD, Wagner MJ, Hawkins DS, Pillarisetty VG, Ribas A, Campbell J, Pierce RH, Kim EY, Jones RL, Riddell SR, Yee C, Pollack SM. IL-15 mediated expansion of rare durable memory T cells following adoptive cellular therapy. J Immunother Cancer 2021; 9:jitc-2020-002232. [PMID: 33963013 PMCID: PMC8108691 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2020-002232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Synovial sarcoma (SS) and myxoid/round cell liposarcoma (MRCL) are ideal solid tumors for the development of adoptive cellular therapy (ACT) targeting NY-ESO-1, as a high frequency of tumors homogeneously express this cancer-testes antigen. Data from early phase clinical trials have shown antitumor activity after the adoptive transfer of NY-ESO-1–specific T cells. In these studies, persistence of NY-ESO-1 specific T cells is highly correlated with response to ACT, but patients often continue to have detectable transferred cells in their peripheral blood following progression. Method We performed a phase I clinical trial evaluating the safety of NY-ESO-1–specific endogenous T cells (ETC) following cyclophosphamide conditioning. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from treated patients were evaluated by flow cytometry and gene expression analysis as well as through ex vivo culture assays with and without IL-15. Results Four patients were treated in a cohort using ETC targeting NY-ESO-1 following cyclophosphamide conditioning. Treatment was well tolerated without significant toxicity, but all patients ultimately had disease progression. In two of four patients, we obtained post-treatment tumor tissue and in both, NY-ESO-1 antigen was retained despite clear detectable persisting NY-ESO-1–specific T cells in the peripheral blood. Despite a memory phenotype, these persisting cells lacked markers of proliferation or activation. However, in ex vivo culture assays, they could be induced to proliferate and kill tumor using IL-15. These results were also seen in PBMCs from two patients who received gene-engineered T-cell receptor–based products at other centers. Conclusions ETC targeting NY-ESO-1 with single-agent cyclophosphamide alone conditioning was well tolerated in patients with SS and those with MRCL. IL-15 can induce proliferation and activity in persisting NY-ESO-1–specific T cells even in patients with disease progression following ACT. These results support future work evaluating whether IL-15 could be incorporated into ACT trials post-infusion or at the time of progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karan Kohli
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Clinical Research Division, Seattle, WA, USA.,Division of Oncology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.,Department of Surgery, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Lu Yao
- Poseida Therapeutics, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Theodore Scott Nowicki
- Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Shihong Zhang
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Clinical Research Division, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Ralph Graeme Black
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Clinical Research Division, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Brett A Schroeder
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Clinical Research Division, Seattle, WA, USA.,Division of Oncology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.,Department of Internal Medicine, Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | | | - Jianhong Cao
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Clinical Research Division, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Heather Sloan
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Clinical Research Division, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Dawn Stief
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Clinical Research Division, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Lee D Cranmer
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Clinical Research Division, Seattle, WA, USA.,Division of Oncology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Michael J Wagner
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Clinical Research Division, Seattle, WA, USA.,Division of Oncology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Douglas S Hawkins
- Division of Hematology and Oncology, Seattle Children's Hospital, Seattle, WA, USA
| | | | - Antoni Ribas
- Division Hematology and Oncology, University of California, Los Angeles, UK
| | - Jean Campbell
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Clinical Research Division, Seattle, WA, USA.,Sensei Biotherapeutics, Gaithersburg, Boston, MD, USA
| | - Robert H Pierce
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Clinical Research Division, Seattle, WA, USA.,Sensei Biotherapeutics, Gaithersburg, Boston, MD, USA
| | - Edward Y Kim
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Robin L Jones
- Sarcoma, Royal Marsden Hospital and Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK
| | - Stanley R Riddell
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Clinical Research Division, Seattle, WA, USA.,Department of Surgery, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.,Lyell Immunopharma, Seattle, WA, USA
| | | | - Seth M Pollack
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Clinical Research Division, Seattle, WA, USA .,Department of Surgery, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.,Division of Oncology, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA
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Clemente O, Ottaiano A, Di Lorenzo G, Bracigliano A, Lamia S, Cannella L, Pizzolorusso A, Di Marzo M, Santorsola M, De Chiara A, Fazioli F, Tafuto S. Is immunotherapy in the future of therapeutic management of sarcomas? J Transl Med 2021; 19:173. [PMID: 33902630 PMCID: PMC8077947 DOI: 10.1186/s12967-021-02829-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2021] [Accepted: 04/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Sarcomas are rare, ubiquitous and heterogeneous tumors usually treated with surgery, chemotherapy, target therapy, and radiotherapy. However, 25-50% of patients experience local relapses and/or distant metastases after chemotherapy with an overall survival about 12-18 months. Recently, immuno-therapy has revolutionized the cancer treatments with initial indications for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and melanoma (immune-checkpoint inhibitors).Here, we provide a narrative review on the topic as well as a critical description of the currently available trials on immunotherapy treatments in patients with sarcoma. Given the promising results obtained with anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibodies (pembrolizumab and nivolumab) and CAR-T cells, we strongly believe that these new immunotherapeutic approaches, along with an innovative characterization of tumor genetics, will provide an exciting opportunity to ameliorate the therapeutic management of sarcomas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ottavia Clemente
- Sarcomas and Rare Tumors Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS - Fondazione "G. Pascale", 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Alessandro Ottaiano
- Division of Innovative Therapies, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS - Fondazione "G. Pascale", 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Di Lorenzo
- Sarcomas and Rare Tumors Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS - Fondazione "G. Pascale", 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Alessandra Bracigliano
- Nuclear Medicine Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS - Fondazione "G. Pascale, 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Sabrina Lamia
- Sarcomas and Rare Tumors Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS - Fondazione "G. Pascale", 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Lucia Cannella
- Sarcomas and Rare Tumors Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS - Fondazione "G. Pascale", 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Antonio Pizzolorusso
- Sarcomas and Rare Tumors Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS - Fondazione "G. Pascale", 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Massimiliano Di Marzo
- Department of Abdominal Oncology, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS - Fondazione "G. Pascale", 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Mariachiara Santorsola
- Division of Innovative Therapies, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS - Fondazione "G. Pascale", 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Annarosaria De Chiara
- Histopathology of Lymphomas and Sarcomas SSD, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS - Fondazione "G. Pascale", 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Flavio Fazioli
- Orthopedic Oncology Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS - Fondazione "G. Pascale", 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Salvatore Tafuto
- Sarcomas and Rare Tumors Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, IRCCS - Fondazione "G. Pascale", 80131, Naples, Italy.
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32
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Human leukocyte antigen I is significantly downregulated in patients with myxoid liposarcomas. Cancer Immunol Immunother 2021; 70:3489-3499. [PMID: 33893830 PMCID: PMC8571150 DOI: 10.1007/s00262-021-02928-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2020] [Accepted: 03/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The characteristics of the tumor immune microenvironment remains unclear in liposarcomas, and here we aimed to determine the prognostic impact of the tumor immune microenvironment across separate liposarcomas subtypes. A total of 70 liposarcoma patients with three subtypes: myxoid liposarcoma (n = 45), dedifferentiated liposarcoma (n = 17), and pleomorphic liposarcoma (n = 8) were enrolled. The presence of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (CD4+ , CD8+ , FOXP3+ lymphocytes) and CD163+ macrophages and expression of HLA class I and PD-L1 were assessed by immunohistochemistry in the diagnostic samples; overall survival and progression-free survival were estimated from outcome data. For infiltrating lymphocytes and macrophages, dedifferentiated liposarcoma and pleomorphic liposarcoma patients had a significantly higher number than myxoid liposarcoma patients. While myxoid liposarcoma patients with a high number of macrophages were associated with worse overall and progression-free survival, dedifferentiated liposarcoma patients with high macrophage numbers showed a trend toward favorable prognosis. Expression of HLA class I was negative in 35 of 45 (77.8%) myxoid liposarcoma tumors, whereas all dedifferentiated liposarcoma and pleomorphic liposarcoma tumors expressed HLA class I. The subset of myxoid liposarcoma patients with high HLA class I expression had significantly poor overall and progression-free survival, while dedifferentiated liposarcoma patients with high HLA class I expression tended to have favorable outcomes. Only four of 17 (23.5%) dedifferentiated liposarcomas, two of eight (25%) pleomorphic liposarcomas, and no myxoid liposarcoma tumors expressed PD-L1. Our results demonstrate the unique immune microenvironment of myxoid liposarcomas compared to other subtypes of liposarcomas, suggesting that the approach for immunotherapy in liposarcomas should be based on subtype.
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33
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Lezcano C, Müller AM, Frosina D, Hernandez E, Geronimo JA, Busam KJ, Jungbluth AA. Immunohistochemical Detection of Cancer-Testis Antigen PRAME. Int J Surg Pathol 2021; 29:826-835. [PMID: 33890816 DOI: 10.1177/10668969211012085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Cancer-testis (CT) antigens were identified by their ability to elicit T- or B-cell immune responses in the autologous host. They are typically expressed in a wide variety of neoplasms and in normal adult tissues are restricted to testicular germ cells. PReferentially expressed Antigen of Melanoma (PRAME) is a member of the family of nonclassical CT antigens being expressed in a few other normal tissues besides testis. Interestingly, knowledge about the protein expression of many CT antigens is still incomplete due to the limited availability of reagents for their immunohistochemical detection. Here, we tested several commercially available serological reagents and identified a monoclonal antibody suitable for the immunohistochemical detection of PRAME in formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded specimens. We also tested a wide array of normal and neoplastic tissues. PRAME protein expression in normal tissues is congruent with original molecular data being present in the testis, and at low levels in the endometrium, adrenal cortex, and adult as well as fetal ovary. In tumors, there is diffuse PRAME immunoreactivity in most metastatic melanomas, myxoid liposarcomas, and synovial sarcomas. Other neoplasms such as seminomas and carcinomas of various origins including endometrial, serous ovarian, mammary ductal, lung, and renal showed an intermediate proportion of cases and variable extent of tumor cells positive for PRAME protein expression. As seen with other CT antigens, hepatocellular and colorectal carcinoma, Leydig cell tumors, mesothelioma, and leiomyosarcoma are poor expressers of PRAME.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Denise Frosina
- 5803Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, USA
| | | | | | - Klaus J Busam
- 5803Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, USA
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34
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Schroeder BA, Black RG, Spadinger S, Zhang S, Kohli K, Cao J, Mantilla JG, Conrad EU, Riddell SR, Jones RL, Yee C, Pollack SM. Histiocyte predominant myocarditis resulting from the addition of interferon gamma to cyclophosphamide-based lymphodepletion for adoptive cellular therapy. J Immunother Cancer 2021; 8:jitc-2019-000247. [PMID: 32269142 PMCID: PMC7254118 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2019-000247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Adoptive cellular therapy (ACT) is a promising treatment for synovial sarcoma (SS) with reported response rates of over 50%. However, more work is needed to obtain deeper and more durable responses. SS has a ‘cold’ tumor immune microenvironment with low levels of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) expression and few T-cell infiltrates, which could represent a barrier toward successful treatment with ACT. We previously demonstrated that both MHC expression and T-cell infiltration can be increased using systemic interferon gamma (IFN-γ), which could improve the efficacy of ACT for SS. Case presentation We launched a phase I trial incorporating four weekly doses of IFN-γ in an ACT regimen of high-dose cyclophosphamide (HD Cy), NY-ESO-1-specific T cells, and postinfusion low-dose interleukin (IL)-2. Two patients were treated. While one patient had significant tumor regression and resultant clinical benefit, the other patient suffered a fatal histiocytic myocarditis. Therefore, this cohort was terminated for safety concerns. Conclusion We describe a new and serious toxicity of immunotherapy from IFN-γ combined with HD Cy-based lymphodepletion and low-dose IL-2. While IFN-γ should not be used concurrently with HD Cy or with low dose IL-2, IFN-γ may still be important in sensitizing SS for ACT. Future studies should avoid using IFN-γ during the immediate period before/after cell infusion. Trial registration numbers NCT04177021, NCT01957709, and NCT03063632.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brett A Schroeder
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA.,Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Ralph Graeme Black
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Sydney Spadinger
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Shihong Zhang
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Karan Kohli
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Jianhong Cao
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Jose G Mantilla
- Pathology, University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Ernest U Conrad
- Orthopedic Surgery, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Stanley R Riddell
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA.,Oncology, University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Robin L Jones
- Sarcoma, Royal Marsden Hospital NHS Trust, London, UK
| | - Cassian Yee
- Melanoma Medical Oncology, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Seth M Pollack
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA .,Oncology, University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
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de Miguel M, Umana P, Gomes de Morais AL, Moreno V, Calvo E. T-cell-engaging Therapy for Solid Tumors. Clin Cancer Res 2021; 27:1595-1603. [PMID: 33082210 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-20-2448] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2020] [Revised: 08/29/2020] [Accepted: 10/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
T-cell engagers (TCE) are a rapidly evolving novel group of treatments that have in common the concurrent engagement of a T-cell surface molecule and a tumoral cell antigen. Bispecific antibodies and genetically engineered adoptive cell therapies, as chimeric antigen receptors or T-cell receptors, have similarities and differences among their mechanisms of action, toxicity profiles, and resistance pathways. Nevertheless, the success observed in the hematologic field has not been obtained with solid tumors yet, as they are biologically more complex and have few truly tumor-specific cell surface antigens that can be targeted with high avidity T cells. Different strategies are under study to improve their short-term perspective, such as new generations of more active TCEs, multi-target or combination of different treatments approaches, or to improve the manufacturing processes. A comprehensive review of TCEs as a grouped treatment class, their current status, and research directions in their application to solid tumors therapeutics are discussed here.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria de Miguel
- START Madrid-HM Centro Integral Oncológico Clara Campal (CIOCC) Early Phase Program, HM Sanchinarro University Hospital, Madrid, Spain
| | - Pablo Umana
- Roche Innovation Center Zurich Schlieren, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Ana Luiza Gomes de Morais
- START Madrid-HM Centro Integral Oncológico Clara Campal (CIOCC) Early Phase Program, HM Sanchinarro University Hospital, Madrid, Spain
| | - Victor Moreno
- START Madrid-Fundación Jiménez Díaz (FJD) Early Phase Program, Fundación Jiménez Díaz Hospital, Madrid, Spain
| | - Emiliano Calvo
- START Madrid-HM Centro Integral Oncológico Clara Campal (CIOCC) Early Phase Program, HM Sanchinarro University Hospital, Madrid, Spain.
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36
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Lai JP, Rosenberg AZ, Miettinen MM, Lee CCR. NY-ESO-1 expression in sarcomas: A diagnostic marker and immunotherapy target. Oncoimmunology 2021; 1:1409-1410. [PMID: 23243610 PMCID: PMC3518519 DOI: 10.4161/onci.21059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
NY-ESO-1 (CTAG 1B) is highly expressed in the majority of synovial sarcomas and myxoid/round cell liposarcomas as well as in a subset of melanomas, but only rarely in other mesenchymal tumors. This points to a potential for using NY-ESO-1 in the differential diagnosis of these lesions. Furthermore, promising results have been obtained in clinical trials testing NY-ESO-1-targeted immunotherapy in subsets of melanoma and synovial sarcoma patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jin-Ping Lai
- Laboratory of Pathology; National Cancer Institute; NIH; Bethesda, MD USA
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37
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Zhang R, Mou N, Pu YD, Li Q, Jiang YY, Yuan T, Deng Q. [Overexpression of NKG2D-CD3ζ in NY-ESO-1 TCR-T cells enhanced cytotoxicity to acute myeloid leukemia cells in vitro]. ZHONGHUA XUE YE XUE ZA ZHI = ZHONGHUA XUEYEXUE ZAZHI 2021; 41:946-950. [PMID: 33333701 PMCID: PMC7767805 DOI: 10.3760/cma.j.issn.0253-2727.2020.11.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- R Zhang
- Department of Hematology, Tianjin First Central Hospital, Tianjin 300192, China
| | - N Mou
- Shanghai Genbase Biotechnology Co., Ltd. Shanghai 201206, China
| | - Y D Pu
- Department of Hematology, Tianjin First Central Hospital, Tianjin 300192, China
| | - Q Li
- Department of Hematology, Tianjin First Central Hospital, Tianjin 300192, China
| | - Y Y Jiang
- Department of Hematology, Tianjin First Central Hospital, Tianjin 300192, China
| | - T Yuan
- Department of Hematology, Tianjin First Central Hospital, Tianjin 300192, China
| | - Q Deng
- Department of Hematology, Tianjin First Central Hospital, Tianjin 300192, China
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38
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Albertsmeier M, Altendorf-Hofmann A, Lindner LH, Issels RD, Kampmann E, Dürr HR, Schubert-Fritschle G, Angele MK, Kirchner T, Jungbluth AA, Knösel T. Cancer Testis Antigens and Immunotherapy: Expression of PRAME Is Associated with Prognosis in Soft Tissue Sarcoma. Cancers (Basel) 2020; 12:E3612. [PMID: 33287125 PMCID: PMC7761656 DOI: 10.3390/cancers12123612] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2020] [Revised: 11/26/2020] [Accepted: 11/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
(1) Background: PRAME, NY-ESO-1, and SSX2 are cancer testis antigens (CTAs), which are expressed in testicular germ cells with re-expression in numerous cancer types. Their ability to elicit humoral and cellular immune responses have rendered them promising targets for cancer immunotherapy, but they have never been studied in a large and well-characterised cohort of soft tissue sarcomas (STS). (2) Methods: On a protein level, we examined PRAME, NY-ESO-1, and SSX2 expression in tumour tissues of 249 high-risk STS using immunohistochemistry. We correlated expression levels with clinicopathological parameters including tumour-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) counts, grading, and long-term survival. (3) Results: Expression of PRAME, NY-ESO-1, and SSX2 was observed in 25 (10%), 19 (8%), and 11 (4%) of 249 specimens with distinct patterns for histo-subtypes. Expression of PRAME was associated with shorter patient survival (p = 0.005) and higher grade (G2 vs. G3, p = 0.001), while NY-ESO-1 expression was correlated with more favourable survival (p = 0.037) and lower grade (G2 vs. G3, p = 0.029). Both PRAME and NY-ESO-1 expression were more frequent in STS with low TIL counts. In multivariate analysis, high PRAME and low SSX2 expression levels as well as metastatic disease and non-radical resections were independent predictors of shorter overall survival. (4) Conclusions: CTAs PRAME, NY-ESO-1, and SSX2 show distinct expression patterns in different STS subtypes. These results demonstrate their prognostic relevance and may guide future immunotherapeutic approaches in STS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Markus Albertsmeier
- Department of General, Visceral and Transplantation Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany;
| | - Annelore Altendorf-Hofmann
- Department of General, Visceral and Vascular Surgery, Friedrich-Schiller Universität Jena, Am Klinikum 1, 07743 Jena, Germany;
| | - Lars H. Lindner
- Department of Internal Medicine III, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany; (L.H.L.); (R.D.I.); (E.K.)
| | - Rolf D. Issels
- Department of Internal Medicine III, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany; (L.H.L.); (R.D.I.); (E.K.)
| | - Eric Kampmann
- Department of Internal Medicine III, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany; (L.H.L.); (R.D.I.); (E.K.)
| | - Hans-Roland Dürr
- Musculoskeletal Oncology, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany;
| | - Gabriele Schubert-Fritschle
- Munich Cancer Registry (MCR) of the Munich Tumour Centre (TZM), Institute for Medical Information Processing, Biometry, and Epidemiology (IBE), University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany;
| | - Martin K. Angele
- Department of General, Visceral and Transplantation Surgery, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany;
| | - Thomas Kirchner
- Institute of Pathology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) Munich, Thalkirchner Str. 36, 80337 Munich, Germany;
| | - Achim A. Jungbluth
- Department of Pathology, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), New York, NY 1275, USA;
| | - Thomas Knösel
- Institute of Pathology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) Munich, Thalkirchner Str. 36, 80337 Munich, Germany;
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Somaiah N, Chawla SP, Block MS, Morris JC, Do K, Kim JW, Druta M, Sankhala KK, Hwu P, Jones RL, Gnjatic S, Kim-Schulze S, Tuballes K, Yishak M, Lu H, Yakovich A, Ter Meulen J, Chen M, Kenney RT, Bohac C, Pollack SM. A Phase 1b Study Evaluating the Safety, Tolerability, and Immunogenicity of CMB305, a Lentiviral-Based Prime-Boost Vaccine Regimen, in Patients with Locally Advanced, Relapsed, or Metastatic Cancer Expressing NY-ESO-1. Oncoimmunology 2020; 9:1847846. [PMID: 33312760 PMCID: PMC7714520 DOI: 10.1080/2162402x.2020.1847846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2020] [Accepted: 11/03/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Preclinical data suggest that a "prime-boost" vaccine regimen using a target-expressing lentiviral vector for priming, followed by a recombinant protein boost, may be effective against cancer; however, this strategy has not been evaluated in a clinical setting. CMB305 is a prime-boost vaccine designed to induce a broad anti-NY-ESO-1 immune response. It is composed of LV305, which is an NY-ESO-1 expressing lentiviral vector, and G305, a recombinant adjuvanted NY-ESO-1 protein. This multicenter phase 1b, first-in-human trial evaluated CMB305 in patients with NY-ESO-1 expressing solid tumors. Safety was examined in a 3 + 3 dose-escalation design, followed by an expansion with CMB305 alone or in a combination with either oral metronomic cyclophosphamide or intratumoral injections of a toll-like receptor agonist (glucopyranosyl lipid A). Of the 79 patients who enrolled, 81.0% had sarcomas, 86.1% had metastatic disease, and 57.0% had progressive disease at study entry. The most common adverse events were fatigue (34.2%), nausea (26.6%), and injection-site pain (24.1%). In patients with soft tissue sarcomas, a disease control rate of 61.9% and an overall survival of 26.2 months (95% CI, 22.1-NA) were observed. CMB305 induced anti-NY-ESO-1 antibody and T-cell responses in 62.9% and 47.4% of patients, respectively. This is the first trial to test a prime-boost vaccine regimen in patients with advanced cancer. This approach is feasible, can be delivered safely, and with evidence of immune response as well as suggestion of clinical benefit.
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Affiliation(s)
- Neeta Somaiah
- Department of Sarcoma Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Sant P. Chawla
- Sarcoma Oncology Center, Santa Monica, CA, United States
| | - Matthew S. Block
- Department of Medical Oncology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States
| | - John C. Morris
- Department of Medicine, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, United States
| | - Khanh Do
- Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Joseph W. Kim
- Department of Medical Oncology, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, United States
| | - Mihaela Druta
- Medical Oncology, Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, FL, United States
| | - Kamalesh K. Sankhala
- Hematology/Oncology, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Beverly Hills, CA, United States
| | - Patrick Hwu
- Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Robin L. Jones
- Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, Seattle, WA
- Sarcoma Unit, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, UK
- Sarcoma Clinical Trials, Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK
| | - Sacha Gnjatic
- Human Immune Monitoring Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Seunghee Kim-Schulze
- Human Immune Monitoring Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Kevin Tuballes
- Human Immune Monitoring Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Mahlet Yishak
- Human Immune Monitoring Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Hailing Lu
- Immune Design Corp., South San Francisco, CA, United States
- Biomarkers and Diagnostics, Seattle Genetics, Inc, Bothell, WA, United States
| | - Adam Yakovich
- Immune Design Corp., South San Francisco, CA, United States
- Medical Affairs, Replimune Group, Inc, Woburn, MA, United States
| | - Jan Ter Meulen
- Immune Design Corp., South San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Michael Chen
- Immune Design Corp., South San Francisco, CA, United States
- *Sangamo Therapeutics, Inc., Brisbane, CA, United States
| | - Richard T. Kenney
- Immune Design Corp., South San Francisco, CA, United States
- Clin Reg Biologics, LLC, Potomac, MD, United States
| | - Chet Bohac
- Immune Design Corp., South San Francisco, CA, United States
- Macrogenics, Inc, Rockville, MD, United States
| | - Seth M. Pollack
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, United States
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40
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Will Next-Generation Immunotherapy Overcome the Intrinsic Diversity and Low Immunogenicity of Sarcomas to Improve Clinical Benefit? Cancers (Basel) 2020; 12:cancers12113392. [PMID: 33207697 PMCID: PMC7697818 DOI: 10.3390/cancers12113392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2020] [Revised: 11/13/2020] [Accepted: 11/13/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Sarcomas are a rare type of a heterogeneous group of tumours arising from mesenchymal cells that form connective tissues. Surgery is the most common treatment for these tumours, but additional neoadjuvant or adjuvant chemotherapy or radiation therapies may be necessary. Unfortunately, a significant proportion of patients treated with conventional therapies will develop metastatic disease that is resistant to therapies. Currently, there is an urgent need to develop more effective and durable therapies for the treatment of sarcomas. In recent years immunotherapies have revolutionised the treatment of a variety of cancers by restoring patient anti-tumour immune responses or through the adoptive infusion of immune effectors able to kill and eliminate malignant cells. The clinicopathologic and genetic heterogeneity of sarcomas, together with the generally low burden of somatic mutations potentially generating neoantigens, are currently limited to broad application of immunotherapy for patients with sarcomas. Nevertheless, a better understanding of the microenvironmental factors hampering the efficacy of immunotherapy and the identification of new and suitable therapeutic targets may help to overcome current limitations. Moreover, the recent advances in the development of immunotherapies based on the direct exploitation or targeting of T cells and/or NK cells may offer new opportunities to improve the treatment of sarcomas, particularly those showing recurrence or resistance to standard of care treatments.
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41
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Rosenbaum E, Seier K, Bandlamudi C, Dickson M, Gounder M, Keohan ML, Chi P, Kelly C, Movva S, Nacev B, Simeone N, Donoghue M, Slotkin EK, Qin LX, Antonescu CR, Tap WD, D'Angelo SP. HLA Genotyping in Synovial Sarcoma: Identifying HLA-A*02 and Its Association with Clinical Outcome. Clin Cancer Res 2020; 26:5448-5455. [PMID: 32816945 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-20-0832] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2020] [Revised: 05/20/2020] [Accepted: 08/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE To determine if a targeted exome panel utilizing matched normal DNA can accurately detect germline and somatic HLA genes in patients with synovial sarcoma (SS) and whether select HLA-A*02 genotypes are prognostic or predictive of outcome in metastatic SS. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Patients with metastatic SS consented to HLA typing by a Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA)-certified test to determine eligibility for a clinical trial of NY-ESO-1-specific engineered T cells restricted to carriers of HLA-A*02:01, -A*02:05, or -A*02:06 (HLA-A*02 eligible). HLA genotype was determined from Memorial Sloan Kettering Integrated Molecular Profiling of Actionable Cancer Targets (MSK-IMPACT), where feasible, and somatic loss of heterozygosity (LOH) in HLA alleles was identified. Overall survival (OS) was estimated and stratified by HLA-A*02 eligibility. RESULTS A total of 23 patients had HLA genotyping by a CLIA-certified lab and MSK-IMPACT. Ninety percent (108/110) of the sequenced alleles were concordant between IMPACT and the outside lab. LOH of HLA genes was detected in three tumors, one had loss of HLA-A*02:01. In total, 66 patients were screened for T-cell therapy and 20 (30%) were HLA-A*02 eligible on outside testing. Univariate analysis of OS from the time of metastasis found HLA-A*02 eligibility was marginally associated with shorter OS [HR = 1.95; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.995-3.813; P = 0.052]. On multivariate analysis, older age and larger tumor size, but not HLA-A*02 eligibility, were significantly associated with decreased OS. HLA-A*02 eligibility did not impact OS after chemotherapy or pazopanib in the metastatic setting. CONCLUSIONS Targeted gene panels like MSK-IMPACT may accurately report HLA type and identify loss of somatic HLA alleles. In a multivariable model, HLA-A*02 eligibility was not significantly associated with OS in patients with metastatic SS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Evan Rosenbaum
- Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
| | - Kenneth Seier
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
| | - Chaitanya Bandlamudi
- Center for Molecular Oncology, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
| | - Mark Dickson
- Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York.,Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York
| | - Mrinal Gounder
- Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York.,Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York
| | - Mary L Keohan
- Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York.,Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York
| | - Ping Chi
- Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York.,Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York
| | - Ciara Kelly
- Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York.,Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York
| | - Sujana Movva
- Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York.,Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York
| | - Benjamin Nacev
- Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York.,Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York.,Laboratory of Chromatin Biology and Epigenetics, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York
| | - Noemi Simeone
- Department of Cancer Medicine, Fondazione Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS) Istituto Nazionale Tumori, Milan, Italy
| | - Mark Donoghue
- Center for Molecular Oncology, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
| | - Emily K Slotkin
- Department of Pediatrics, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
| | - Li-Xuan Qin
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
| | - Cristina R Antonescu
- Department of Pathology, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
| | - William D Tap
- Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York.,Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York
| | - Sandra P D'Angelo
- Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York. .,Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York.,Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
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The history and advances in cancer immunotherapy: understanding the characteristics of tumor-infiltrating immune cells and their therapeutic implications. Cell Mol Immunol 2020; 17:807-821. [PMID: 32612154 PMCID: PMC7395159 DOI: 10.1038/s41423-020-0488-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1073] [Impact Index Per Article: 268.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2020] [Accepted: 06/05/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Immunotherapy has revolutionized cancer treatment and rejuvenated the field of tumor immunology. Several types of immunotherapy, including adoptive cell transfer (ACT) and immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), have obtained durable clinical responses, but their efficacies vary, and only subsets of cancer patients can benefit from them. Immune infiltrates in the tumor microenvironment (TME) have been shown to play a key role in tumor development and will affect the clinical outcomes of cancer patients. Comprehensive profiling of tumor-infiltrating immune cells would shed light on the mechanisms of cancer-immune evasion, thus providing opportunities for the development of novel therapeutic strategies. However, the highly heterogeneous and dynamic nature of the TME impedes the precise dissection of intratumoral immune cells. With recent advances in single-cell technologies such as single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and mass cytometry, systematic interrogation of the TME is feasible and will provide insights into the functional diversities of tumor-infiltrating immune cells. In this review, we outline the recent progress in cancer immunotherapy, particularly by focusing on landmark studies and the recent single-cell characterization of tumor-associated immune cells, and we summarize the phenotypic diversities of intratumoral immune cells and their connections with cancer immunotherapy. We believe such a review could strengthen our understanding of the progress in cancer immunotherapy, facilitate the elucidation of immune cell modulation in tumor progression, and thus guide the development of novel immunotherapies for cancer treatment.
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Oppermans N, Kueberuwa G, Hawkins RE, Bridgeman JS. Transgenic T-cell receptor immunotherapy for cancer: building on clinical success. Ther Adv Vaccines Immunother 2020; 8:2515135520933509. [PMID: 32613155 PMCID: PMC7309387 DOI: 10.1177/2515135520933509] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2019] [Accepted: 05/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
With the advent of immunotherapy as a realistic and promising option for cancer treatment, adoptive cellular therapies are gaining significant interest in the clinic. Whilst the recent successes of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapies for haematological malignancies are widely known, they have yet to show great success in solid cancers. However, immune cells transduced with T-cell receptors have been shown to traffic to and exert anti-cancer effects on solid tumour cells with some great successes. In this review, we explore the field of transgenic T-cell receptor immunotherapy, highlighting some of the key clinical trials which have paved the way for this type of cellular immunotherapy. Some trials have shown amazing clinical results, including long-term remissions and minimal toxicity, and can be looked at as an exemplar for this adoptive cell therapy. There have also been key trials where unexpected, fatal, off-tumour toxicity has occurred, and these trials have also been instrumental in shaping safer clinical trials, particularly regarding preclinical testing. In addition to previous trials, we analysed the current clinical trial space for T-cell receptor T-cell therapy, showing which trials are dominating in the clinic and which targets are being prioritised by researchers around the world. By looking at both past and current trials, we have been able to identify key drivers in developing transgenic T-cell receptor immunotherapy for the future.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gray Kueberuwa
- Immetacyte Ltd., University of Manchester, Manchester, Greater Manchester, UK
| | | | - John S Bridgeman
- Immetacyte Ltd., University of Manchester, Manchester, Greater Manchester, UK
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44
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Atherton MJ, Lenz JA, Mason NJ. Sarcomas-A barren immunological wasteland or field of opportunity for immunotherapy? Vet Comp Oncol 2020; 18:447-470. [PMID: 32246517 DOI: 10.1111/vco.12595] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2020] [Revised: 03/13/2020] [Accepted: 03/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Key advances in our understanding of immunobiology and the immunosuppressive mechanisms of the tumour microenvironment have led to significant breakthroughs in manipulating the immune system to successfully treat cancer. Remarkable therapeutic responses have occurred with tumours that carry a high mutational burden. In these cases, pre-existing tumour-specific T cells can be rejuvenated via checkpoint inhibition to eliminate tumours. Furthermore, durable remissions have been achieved in haematological malignancies following adoptive transfer of T cells that specifically target cell surface proteins where expression is restricted to the malignancy's cell of origin. Soft tissue sarcomas and bone sarcomas have a paucity of non-synonymous somatic mutations and do not commonly express known, targetable, tumour-specific antigens. Historically, soft tissue sarcomas have been considered immunologically 'cold' and as such, unlikely candidates for immune therapy. Here, we review the immune landscape of canine and feline sarcomas and the immunotherapeutic strategies that have been employed in veterinary clinical trials to improve patient outcome. We also provide insight into immunotherapeutic approaches being used to treat human sarcomas. Together, current data indicates that, rather than a barren immunological wasteland, sarcomas represent a field of opportunities for immunotherapies. Furthermore, we and others would suggest that strategic combinations of immunotherapeutic approaches may hold promise for more effective treatments for high grade soft tissue sarcomas and bone sarcomas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J Atherton
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Jennifer A Lenz
- Department of Clinical Sciences and Advanced Medicine, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Nicola J Mason
- Department of Clinical Sciences and Advanced Medicine, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.,Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.,Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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Raza A, Merhi M, Inchakalody VP, Krishnankutty R, Relecom A, Uddin S, Dermime S. Unleashing the immune response to NY-ESO-1 cancer testis antigen as a potential target for cancer immunotherapy. J Transl Med 2020; 18:140. [PMID: 32220256 PMCID: PMC7102435 DOI: 10.1186/s12967-020-02306-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2019] [Accepted: 03/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Cancer Immunotherapy has recently emerged as a promising and effective modality to treat different malignancies. Antigenic profiling of cancer tissues and determination of any pre-existing immune responses to cancer antigens may help predict responses to immune intervention in cancer. NY-ESO-1, a cancer testis antigen is the most immunogenic antigen to date. The promise of NY-ESO-1 as a candidate for specific immune recognition of cancer comes from its restricted expression in normal adult tissue but frequent occurrence in multiple tumors including melanoma and carcinomas of lung, esophageal, liver, gastric, prostrate, ovarian, and bladder. MAIN BODY This review summarizes current knowledge of NY-ESO-1 as efficient biomarker and target of immunotherapy. It also addresses limitations and challenges preventing a robust immune response to NY-ESO-1 expressing cancers, and describes pre-clinical and clinical observations relevant to NY-ESO-1 immunity, holding potential therapeutic relevance for cancer treatment. CONCLUSION NY-ESO-1 induces strong immune responses in cancer patients but has limited objective clinical responses to NY-ESO-1 expressing tumors due to effect of competitive negative signaling from immune-checkpoints and immune-suppressive tumor microenvironment. We propose that combination therapy to increase the efficacy of NY-ESO-1 specific immunotherapeutic interventions should be explored to unleash the immune response against NY-ESO-1 expressing tumors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Afsheen Raza
- National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.,Translational Cancer Research Facility and Clinical Trial Unit, Interim Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Maysaloun Merhi
- National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.,Translational Cancer Research Facility and Clinical Trial Unit, Interim Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Varghese Philipose Inchakalody
- National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.,Translational Cancer Research Facility and Clinical Trial Unit, Interim Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | | | - Allan Relecom
- National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Shahab Uddin
- Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Said Dermime
- National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar. .,Translational Cancer Research Facility and Clinical Trial Unit, Interim Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar. .,Hamad Medical Corporation, iTRI, Hamad Medical City (Building 320, Office 3-6-5), Po Box 3050, Doha, Qatar.
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Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW Development of immune therapy in sarcoma faces the rarity and heterogeneity of the disease. This review analyses the data available from published clinical trials, and the new clinical strategies under assessment, developed in parallel to the exploration of biological mechanisms underlying the efficacy of immune therapy. RECENT FINDINGS Published data of four clinical trials assessing the efficacy of immune therapy in metastatic bone and soft-tissue sarcoma and associated translational programs are available. Response rate and progression-free survival with single-agent immune check point blockade in unselected sarcoma are low. No biomarkers of efficacy have been identified so far. To increase the efficacy of such treatments, combination of immune check point blockade with chemotherapy, radiotherapy or targeted therapy is currently assessed. Signal of specific sensibility of some histological subtypes is explored. Adoptive cell therapy or vaccine seems particularly promising in translocation-associated sarcoma. SUMMARY Characterization of immune environment, mechanism of action of combined regimen and identification of biomarkers will be key steps to build the next clinical trials to improve the efficacy of such strategy.
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Danilova A, Misyurin V, Novik A, Girdyuk D, Avdonkina N, Nekhaeva T, Emelyanova N, Pipia N, Misyurin A, Baldueva I. Cancer/testis antigens expression during cultivation of melanoma and soft tissue sarcoma cells. Clin Sarcoma Res 2020; 10:3. [PMID: 32042403 PMCID: PMC6998350 DOI: 10.1186/s13569-020-0125-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2019] [Accepted: 01/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Autologous dendritic cells (DC) loaded with tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) are a promising approach for anticancer immunotherapy. Polyantigen lysates appear to be an excellent source of TAAs for loading onto the patient's dendritic cells. Cancer/testis antigens (CTA) are expressed by a wide range of tumors, but are minimally expressed on normal tissues, and could serve as a universal target for immunotherapy. However, CTA expression levels can vary significantly in patients with the same tumor type. We proposed that patients who do not respond to DC-based therapy may have distinct features of the CTA expression profile on tumor cells. PATIENTS AND METHODS We compared the gene expression of the principal families CTA in 22 melanoma and 27 soft tissue and bone sarcomas cell lines (STBS), received from patients and used for DC vaccine preparation. RESULTS The majority (47 of 49, 95.9%) cell lines showed CTA gene activity. The incidence of gene expression of GAGE, NYESO1, MAGEA1, PRAME's was significantly different (adj. p < 0.05) between melanoma and sarcoma cell lines. The expression of the SCP1 gene was detected neither in melanoma cells nor in the STBS cells. Clustering by the gene expression profile revealed four different expression patterns. We found three main patterns types: hyperexpression of multiple CTA, hyperexpression of one CTA with almost no expression of others, and no expression of CTA. All clusters types exist in melanoma and sarcoma cell lines. We observed dependence of killing efficacy from the PRAME (rho = 0.940, adj. p < 0.01) expression during real-time monitoring with the xCELLigence system of the interaction between melanoma or sarcoma cells with the T-lymphocytes activated by the lysate of selected allogenous melanoma cell lines with high expression of CTA. CONCLUSION Our results demonstrate that one can use lysates from allogeneic melanoma cell lines as a source of CTA for DC load during the production of anticancer vaccines for the STBS treatment. Patterns of CTA expression should be evaluated as biomarkers of response in prospective clinical trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Danilova
- N.N. Petrov’ National Medical Cancer Research Center, Leningradskaya str., 68, Pesochniy, Saint-Petersburg, 197758 Russian Federation
- Department of Oncoimmunology, N.N. Petrov’ National Medical Cancer Research Center, Leningradskaya str., 68, Pesochniy, Saint-Petersburg, 197758 Russian Federation
| | - Vsevolod Misyurin
- N.N. Blokhin’ National Medical Cancer Research Center, Kashirskoye sh. 24, Moscow, 115478 Russian Federation
| | - Aleksei Novik
- N.N. Petrov’ National Medical Cancer Research Center, Leningradskaya str., 68, Pesochniy, Saint-Petersburg, 197758 Russian Federation
| | - Dmitry Girdyuk
- N.N. Petrov’ National Medical Cancer Research Center, Leningradskaya str., 68, Pesochniy, Saint-Petersburg, 197758 Russian Federation
| | - Natalia Avdonkina
- N.N. Petrov’ National Medical Cancer Research Center, Leningradskaya str., 68, Pesochniy, Saint-Petersburg, 197758 Russian Federation
| | - Tatiana Nekhaeva
- N.N. Petrov’ National Medical Cancer Research Center, Leningradskaya str., 68, Pesochniy, Saint-Petersburg, 197758 Russian Federation
| | - Natalia Emelyanova
- N.N. Petrov’ National Medical Cancer Research Center, Leningradskaya str., 68, Pesochniy, Saint-Petersburg, 197758 Russian Federation
| | - Nino Pipia
- N.N. Petrov’ National Medical Cancer Research Center, Leningradskaya str., 68, Pesochniy, Saint-Petersburg, 197758 Russian Federation
| | - Andrey Misyurin
- N.N. Blokhin’ National Medical Cancer Research Center, Kashirskoye sh. 24, Moscow, 115478 Russian Federation
| | - Irina Baldueva
- N.N. Petrov’ National Medical Cancer Research Center, Leningradskaya str., 68, Pesochniy, Saint-Petersburg, 197758 Russian Federation
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Ingley KM, Cohen-Gogo S, Gupta AA. Systemic therapy in pediatric-type soft-tissue sarcoma. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2020; 27:6-16. [PMID: 32174753 DOI: 10.3747/co.27.5481] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Soft-tissue sarcoma (sts) is rare and represents approximately 7% of cancers in children and in adolescents less than 20 years of age. Rhabdomyosarcoma (rms) is most prevalent in children less than 10 years of age and peaks again during adolescence (16-19 years of age). Multi-agent chemotherapy constitutes the mainstay of treatment for rms. In other non-rhabdomyosarcoma soft-tissue tumours, such as synovial sarcoma, evidence for routine use of chemotherapy is less robust, and alternative treatment options, including targeted agents and immunotherapy, are being explored. In this review, we focus on chemotherapy for pediatric-type rms and discuss the advances and challenges in systemic treatment for select non-rhabdomyosarcoma soft-tissue tumours in children and adolescents. We support an increasingly cooperative approach for treating pediatric and adult sts.
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Affiliation(s)
- K M Ingley
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia.,Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Service, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Australia
| | - S Cohen-Gogo
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON
| | - A A Gupta
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON.,Department of Medical Oncology and Hematology, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto, ON.,Division of Medical Oncology and Hematology, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON
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Thanindratarn P, Dean DC, Nelson SD, Hornicek FJ, Duan Z. Chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR-T) cell immunotherapy for sarcomas: From mechanisms to potential clinical applications. Cancer Treat Rev 2020; 82:101934. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ctrv.2019.101934] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2019] [Revised: 11/13/2019] [Accepted: 11/19/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
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Pavlick A, Blazquez AB, Meseck M, Lattanzi M, Ott PA, Marron TU, Holman RM, Mandeli J, Salazar AM, McClain CB, Gimenez G, Balan S, Gnjatic S, Sabado RL, Bhardwaj N. Combined Vaccination with NY-ESO-1 Protein, Poly-ICLC, and Montanide Improves Humoral and Cellular Immune Responses in Patients with High-Risk Melanoma. Cancer Immunol Res 2020; 8:70-80. [PMID: 31699709 PMCID: PMC6946846 DOI: 10.1158/2326-6066.cir-19-0545] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2019] [Revised: 08/01/2019] [Accepted: 10/31/2019] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Given its ability to induce both humoral and cellular immune responses, NY-ESO-1 has been considered a suitable antigen for a cancer vaccine. Despite promising results from early-phase clinical studies in patients with melanoma, NY-ESO-1 vaccine immunotherapy has not been widely investigated in larger trials; consequently, many questions remain as to the optimal vaccine formulation, predictive biomarkers, and sequencing and timing of vaccines in melanoma treatment. We conducted an adjuvant phase I/II clinical trial in high-risk resected melanoma to optimize the delivery of poly-ICLC, a TLR-3/MDA-5 agonist, as a component of vaccine formulation. A phase I dose-escalation part was undertaken to identify the MTD of poly-ICLC administered in combination with NY-ESO-1 and montanide. This was followed by a randomized phase II part investigating the MTD of poly-ICLC with NY-ESO-1 with or without montanide. The vaccine regimens were generally well tolerated, with no treatment-related grade 3/4 adverse events. Both regimens induced integrated NY-ESO-1-specific CD4+ T-cell and humoral responses. CD8+ T-cell responses were mainly detected in patients receiving montanide. T-cell avidity toward NY-ESO-1 peptides was higher in patients vaccinated with montanide. In conclusion, NY-ESO-1 protein in combination with poly-ICLC is safe, well tolerated, and capable of inducing integrated antibody and CD4+ T-cell responses in most patients. Combination with montanide enhances antigen-specific T-cell avidity and CD8+ T-cell cross-priming in a fraction of patients, indicating that montanide contributes to the induction of specific CD8+ T-cell responses to NY-ESO-1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Pavlick
- Cancer Institute, New York University School of Medicine, New York, New York
| | - Ana B Blazquez
- Tisch Cancer Institute, Departments of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Marcia Meseck
- Tisch Cancer Institute, Departments of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Michael Lattanzi
- Cancer Institute, New York University School of Medicine, New York, New York
| | | | - Thomas U Marron
- Tisch Cancer Institute, Departments of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | | | - John Mandeli
- Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Tisch Cancer Institute, New York, New York
| | | | - Christopher B McClain
- Tisch Cancer Institute, Departments of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Gustavo Gimenez
- Tisch Cancer Institute, Departments of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Sreekumar Balan
- Tisch Cancer Institute, Departments of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Sacha Gnjatic
- Tisch Cancer Institute, Departments of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
- Precision Immunology Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | | | - Nina Bhardwaj
- Tisch Cancer Institute, Departments of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York.
- Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Tisch Cancer Institute, New York, New York
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