Is cancer biology different in older patients?

Effect of age on safety and efficacy of novel cancer drugs investigated in early-phase clinical trials

BACKGROUND

Elderly patients are underrepresented in clinical trials, particularly in early-phase studies. Our study assessed the safety and efficacy of novel anti-cancer treatments investigated in early-phase clinical trials, comparing outcomes between younger and elderly patients.

METHODS

This retrospective study analyzed data from patients enrolled in phase I/II trials at our center between January 2014 and April 2021. We evaluated clinicopathologic characteristics, toxicity, and clinical efficacy, categorizing patients into younger (≤ 65 years) and elderly (> 65 years) groups.

RESULTS

419 patients were included with a median age of 56 years. Among these, 107 (26 %) were older than 65 years. Predominant cancers included breast (48 %), lung (10 %), and melanoma (5 %). Patients were treated in 64 trials, predominantly receiving immunotherapy-based (47 %) or targeted therapy-based (45 %) treatment. Elderly presented with poorer ECOG performance status (P = 0.001) and had fewer prior therapy lines (P = 0.01) than younger patients. Grade ≥ 3 adverse events (AEs) were similar across age groups (31 % younger vs 33 % elderly; P = 0.7), including in combination therapy scenarios. However, elderly patients experienced more AEs with antibody-drug conjugates compared to younger counterparts (56 % vs 14 %, P = 0.036) and were more likely to discontinue treatment due to toxicity (15 % vs 7 %; P = 0.011). No significant age-related differences in response rates and survival outcomes were observed across treatment modalities, except for immunotherapy-based regimens for which elderly patients exhibited higher response rates, disease control rates, and prolonged progression-free survival.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest that elderly exhibit comparable safety and efficacy outcomes to younger patients in early-phase clinical trials for new cancer drugs. This underscores the importance of including elderly patients in phase I/II trials to ensure the generalizability of study results and mitigate age-related disparities in cancer treatment access.

Electronic Health Record-Based Nudge Intervention and Axillary Surgery in Older Women With Breast Cancer: A Nonrandomized Controlled Trial

Importance

Choosing Wisely recommendations advocate against routine use of axillary staging in older women with early-stage, clinically node-negative (cN0), hormone receptor-positive (HR+), and HER2-negative breast cancer. However, rates of sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) in this population remain persistently high.

Objective

To evaluate whether an electronic health record (EHR)-based nudge intervention targeting surgeons in their first outpatient visit with patients meeting Choosing Wisely criteria decreases rates of SLNB.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This nonrandomized controlled trial was a hybrid type 1 effectiveness-implementation study with subsequent postintervention semistructured interviews and lasted from October 2021 to October 2023. Data came from EHRs at 8 outpatient clinics within an integrated health care system; participants included 7 breast surgical oncologists. Data were collected for female patients meeting Choosing Wisely criteria for omission of SLNB (aged ≥70 years with cT1 and cT2, cN0, HR+/HER2- breast cancer). The study included a 12-month preintervention control period; baseline surveys assessing perceived acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility of the designed intervention; and a 12-month intervention period.

Intervention

A column nudge was embedded into the surgeon's schedule in the EHR identifying patients meeting Choosing Wisely criteria for potential SLNB omission.

Main Outcomes and Measures

The primary outcome was rate of SLNB following nudge deployment into the EHR.

Results

Similar baseline demographic and tumor characteristics were observed before (control period, n = 194) and after (intervention period, n = 193) nudge deployment. Patients in both the control and intervention period had a median (IQR) age of 75 (72-79) years. Compared with the control period, unadjusted rates of SLNB decreased by 23.1 percentage points (46.9% SLNB rate prenudge to 23.8% after; 95% CI, -32.9 to -13.8) in the intervention period. An interrupted time series model showed a reduction in the rate of SLNB following nudge deployment (adjusted odds ratio, 0.26; 95% CI, 0.07 to 0.90; P = .03). The participating surgeons scored the intervention highly on acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility. Dominant themes from semistructured interviews indicated that the intervention helped remind the surgeons of potential Choosing Wisely applicability without the need for additional clicks or actions on the day of the patient visit, which facilitated use.

Conclusions and Relevance

This study showed that a nudge intervention in the EHR significantly decreased low-value axillary surgery in older women with early-stage, cN0, HR+/HER2- breast cancer. This user-friendly and easily implementable EHR-based intervention could be a beneficial approach for decreasing low-value care in other practice settings or patient populations.

Trial Registration

ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT06006910.

Understanding nanoparticle-liver interactions in nanomedicine

INTRODUCTION

Understanding the interactions between administered nanoparticles and the liver is crucial for developing safe and effective nanomedicines. As the liver can sequester up to 99% of these particles due to its major phagocytic role, understanding these interactions is vital for clinical translation.

AREAS COVERED

This review highlights recent studies on nanoparticle-liver interactions, including the influence of nanoparticle physicochemical properties on delivery, strategies to enhance delivery efficiency by modulating liver Kupffer cells, and their potential for treating certain hepatic diseases. Additionally, we discuss how aging impacts the liver's phagocytic functions.

EXPERT OPINION

While liver accumulation can hinder nanomedicine safety and effectiveness, it also presents opportunities for treating certain liver diseases. A thorough understanding of nanoparticle-liver interactions is essential for advancing the clinical application of nanomedicines.

Oxaliplatin-Based Adjuvant Chemotherapy in Older Patients With Stage III Colon Cancer: An ACCENT/IDEA Pooled Analysis of 12 Trials

PURPOSE

A number of studies suggest that older patients may have reduced or no benefit from the addition of oxaliplatin to fluoropyrimidines as adjuvant chemotherapy for stage III colon cancer (CC).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We studied the prognostic impact of age, as well as treatment adherence/toxicity patterns according to age, in patients with stage III CC who received 3 or 6 months of infusional fluorouracil, leucovorin, and oxaliplatin/capecitabine and oxaliplatin (CAPOX) on the basis of data collected from trials from the ACCENT and IDEA databases. Associations between age and time to recurrence (TTR), disease-free survival (DFS), overall survival (OS), survival after recurrence (SAR), and cancer-specific survival (CSS) were assessed by a Cox model or a competing risk model, stratified by studies and adjusted for sex, performance status, T and N stage, and year of enrollment.

RESULTS

A total of 17,909 patients were included; 24% of patients were age older than 70 years (n = 4,340). Patients age ≥70 years had higher rates of early treatment discontinuation. Rates of grade ≥3 adverse events were similar between those older and younger than 70 years, except for diarrhea and neutropenia that were more frequent in older patients treated with CAPOX (14.2% v 11.2%; P = .01 and 12.1% v 9.6%; P = .04, respectively). In multivariable analysis, TTR was not significantly different between patients <70 years and those ≥70 years, but DFS, OS, SAR, and CSS were significantly shorter in those patients ≥70 years.

CONCLUSION

In patients ≥70 years with stage III CC fit enough to be enrolled in clinical trials, oxaliplatin-based adjuvant chemotherapy was well tolerated and led to similar TTR compared with younger patients, suggesting similar efficacy. TTR may be a more appropriate end point for efficacy in this patient population.

Challenges and Opportunities for Precision Surgery for Colorectal Liver Metastases

The incidence of colorectal cancer and colorectal liver metastases (CRLM) is increasing globally due to an interaction of environmental and genetic factors. A minority of patients with CRLM have surgically resectable disease, but for those who have resection as part of multimodal therapy for their disease, long-term survival has been shown. Precision surgery-the idea of careful patient selection and targeting of surgical intervention, such that treatments shown to be proven to benefit on a population level are the optimal treatment for each individual patient-is the new paradigm of care. Key to this is the understanding of tumour molecular biology and clinically relevant mutations, such as KRAS, BRAF, and microsatellite instability (MSI), which can predict poorer overall outcomes and a poorer response to systemic therapy. The emergence of immunotherapy and hepatic artery infusion (HAI) pumps show potential to convert previously unresectable disease to resectable disease, in addition to established systemic and locoregional therapies, but the surgeon must be wary of poor-quality livers and the spectre of post-hepatectomy liver failure (PHLF). Volume modulation, a cornerstone of hepatic surgery for a generation, has been given a shot in the arm with the advent of liver venous depletion (LVD) ensuring significantly more hypertrophy of the future liver remnant (FLR). The optimal timing of liver resection for those patients with synchronous disease is yet to be truly established, but evidence would suggest that those patients requiring complex colorectal surgery and major liver resection are best served with a staged approach. In the operating room, parenchyma-preserving minimally invasive surgery (MIS) can dramatically reduce the surgical insult to the patient and lead to better perioperative outcomes, with quicker return to function.

Pro-inflammatory cytokines and CXC chemokines as game-changer in age-associated prostate cancer and ovarian cancer: Insights from preclinical and clinical studies' outcomes

Prostate cancer (PC) and Ovarian cancer (OC) are two of the most common types of cancer that affect the reproductive systems of older men and women. These cancers are associated with a poor quality of life among the aged population. Therefore, finding new and innovative ways to detect, treat, and prevent these cancers in older patients is essential. Finding biomarkers for these malignancies will increase the chance of early detection and effective treatment, subsequently improving the survival rate. Studies have shown that the prevalence and health of some illnesses are linked to an impaired immune system. However, the age-associated changes in the immune system during malignancies such as PC and OC are poorly understood. Recent research has suggested that the excessive production of inflammatory immune mediators, such as interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8), transforming growth factor (TGF), tumor necrosis factor (TNF), CXC motif chemokine ligand 1 (CXCL1), CXC motif chemokine ligand 12 (CXCL12), and CXC motif chemokine ligand 13 (CXCL13), etc., significantly impact the development of PC and OC in elderly patients. Our review focuses on the latest functional studies of pro-inflammatory cytokines (interleukins) and CXC chemokines, which serve as biomarkers in elderly patients with PC and OC. Thus, we aim to shed light on how these biomarkers affect the development of PC and OC in elderly patients. We also examine the current status and future perspective of cytokines (interleukins) and CXC chemokines-based therapeutic targets in OC and PC treatment for elderly patients.

Educational interventions to reduce depression and anxiety in older adults with cancer in the community: a systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of randomised controlled trials

BACKGROUND

Older adults make up half of those with cancer and are prone to mood disorders, such as depression and severe anxiety, resulting in negative repercussions on their health-related quality-of-life (HRQOL). Educational interventions have been shown to reduce adverse psychological outcomes. We examined the effect of educational interventions on the severity of psychological outcomes in older adults with cancer (OAC) in the community.

METHOD

This PRISMA-adherent systematic review involved a search of PubMed, MedLine, Embase and PsycINFO for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluated educational interventions impacting the severity of depression, anxiety and HRQOL in OAC. Random effects meta-analyses and meta-regressions were used for the primary analysis.

RESULTS

Fifteen RCTs were included. Meta-analyses showed a statistically insignificant decrease in the severity of depression (SMD = -0.30, 95%CI: -0.69; 0.09), anxiety (SMD = -0.30, 95%CI: -0.73; 0.13) and improvement in overall HRQOL scores (SMD = 0.44, 95%CI: -0.16; 1.04). However, subgroup analyses revealed that these interventions were particularly effective in reducing the severity of depression and anxiety in specific groups, such as OAC aged 60-65, those with early-stage cancer, those with lung cancer and those treated with chemotherapy. A systematic review found that having attained a higher education and income level increased the efficacy of interventions in decreasing the severity of adverse psychological outcomes.

CONCLUSION

Although overall meta-analyses were statistically insignificant, subgroup meta-analyses highlighted a few specific subgroups that the educational interventions were effective for. Future interventions can be implemented to target these vulnerable groups.

Aging represses lung tumorigenesis and alters tumor suppression

Most cancers are diagnosed in persons over the age of sixty, but little is known about how age impacts tumorigenesis. While aging is accompanied by mutation accumulation - widely understood to contribute to cancer risk - it is also associated with numerous other cellular and molecular changes likely to impact tumorigenesis. Moreover, cancer incidence decreases in the oldest part of the population, suggesting that very old age may reduce carcinogenesis. Here we show that aging represses tumor initiation and growth in genetically engineered mouse models of human lung cancer. Moreover, aging dampens the impact of inactivating many, but not all, tumor suppressor genes with the impact of inactivating PTEN, a negative regulator of the PI3K/AKT pathway, weakened to a disproportionate extent. Single-cell transcriptomic analysis revealed that neoplastic cells from tumors in old mice retain many age-related transcriptomic changes, showing that age has an enduring impact that persists through oncogenic transformation. Furthermore, the consequences of PTEN inactivation were strikingly age-dependent, with PTEN deficiency reducing signatures of aging in cancer cells and the tumor microenvironment. Our findings suggest that the relationship between age and lung cancer incidence may reflect an integration of the competing effects of driver mutation accumulation and tumor suppressive effects of aging.

Global burden of 34 cancers among women in 2020 and projections to 2040: Population-based data from 185 countries/territories

Globally women face inequality in cancer outcomes; for example, smaller improvements in life expectancy due to decreased cancer-related deaths than men (0.5 vs 0.8 years, 1981-2010). However, comprehensive global evidence on the burden of cancer among women (including by reproductive age spectrum) as well as disparities by region, remains limited. This study aimed to address these evidence gaps by considering 34 cancer types in 2020 and their projections for 2040. The cancer burden among women in 2020 was estimated using population-based data from 185 countries/territories sourced from GLOBOCAN. Mortality to Incidence Ratios (MIR), a proxy for survival, were estimated by dividing the age-standardised mortality rates by the age-standardised incidence rates. Demographic projections were performed to 2040. In 2020, there were an estimated 9.3 million cancer cases and 4.4 million cancer deaths globally. Projections showed an increase to 13.3 million (↑44%) and 7.1 million (↑60%) in 2040, respectively, with larger proportional increases in low- and middle-income countries. MIR among women was higher (poorer survival) in rare cancers and with increasing age. Countries with low Human Development Indexes (HDIs) had higher MIRs (69%) than countries with very high HDIs (30%). There was inequality in cancer incidence and mortality worldwide among women in 2020, which will further widen by 2040. Implementing cancer prevention efforts and providing basic cancer treatments by expanding universal health coverage through a human rights approach, expanding early screening opportunities and strengthening medical infrastructure are key to improving and ensuring equity in cancer control and outcomes.

Cellular therapies in older adults with hematological malignancies: A case-based, state-of-the-art review

Cellular therapies, including autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT), allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT), and chimeric antigen receptor- (CAR-) T cell therapies are essential treatment modalities for many hematological malignancies. Although their use in older adults has substantially increased within the past decades, cellular therapies represent intensive treatment approaches that exclude a large percentage of older adults due to comorbidities and frailty. Under- and overtreatment in older adults with hematologic malignancy is a challenge and many treatment decisions are influenced by chronologic age. The advent of efficient and well-tolerated newer treatment approaches for multiple myeloma has challenged the role of ASCT. In the modern era, there are no randomized clinical trials of transplant versus non-transplant strategies for patients ≥65 years. Nonetheless, ASCT is feasible for selected older patients and does not result in long-term compromise in quality of life. AlloHCT is the only curative approach for acute myeloid leukemia of intermediate and unfavourable risk but carries a significant risk for non-relapse mortality depending on comorbidities, general fitness, and transplant-specific characteristics, such as intensity of conditioning and donor choice. However, alloHCT is feasible in appropriately-selected older adults. Early referral for evaluation is strongly encouraged as this is the most obvious barrier. CAR-T cell therapies have shown unprecedented clinical efficacy and durability in relapsed and refractory diffuse large B cell lymphoma. Its use is well tolerated in older adults, although evidence comes from limited case numbers. Whether patients who are deemed unfit for ASCT qualify for CAR-T cell therapy remains elusive, but the tolerability and efficacy of CAR-T cell therapy appears promising, especially for older patients. The evidence from randomized trials is strong in favor of using a comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) to reduce treatment-related toxicities and guide treatment intensity in the care for solid tumors; its use for evaluation of cellular therapies is less evidence-based. However, CGA can provide useful information on patients' fitness, resilient mechanisms, and reveal potential optimization strategies for compensating for vulnerabilities. In this narrative review, we will discuss key questions on cellular therapies in older adults based on illustrative patient cases.

Cutaneous melanoma in older patients

BACKGROUND

In industrialized countries, the aging population is steadily rising. The incidence of cutaneous malignant melanoma (CMM) is highest in old people. This study focuses on the clinicopathological profile of CMM and indicators of diagnostic-therapeutic performance in older patients.

METHODS

This retrospective population-based cohort study included 1,368 incident CMM, as recorded in 2017 by the Regional Veneto Cancer Registry (Northeast Italy). Older subjects were defined as ≥ 80, old as 65-79, and adults as < 65 years of age. The strength of association between pairs of variables was tested by Cramer's-V. Using age groups as the dependent variable, ordered logistic regression was fitted using the clinicopathological CMM profiles as covariates. In each of the three age-groups, the indicators of clinical performance were computed using the Clopper-Pearson exact method.

RESULTS

Compared to patients aged younger than 80 years (1,187), CMM in older patients (181; 13.2%) featured different CMM topography, a higher prevalence of ulcers (43.3% versus 12.7%; p < 0.001), a higher Breslow index (p < 0.001), a lower prevalence of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (64.4% versus 76.5%, p < 0.01), and a more advanced pTNM stage at clinical presentation (p < 0.001). Elderly patients with a positive sentinel-lymph node less frequently underwent sentinel- lymph node biopsy and lymphadenectomy (60.0% versus 94.2%, and 44.4% versus 85.5%, respectively; p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

In older CMM patients, the clinicopathological presentation of CMM shows a distinctive profile. The present results provide critical information to optimize secondary prevention strategies and refine diagnostic-therapeutic procedures tailored to older patients.

A comprehensive analysis of clinical and polygenic germline influences on somatic mutational burden

Tumor mutational burden (TMB), the total number of somatic mutations in the tumor, and copy number burden (CNB), the corresponding measure of aneuploidy, are established fundamental somatic features and emerging biomarkers for immunotherapy. However, the genetic and non-genetic influences on TMB/CNB and, critically, the manner by which they influence patient outcomes remain poorly understood. Here, we present a large germline-somatic study of TMB/CNB with >23,000 individuals across 17 cancer types, of which 12,000 also have extensive clinical, treatment, and overall survival (OS) measurements available. We report dozens of clinical associations with TMB/CNB, observing older age and male sex to have a strong effect on TMB and weaker impact on CNB. We additionally identified significant germline influences on TMB/CNB, including fine-scale European ancestry and germline polygenic risk scores (PRSs) for smoking, tanning, white blood cell counts, and educational attainment. We quantify the causal effect of exposures on somatic mutational processes using Mendelian randomization. Many of the identified features associated with TMB/CNB were additionally associated with OS for individuals treated at a single tertiary cancer center. For individuals receiving immunotherapy, we observed a complex relationship between PRSs for educational attainment, self-reported college attainment, TMB, and survival, suggesting that the influence of this biomarker may be substantially modified by socioeconomic status. While the accumulation of somatic alterations is a stochastic process, our work demonstrates that it can be shaped by host characteristics including germline genetics.

Disparities in care of older adults of color with cancer: A narrative review

This review describes the barriers and challenges faced by older adults of color with cancer and highlights methods to improve their overall care. In the next decade, cancer incidence rates are expected to increase in the United States for people aged ≥65 years. A large proportion will be older adults of color who often have worse outcomes than older White patients. Many issues contribute to racial disparities in older adults, including biological factors and social determinants of health (SDOH) related to healthcare access, socioeconomic concerns, systemic racism, mistrust, and the neighborhood where a person lives. These disparities are exacerbated by age-related challenges often experienced by older adults, such as decreased functional status, impaired cognition, high rates of comorbidities and polypharmacy, poor nutrition, and limited social support. Additionally, underrepresentation of both patients of color and older adults in cancer clinical research results in a lack of adequate data to guide the management of these patients. Use of geriatric assessments (GA) can aid providers in uncovering age-related concerns and personalizing interventions for older patients. Research demonstrates the ability of GA-directed care to result in fewer treatment-related toxicities and improved quality of life, thus supporting the routine incorporation of validated GA into these patients' care. GA can be enhanced by including evaluation of SDOH, which can help healthcare providers understand and address the needs of older adults of color with cancer who face disparities related to their age and race.

Age-associated disparity in phagocytic clearance affects the efficacy of cancer nanotherapeutics

Nanomedicines have been approved to treat multiple human diseases. However, clinical adoption of nanoformulated agents is often hindered by concerns about hepatic uptake and clearance, a process that is not fully understood. Here we show that the antitumour efficacy of cancer nanomedicine exhibits an age-associated disparity. Tumour delivery and treatment outcomes are superior in old versus young mice, probably due to an age-related decline in the ability of hepatic phagocytes to take up and remove nanoparticles. Transcriptomic- and protein-level analysis at the single-cell and bulk levels reveals an age-associated decrease in the numbers of hepatic macrophages that express the scavenger receptor MARCO in mice, non-human primates and humans. Therapeutic blockade of MARCO is shown to decrease the phagocytic uptake of nanoparticles and improve the antitumour effect of clinically approved cancer nanotherapeutics in young but not aged mice. Together, these results reveal an age-associated disparity in the phagocytic clearance of nanotherapeutics that affects their antitumour response, thus providing a strong rationale for an age-appropriate approach to cancer nanomedicine.

Antibody drug conjugates in older patients: State of the art

More than half of cancer cases occur in patients aged 65 years or older. The efficacy and safety of antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) in older patients remains an unclear subject as available evidence is limited. Geriatric population is underrepresented in clinical trials. Consequently, most of our knowledge regarding innovative therapeutics was studied on a younger population. In this review of published literature, we report the available information on efficacy, safety and pharmacokinetics of FDA approved ADCs for hematologic malignancies and solid tumors in the geriatric population. We explore the results of clinical trials dedicated for older individuals as well as subgroup analyses of the geriatric population in major trials evaluating these drugs. Available data suggest a similar efficacy in older adults as compared to general population. However, older patients might be prone to a higher rate of adverse events in incidence with a potential impact on quality of life. We lack data to support primary dose reductions or schedule modifications in this category of patients. No pharmacokinetic differences were reported between age groups. It is crucial to encourage the development of clinical trials dedicated to older patients with geriatric parameters (G8 score, G-CODE…) so that results can be more representative of this population outside of clinical trials.

Therapeutic Approaches to Increase the Survival Rate of Cancer Patients in the Younger and Older Population

Various developments have been observed in the treatment of cancer patients, such as higher survival rates and better treatment outcomes. However, expecting similar outcomes in older patients remains a challenge. The main reason for this conclusion is the exclusion of older people from clinical trials for cancer drugs, as well as other factors, such as comorbidity, side effects, age-related frailties and their willingness to undergo multiple treatments. However, the discovery of new techniques and drug combinations has led to a significant improvement in the survival of the elderly population after the onset of the disease. On the other hand, cancer treatments have not become more complex for the younger population when compared to the older population, as the younger population tends to respond well to treatment trials and their physiological conditions are stable in response to treatments. In summary, this review correlates recent cancer treatment strategies and the corresponding responses and survival outcomes of older and younger patients.

Factors influencing support provision to the family caregivers of elderly patients with cancer: A qualitative study

PURPOSE

Family caregivers (FCs) play a significant role in providing care to elderly patients with cancer (PWC). Meanwhile, they face a wide range of challenges and are considered hidden patients who require special attention and support. Nonetheless, they do not receive adequate support. This study aimed at exploring the factors influencing support provision to the FCs of elderly PWC.

METHOD

This descriptive qualitative study was conducted in 2020-2022. Thirty-one FCs and family members of elderly PWC and healthcare providers were purposefully recruited from various healthcare centers in Tehran, Iran. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed using Graneheim and Lundman's conventional content analysis approach. Trustworthiness was ensured through Lincoln and Guba's criteria.

RESULTS

Factors influencing support provision to the FCs of elderly PWC came into three main categories, namely the potential for supporting elderly PWC and FCs, complexity of family and social support, and support-related challenges of the healthcare system.

CONCLUSIONS

Identifying the factors influencing support provision to the FCs of elderly PWC can assist healthcare policymakers and authorities in developing more effective strategies to support these groups.

Temporal Trends of Stages and Survival of Biliary Tract Cancers in the United States and Associations with Demographic Factors

BACKGROUND

The incidence of cholangiocarcinoma and gallbladder cancer has been increasing and decreasing respectively in the United States, whereas their mortality has been declining since 1980, which suggests improved overall survival of biliary tract cancers (BTC). We aimed to investigate temporal trends of BTC stages and survival and their associations with demographic factors.

METHODS

A total of 55,163 patients with BTC collected from 2000 to 2018 from the NCI Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results 18 registry were included in this study. We assessed the temporal trend of BTC stages with diagnosis years using the annual percentage of change (APC) in the proportion of the stages. We estimated the association of BTC survival and stages with diagnosis years and demographic factors using the Cox regression models.

RESULTS

While localized BTC proportion remained little changed from 2006 to 2018, the proportion of regional and distant BTCs significantly decreased (APC = -2.3%) and increased (APC = 2.7%), respectively, through the years. The overall and cancer-specific survival increased from 41.0% and 47.3% in 2000 to 2004 to 51.2% and 53.8% in 2015 to 2018, respectively. Patients with BTC who were older, Black, unmarried, or had lower socioeconomic status (SES) had significantly poorer overall survival.

CONCLUSIONS

We found that distant and regional BTC significantly increased and decreased, respectively, and the BTC survival significantly improved over time. Age, sex, race, SES, and marital status were significantly associated with overall survival and less evidently with cancer-specific survival of patients with BTC.

IMPACT

Our findings suggest that demographic factors were associated with BTC stages and BTC survival.

Beyond youth: Understanding CAR T cell fitness in the context of immunological aging

Population aging, a pervasive global demographic trend, is anticipated to challenge health and social systems worldwide. This phenomenon is due to medical advancements enabling longer lifespans, with 20% of the US population soon to be over 65 years old. Consequently, there will be a surge in age-related diseases. Senescence, characterized by the loss of biological maintenance and homeostasis at molecular and cellular levels, either correlates with or directly causes age-related phenotypic changes. Decline of the immune system is a critical factor in the senescence process, with cancer being a primary cause of death in elderly populations. Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy, an innovative approach, has demonstrated success mainly in pediatric and young adult hematological malignancies but remains largely ineffective for diseases affecting older populations, such as late-in-life B cell malignancies and most solid tumor indications. This limitation arises because CAR T cell efficacy heavily relies on the fitness of the patient-derived starting T cell material. Numerous studies suggest that T cell senescence may be a key driver of CAR T cell deficiency. This review examines correlates and underlying factors associated with favorable CAR T cell outcomes and explores potential experimental and clinically actionable strategies for T cell rejuvenation.

Implementing the 4 Ms in a geriatric oncology clinic to create age friendly cancer care

BACKGROUND

Over 50 % of cancers occur in people aged 70 and older, and 60 % of all cancer deaths occur in this population. Cancer care for the older adult is complex related to comorbidities, age related changes and various social needs. They also may experience cognitive and physical limitations during their cancer journey. At Moffitt Cancer Center, 49 % of patients seen in clinic, in hospital, in diagnostic and procedure areas are 65 years of age and over. The purpose of this quality project was to craft age friendly cancer care utilizing the 4 Ms framework as a roadmap to enterprise spread at an NCI Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center.

METHODS

Each new patient to the Senior Adult Oncology Program receives geriatric screening with SAOP-3, Timed up and Go and asked, "what matters most". The SAOP-3 Geriatric screening tool includes domains for screening depression and cognitive impairment. High risk medications prompt a pharmacy consult for deprescribing opportunities.

RESULTS

Since becoming recognized as an AFHS, the 4 M's have been implemented in all inpatient units at 2 hospitals and continue to spread to ambulatory clinics on 4 outpatient sites. Further enterprise spread totals over 5500 geriatric oncology patients were screened utilizing the SAOP-3 screening tool.

The effect of comprehensive geriatric assessment on care received, treatment completion, toxicity, cancer-related and geriatric assessment outcomes, and quality of life for older adults receiving systemic anti-cancer treatment: A systematic review

INTRODUCTION

This systematic review aims to summarise the available literature on the effect of geriatric assessment (multidimensional health assessment across medical, social, and functional domains; "GA") or comprehensive geriatric assessment (geriatric assessment with intervention or management recommendations; "CGA") compared to usual care for older adults with cancer on care received, treatment completion, adverse treatment effects, survival and health-related quality of life.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A systematic search of MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, and PubMed was conducted to identify randomised controlled trials or prospective cohort comparison studies on the effect of GA/CGA on care received, treatment, and cancer outcomes for older adults with cancer.

RESULTS

Ten studies were included: seven randomised controlled trials (RCTs), two phase II randomised pilot studies, and one prospective cohort comparison study. All studies included older adults receiving systemic therapy, mostly chemotherapy, for mixed cancer types (eight studies), colorectal cancer (one study), and non-small cell lung cancer (one study). Integrating GA/CGA into oncological care increased treatment completion (three of nine studies), reduced grade 3+ chemotherapy toxicity (two of five studies), and improved quality of life scores (four of five studies). No studies found significant differences in survival between GA/CGA and usual care. GA/CGA incorporated into care decisions prompted less intensive treatment and greater non-oncological interventions, including supportive care strategies.

DISCUSSION

GA/CGA integrated into the care of an older adult with cancer has the potential to optimise care decisions, which may lead to reduced treatment toxicity, increased treatment completion, and improved health-related quality of life scores.

Incorporating Value-Based Decisions in Breast Cancer Treatment Algorithms

Given the excellent prognosis and availability of evidence-based treatment, patients with early-stage breast cancer are at risk of overtreatment. In this review, we summarize key opportunities to incorporate value-based decisions to optimize the delivery of high-value treatment across the breast cancer care continuum.

Epidemiology of cancers among older adults in India: findings from the National Cancer Registry Programme

OBJECTIVE

This study describes the epidemiology, clinical extent of disease at diagnosis and treatment modalities of cancer among older adults (aged 60 years and older) in India.

STUDY DESIGN

Secondary data analysis of the National Cancer Registry Programme, which includes 28 Population-Based Cancer Registries (PBCRs) and 96 Hospital-Based Cancer Registries (HBCRs).

METHODS

PBCR data were used to estimate the incidence in terms of crude rate (CR), age-adjusted incidence rate (AAR), age-specific rate (ASpR) and cumulative risk. Trends in the AAR were calculated with the Annual Percentage Change (APC) using join-point regression. HBCR data were used to describe the clinical extent of the disease at diagnosis and the treatment modalities.

RESULTS

There is a wide heterogeneity across the country for the incidence of cancer and for the leading cancer sites among older adults. Males had a higher incidence rate compared to females in the majority of the registries. Aizawl had the highest AARs among both genders (males: 1388.8; females: 1033.0). Females had the highest ASpR at 65-69 years (482.8), whereas for males it was above 75 years (710.4). Cervical, stomach and oesophageal cancers were on the decline. The incidence of cancer among older adults was estimated to increase by 13.5% in 2025 as compared to 2020.

CONCLUSION

The increasing cancer incidence among older adults in India poses a huge burden on the health system. There is a need to increase their participation in clinical trials, advocating comprehensive geriatric assessment and strengthening geriatric oncology within programs addressing older adult's care to deal with the rising cancer burden on the health system borne by them.

Reprogramming iPSCs to study age-related diseases: Models, therapeutics, and clinical trials

The unprecedented rise in life expectancy observed in the last decades is leading to a global increase in the ageing population, and age-associated diseases became an increasing societal, economic, and medical burden. This has boosted major efforts in the scientific and medical research communities to develop and improve therapies to delay ageing and age-associated functional decline and diseases, and to expand health span. The establishment of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) by reprogramming human somatic cells has revolutionised the modelling and understanding of human diseases. iPSCs have a major advantage relative to other human pluripotent stem cells as their obtention does not require the destruction of embryos like embryonic stem cells do, and do not have a limited proliferation or differentiation potential as adult stem cells. Besides, iPSCs can be generated from somatic cells from healthy individuals or patients, which makes iPSC technology a promising approach to model and decipher the mechanisms underlying the ageing process and age-associated diseases, study drug effects, and develop new therapeutic approaches. This review discusses the advances made in the last decade using iPSC technology to study the most common age-associated diseases, including age-related macular degeneration (AMD), neurodegenerative and cardiovascular diseases, brain stroke, cancer, diabetes, and osteoarthritis.

Pre-operative neoadjuvant vinblastine-prednisolone in canine mast cell tumours: A single-centre retrospective cohort study

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy can be used in canine mast cell tumours (MCTs) to optimise surgical margins or to enable marginal excision in challenging locations. The objective of this study was to describe the outcome of dogs with cutaneous and subcutaneous MCTs treated with neoadjuvant vinblastine-prednisolone (NA-VP). Records of treatment-naïve dogs with cutaneous/subcutaneous MCT that received NA-VP were reviewed including signalment, indication for NA-VP, staging results, clinical response, surgical data and histopathology reports. For dogs with post-operative follow-up ≥365 days, predictive factors for local recurrence (LR) were evaluated. Forty-four dogs were included. NA-VP was indicated to optimise surgical margins (group MARG) in 19 dogs (43.2%) and to enable surgery (group MORB) in 25 dogs (56.8%). Complete and partial response were documented in 40.9% of dogs and 30 dogs (68.2%) underwent surgery. The indication for NA-VP was significantly associated with undergoing surgery (p < .001) on multivariable analysis. Twelve (48%) and 18 dogs (94.7%) underwent surgery in the group MORB and MARG, respectively. Five dogs (16.7%) experienced wound dehiscence. Complete excision was achieved in 14 dogs (46.7%). In dogs undergoing surgery with ≥365 days of follow-up, LR was documented in five cases (20.8%). None of the factors analysed including mitotic count, completeness of excision and response to NA-VP were associated with LR; notably, LR occurred in 3/11 (27.2%) completely excised MCTs. In a pre-operative setting, NA-VP appears safe and could be beneficial in selected cases. Prognostic factors such as clinical response, mitotic count and completeness of excision should be interpreted with caution following NA-VP.

Differences in the Tumor Molecular and Microenvironmental Landscape between Early (Non-Metastatic) and De Novo Metastatic Primary Luminal Breast Tumors

Background: The molecular mechanisms underlying the de novo metastasis of luminal breast cancer (dnMBC) remain largely unknown. Materials and Methods: Newly diagnosed dnMBC patients (grade 2/3, ER+, PR+/-, HER2-), with available core needle biopsy (CNB), collected from the primary tumor, were selected from our clinical-pathological database. Tumors from dnMBC patients were 1:1 pairwise matched (n = 32) to tumors from newly diagnosed patients who had no distant metastases at baseline (eBC group). RNA was extracted from 5 × 10 µm sections of FFPE CNBs. RNA sequencing was performed using the Illumina platform. Differentially expressed genes (DEG)s were assessed using EdgeR; deconvolution was performed using CIBERSORTx to assess immune cell fractions. A paired Wilcoxon test was used to compare dnMBC and eBC groups and corrected for the false discovery rate. Results: Many regulatory DEGs were significantly downregulated in dnMBC compared to eBC. Also, immune-related and hypoxia-related signatures were significantly upregulated. Paired Wilcoxon analysis showed that the CCL17 and neutrophils fraction were significantly upregulated, whereas the memory B-cell fraction was significantly downregulated in the dnMBC group. Conclusions: Primary luminal tumors of dnMBC patients display significant transcriptomic and immunological differences compared to comparable tumors from eBC patients.

Final results of the real-life observational VICTOR-6 study on metronomic chemotherapy in elderly metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients

Nowadays, treatment of metastatic breast cancer (MBC) has been enriched with novel therapeutical strategies. Metronomic chemotherapy (mCHT) is a continuous and frequent administration of chemotherapy at a lower dose and so whit less toxicity. Thus, this strategy could be attractive for elderly MBC patients. Aim of this analysis is to provide insights into mCHT's activity in a real-life setting of elderly MBC patients. Data of patients ≥ 75 years old included in VICTOR-6 study were analyzed. VICTOR-6 is a multicentre, Italian, retrospective study, which collected data on mCHT in MBC patients treated between 2011 and 2016. A total of 112 patients were included. At the beginning of mCHT, median age was 81 years (75-98) and in 33% of the patients mCHT was the first line choice. Overall Response Rate (ORR) and Disease Control Rate (DCR) were 27.9% and 79.3%, respectively. Median PFS ranged between 7.6 and 9.1 months, OS between 14.1 and 18.5 months. The most relevant toxicity was the hematological one (24.1%); severe toxicity (grade 3-4) ranged from 0.9% for skin toxicity up to 8% for hematologic one. This is a large study about mCHT in elderly MBC patients, providing insights to be further investigated in this subgroup of frail patients.

Female Sex but Not Oestrogen Receptor Expression Predicts Survival in Advanced Gastroesophageal Adenocarcinoma-A Post-hoc Analysis of the GO2 Trial

Gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma is a disease of older adults that is associated with a very poor prognosis. It is less common and has better outcomes in females. The reason for this is unknown but may relate to signalling via the main oestrogen receptors (ER) α and β. In this study, we sought to investigate this using the GO2 clinical trial patient cohort. GO2 recruited older and/or frail patients with advanced gastroesophageal cancer. Immunohistochemistry was performed on tumour samples from 194 patients. The median age of the population was 76 years (range 52-90), and 25.3% were female. Only one (0.5%) tumour sample was positive for ERα, compared to 70.6% for ERβ expression. There was no survival impact according to ERβ expression level. Female sex and younger age were associated with lower ERβ expression. Female sex was also associated with improved overall survival. To our knowledge, this is the largest study worldwide of ER expression in a cohort of patients with advanced gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma. It is also unique, given the age of the population. We have demonstrated that female sex is associated with better survival outcomes with palliative chemotherapy but that this does not appear to be related to ER IHC expression. The differing ER expression according to age supports the concept of a different disease biology with age.

Improved uptake and survival with systemic treatments for metastatic non-small cell lung cancer: younger versus older adults

BACKGROUND

Over the past decade, there has been increasing availability of novel therapeutics with improved tolerability and efficacy for advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The study goals were: to compare the uptake of systemic therapy (ST) before and after the availability of targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) and immunotherapy and to examine the changes in overall survival (OS) over time between younger and older adults with advanced NSCLC.

METHODS

All patients with advanced NSCLC referred to British Columbia (BC) Cancer in 2009, 2011, 2015 and 2017 were included. One-year time points were based on molecular testing implementation and funded drug availability: baseline (2009), epidermal growth factor receptor TKI (2011), anaplastic lymphoma kinase TKI (2015) and Programed Death-1 (PD-1) inhibitors (2017). Age groups were <70years and ≥70years. Baseline demographics, simplified comorbidity scores (SCS), disease characteristics, and ST details were collected retrospectively. Variables were compared using X2, Fisher's exact tests and logistic-regression analysis. OS was calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared using the log-rank test.

RESULTS

3325 patients were identified. Baseline characteristics were compared between ages < 70 years and ≥ 70 years for each time cohort with significant differences noted in baseline Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status and SCS. The rate of ST delivery trended upwards over time with age <70 years: 2009 44%, 2011 53%, 2015 50% and 2017 52% and age ≥70 years: 22%, 25%, 28% and 29% respectively. Predictors for decreased use of ST for age <70 years: ECOG ≥2, SCS ≥9, year 2011, and smoking history; and age ≥70 years: ECOG ≥2, years 2011 and 2015, and smoking history. The median OS of patients who received ST improved from 2009 to 2017: age <70 years 9.1 m vs. 15.5 m and age ≥70 years 11.4 m vs. 15.0 m.

CONCLUSIONS

There was an increased uptake of ST for both age groups with the introduction of novel therapeutics. Although a smaller proportion of older adults received ST, those who received treatment had comparable OS to their young counterpart. The benefit of ST in both age groups was seen across the different types of treatments. With careful assessment and selection of appropriate candidates, older adults with advanced NSCLC appear to benefit from ST.

Practice-Level Variation in Molecular Testing and Use of Targeted Therapy for Patients With Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer and Colorectal Cancer

Importance

All patients with newly diagnosed non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and colorectal cancer (CRC) should receive molecular testing to identify those who can benefit from targeted therapies. However, many patients do not receive recommended testing and targeted therapies.

Objective

To compare rates of molecular testing and targeted therapy use by practice type and across practices.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This cross-sectional study used 100% Medicare fee-for-service data from 2015 through 2019 to identify beneficiaries with new metastatic NSCLC or CRC diagnoses receiving systemic therapy and to assign patients to oncology practices. Hierarchical linear models were used to characterize variation by practice type and across practices. Data analysis was conducted from June 2019 to October 2022.

Exposures

Oncology practice providing care.

Outcomes

Primary outcomes were rates of molecular testing and targeted therapy use for patients with NSCLC and CRC. Secondary outcomes were rates of multigene testing for NSCLC and CRC.

Results

There were 106 228 Medicare beneficiaries with incident NSCLC (31 521 [29.7%] aged 65-69 years; 50 348 [47.4%] female patients; 2269 [2.1%] Asian, 8282 [7.8%] Black, and 91 215 [85.9%] White patients) and 39 512 beneficiaries with incident CRC (14 045 [35.5%] aged 65-69 years; 17 518 [44.3%] female patients; 896 [2.3%] Asian, 3521 [8.9%] Black, and 32 753 [82.9%] White patients) between 2015 and 2019. Among these beneficiaries, 18 435 (12.9%) were treated at National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated centers, 8187 (5.6%) were treated at other academic centers, and 94 329 (64.7%) were treated at independent oncology practices. Molecular testing rates increased from 74% to 85% for NSCLC and 45% to 65% for CRC. First-line targeted therapy use decreased from 12% to 8% among patients with NSCLC and was constant at 5% for patients with CRC. For NSCLC, molecular testing rates were similar across practice types while rates of multigene panel use (13.2%) and targeted therapy use (16.6%) were highest at NCI-designated cancer centers. For CRC, molecular testing rates were 3.8 (95% CI: 1.2-6.5), 3.3 (95% CI, 0.4-6.1), and 12.2 (95% CI, 9.1-15.3) percentage points lower at hospital-owned practices, large independent practices, and small independent practices, respectively. Rates of targeted therapy use for CRC were similar across practice types. After adjusting for patient characteristics, there was moderate variation in molecular testing and targeted therapy use across oncology practices.

Conclusions and Relevance

In this cross-sectional study of Medicare beneficiaries, molecular testing rates for NSCLC and CRC increased in recent years but remained lower than recommended levels. Rates of targeted therapy use decreased for NSCLC and remained stable for CRC. Variation across practices suggests that where a patient was treated may have affected access to recommended testing and efficacious treatments.

The Cancer Genomic Integration Model for Symptom Science (CGIMSS): A Biopsychosocial Framework

Current nursing research has characterized symptom clusters and trajectories in individuals with breast cancer. The existing literature describes the relationship between symptoms and biological variables and the potential moderating effects of individual and social factors. The genomic profiling of breast cancer has also been an area of much recent research. Emerging evidence indicates that incorporating cancer genomics into symptom science research can aid in the prognostication of symptoms and elucidate targets for symptom management interventions. The aim of this paper is to outline a model to integrate cancer genomics into symptom science research, illustrated using breast cancer and psychoneurological (PN) symptoms as an example. We present a review of the current literature surrounding breast cancer genomics (specifically cancer genomic instability) and the biological underpinnings of the PN symptom cluster. Advances in both of these areas indicate that inflammation may serve as the bridge between cancer genomics and the PN symptom cluster. We also outline how the integration of cancer genomics into symptom science research synergizes with current research of individual and social factors in relation to symptoms. This model aims to provide a framework to guide future biopsychosocial symptom science research that can elucidate new predictive methods and new targets for intervention.

Association between age and efficacy of combination systemic therapies in patients with metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Combination systemic therapies have become the standard for metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer (mHSPC). However, the effect of age on oncologic outcomes remains unknown. Our aim was to perform a systematic review, meta-analysis, and network meta-analysis (NMA) on the effect of chronological age on overall survival (OS) in patients treated with combination therapies for mHSPC.

METHODS

We searched the PubMed®, Web of ScienceTM, and Scopus® databases to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that analyzed the efficacy of combination systemic therapies using ADT plus docetaxel and/or androgen receptor signaling inhibitor (ARSI) in patients with mHSPC. We included studies, which provided separate hazard ratios (HRs) for younger vs. older patients. The selected age cut-off was 70 years (±5 years). Our outcome of interest was OS.

RESULTS

We included nine RCTs with a total of 9183 patients. Younger and older men constituted 51% and 49% of included patients, respectively. Docetaxel plus ADT significantly improved OS among both older (HR 0.79, 95% CI 0.63-0.99, p = 0.04) and younger patients (HR 0.79, 95% CI 0.69-0.90, p < 0.001) with no differences according to age. ARSI plus ADT improved OS in older (HR 0.72, 95% CI 0.64-0.80, p < 0.001) and younger (HR 0.58, 95% CI 0.51-0.66, p < 0.001) patients; younger patients did benefit more (p = 0.02). On NMA treatment ranking, triplet therapy showed the highest probability of OS benefit irrespective of age group; in older patients, the benefit of triplet therapy compared to doublet was less expressed.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with mHSPC benefit from combination systemic therapies irrespective of age; the effect is, however, more evident in younger patients. Chronological age alone seems not to be a selection criteria for the administration of combination systemic therapies.

Screening for Coronary Artery Disease in Cancer Survivors: JACC: CardioOncology State-of-the-Art Review

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is an important contributor to the cardiovascular burden in cancer survivors. This review identifies features that could help guide decisions about the benefit of screening to assess the risk or presence of subclinical CAD. Screening may be appropriate in selected survivors based on risk factors and inflammatory burden. In cancer survivors who have undergone genetic testing, polygenic risk scores and clonal hematopoiesis markers may become useful CAD risk prediction tools in the future. The type of cancer (especially breast, hematological, gastrointestinal, and genitourinary) and the nature of treatment (radiotherapy, platinum agents, fluorouracil, hormonal therapy, tyrosine kinase inhibitors, endothelial growth factor inhibitors, and immune checkpoint inhibitors) are also important in determining risk. Therapeutic implications of positive screening include lifestyle and atherosclerosis interventions, and in specific instances, revascularization may be indicated.

Somatic mutation but not aneuploidy differentiates lung cancer in never-smokers and smokers

Lung cancer in never-smokers disproportionately affects older women. To understand the mutational landscape of this cohort, we performed detailed genome characterization of 73 lung adenocarcinomas from participants of the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI). We find enrichment of EGFR mutations in never-/light-smokers and KRAS mutations in heavy smokers as expected, but we also show that the specific variants of these genes differ by smoking status, with important therapeutic implications. Mutational signature analysis revealed signatures of clock, APOBEC, and DNA repair deficiency in never-/light-smokers; however, the mutational load of these signatures did not differ significantly from those found in smokers. Last, tumors from both smokers and never-/light-smokers shared copy number subtypes, with no significant differences in aneuploidy. Thus, the genomic landscape of lung cancer in never-/light-smokers and smokers is predominantly differentiated by somatic mutations and not copy number alterations.

The underexplored links between cancer and the internal body climate: Implications for cancer prevention and treatment

In order to effectively manage and cure cancer we should move beyond the general view of cancer as a random process of genetic alterations leading to uncontrolled cell proliferation or simply a predictable evolutionary process involving selection for traits that increase cell fitness. In our view, cancer is a systemic disease that involves multiple interactions not only among cells within tumors or between tumors and surrounding tissues but also with the entire organism and its internal "milieu". We define the internal body climate as an emergent property resulting from spatial and temporal interactions among internal components themselves and with the external environment. The body climate itself can either prevent, promote or support cancer initiation and progression (top-down effect; i.e., body climate-induced effects on cancer), as well as be perturbed by cancer (bottom-up effect; i.e., cancer-induced body climate changes) to further favor cancer progression and spread. This positive feedback loop can move the system towards a "cancerized" organism and ultimately results in its demise. In our view, cancer not only affects the entire system; it is a reflection of an imbalance of the entire system. This model provides an integrated framework to study all aspects of cancer as a systemic disease, and also highlights unexplored links that can be altered to both prevent body climate changes that favor cancer initiation, progression and dissemination as well as manipulate or restore the body internal climate to hinder the success of cancer inception, progression and metastasis or improve therapy outcomes. To do so, we need to (i) identify cancer-relevant factors that affect specific climate components, (ii) develop 'body climate biomarkers', (iii) define 'body climate scores', and (iv) develop strategies to prevent climate changes, stop or slow the changes, or even revert the changes (climate restoration).

The Contrasting Seasonality Patterns of Some Cancer-Types and Herpes Zoster Can Be Explained by a Binary Classification of Immunological Reactions

A binary classification of the pathogenic immune reactions as anti-inflammatory high-Treg reactions or pro-inflammatory low-Treg reactions explains both the relatively low incidence rate of several types of cancer, and the relatively high incidence rate of herpes zoster cases diagnosed in the summer compared to cases diagnosed in the winter (in regions with temperate climate). This binary model also elucidates the longer survival of cancer patients diagnosed during the summer compared to these diagnosed in the winter. The three key elements of this explanation are: (a) the effect of sunlight on Treg production; (b) the evolvement of cancer from a low-Treg condition at early stage, to a high-Treg condition at advanced stage, and (c) the evolvement of herpes zoster from a high-Treg condition at pre-exudative stage to a low-Treg condition at acute exudative stage. A significant proportion of indolent tumors at the time of diagnosis (>20%) is a prerequisite for a beneficial effect of sunlight on cancer incidence rate and prognosis. This prerequisite restricts the beneficial effect of diagnosis during summer to certain types of cancer. Clinical implication: the prognosis of early stage tumors may be improved by a course of corticosteroid (or other immunosuppressant) treatment.

A multinational investigation of healthcare needs, preferences, and expectations in supportive cancer care: co-creating the LifeChamps digital platform

Purpose

This study is to evaluate healthcare needs, preferences, and expectations in supportive cancer care as perceived by cancer survivors, family caregivers, and healthcare professionals.

Methods

Key stakeholders consisted of cancer survivors diagnosed with breast cancer, prostate cancer, or melanoma; adult family caregivers; and healthcare professionals involved in oncology. Recruitment was via several routes, and data were collected via either online surveys or telephone interviews in Greece, Spain, Sweden, and the UK. Framework analysis was applied to the dataset.

Results

One hundred and fifty-five stakeholders participated: 70 cancer survivors, 23 family caregivers, and 62 healthcare professionals (13 clinical roles). Cancer survivors and family caregivers’ needs included information and support on practical/daily living, as frustration was apparent with the lack of follow-up services. Healthcare professionals agreed on a multidisciplinary health service with a “focus on the patient” and availability closer to home. Most healthcare professionals acknowledged that patient-reported outcomes may provide “better individualised care”. Cancer survivors and family caregivers generally felt that the digital platform would be useful for timely personalised support and aided communication. Healthcare professionals were supportive of the “proactive” functionality of the platform and the expected advantages. Anticipated challenges were integration obstacles such as workload/infrastructure and training/support in using the new technology.

Conclusions

Obtaining key stakeholders’ insights provided a foundation for action to further co-create the LifeChamps digital platform to meet needs and priorities and deliver enhanced supportive care to “older” cancer survivors.

Implications for cancer survivors

Co-creation provided insight into gaps where digital support may enhance health and well-being.

Age-associated differences in the cancer molecular landscape

Cancer is an age-related disease, as incidence and mortality for most types of cancer increase with age. However, how molecular alterations in tumors differ among patients of different ages remains poorly understood. Recent studies have shed light on the age-associated molecular landscapes in cancer. Here, we summarize the main findings of these current studies, highlighting major differences in the genomic, transcriptomic, epigenetic, and immunological landscapes between cancer in younger and older patients. Importantly, some cancer driver genes are mutated more frequently in younger or older patients. We discuss the potential roles of aging-related processes in shaping these age-related differences in cancer. We further emphasize the remaining unsolved questions that could provide important insights that will have implications in personalized medicine.

Use of the Cancer and Aging Research Group Predictive Model for Chemotherapy-Related Toxic Effects in a Multiethnic, Older Adult Asian Population

IMPORTANCE

The Cancer and Aging Research Group (CARG) prediction model for chemotherapy-related toxic effects has been developed but not yet validated in older Asian adults. In view of differences in drug metabolism and toxic effect reporting in the Asian population, the ability of this tool to guide the cancer treatment decision-making process in older Asian adults needs to be assessed.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the validity of the CARG predictive model in a multiethnic Asian cohort of older adults.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

In this prognostic study, patients of various Asian ethnicities 70 years or older with a solid tumor diagnosis receiving chemotherapy at the National University Cancer Institute, Singapore, were accrued from June 1, 2017, to January 1, 2019. Their risks of chemotherapy-related toxic effects were calculated using the CARG tool. A geriatric assessment was performed, and the treating oncologist (blinded to the CARG scores) was asked to give an estimated likelihood of toxic effects (low, medium, or high). Chemotherapy-related toxic effects were recorded during each clinic visit. Validation of the prediction model was performed by calculating the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve. Multivariate analyses were performed to identify variables in other domains in the geriatric assessment predicting for severe toxic effects.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

Grade 3 to 5 toxic effects and hospitalization.

RESULTS

The study included 200 patients (median age, 74 years [range, 70-89 years]; 110 [55.0%] male; 177 [88.5%] Chinese, 17 [8.5%] Malay, 4 [2.0%] Indian, and 2 [1.0%] other ethnicities [according to Singapore's national system of race classification]). A total of 137 patients (68.5%) experienced grade 3 to 5 toxic effects, and 131 (65.5%) required hospitalization. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for the CARG chemotoxicity prediction model was 0.74 (95% CI, 0.67-0.82), retaining good discrimination in the study population.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

This prognostic study conducted in a multiethnic Asian cohort of older adults supports the validity of the CARG predictive model in this population, predicting which older adults are at risk of chemotherapy-related toxic effects.

Immune Modulatory Effects of Molecularly Targeted Therapy and Its Repurposed Usage in Cancer Immunotherapy

The fast evolution of anti-tumor agents embodies a deeper understanding of cancer pathogenesis. To date, chemotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy are three pillars of the paradigm for cancer treatment. The success of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) implies that reinstatement of immunity can efficiently control tumor growth, invasion, and metastasis. However, only a fraction of patients benefit from ICI therapy, which turns the spotlight on developing safe therapeutic strategies to overcome the problem of an unsatisfactory response. Molecular-targeted agents were designed to eliminate cancer cells with oncogenic mutations or transcriptional targets. Intriguingly, accumulating shreds of evidence demonstrate the immunostimulatory or immunosuppressive capacity of targeted agents. By virtue of the high attrition rate and cost of new immunotherapy exploration, drug repurposing may be a promising approach to discovering combination strategies to improve response to immunotherapy. Indeed, many clinical trials investigating the safety and efficacy of the combination of targeted agents and immunotherapy have been completed. Here, we review and discuss the effects of targeted anticancer agents on the tumor immune microenvironment and explore their potential repurposed usage in cancer immunotherapy.

Genoprotective activity of the Pleurotus eryngii mushrooms following their in vitro and in vivo fermentation by fecal microbiota

Pleurotus eryngii mushrooms are commercially cultivated and widely consumed due to their organoleptic properties, and the low caloric and high nutritional value. In addition, they contain various biologically active and health-promoting compounds; very recently, their genoprotective effect in Caco-2 cells after their fermentation by the human fecal microbiota was also documented. In the current study, the effect of P. eryngii pre- and post-fermentation supernatants in micronuclei formation was evaluated in human lymphocytes. In addition, the genoprotective properties of increasing concentrations of aqueous extracts from P. eryngii mushrooms (150, 300, 600 mg/kg) against the cyclophosphamide-induced DNA damage were studied in young and elderly female and male mice in bone marrow and whole blood cells. The ability of the highest dose (600 mg/kg) to regulate the main cellular signaling pathways was also evaluated in gut and liver tissues of female animals by quantifying the mRNA expression of NrF2, Nfkβ, DNMT1, and IL-22 genes. P. eryngii post-fermentation, but not pre-fermentation, supernatants were able to protect human lymphocytes from the mitomycin C-induced DNA damage in a dose-dependent manner. Similarly, genoprotection was also observed in bone marrow cells of mice treated by gavage with P. eryngii extract. The effect was observed in all the experimental groups of mice (young and elderly, male and female) and was more potent in young female mice. Overexpression of all genes examined was observed in both tissues, mainly among the elderly animals. In conclusion, P. eryngii mushrooms were shown to maintain genome integrity through protecting cells from genotoxic insults. These beneficial effects can be attributed to their antioxidant and immunomodulatory properties, as well as their ability to regulate the cell’s epigenetic mechanisms and maintain cell homeostasis.

Long term outcome data from the EORTC 75111-10114 ETF/BCG randomized phase II study: Pertuzumab and trastuzumab with or without metronomic chemotherapy for older patients with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer, followed by T-DM1 after progression

INTRODUCTION

Older patients are at higher risk of chemotherapy-induced toxicity, raising interest in less toxic anti-HER2 regimens for older persons with HER2-positive (HER2+) metastatic breast cancer (MBC).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

This phase II study randomized (1:1) patients with HER2+ MBC, aged 70+ or frail 60+, to first line chemotherapy with metronomic oral cyclophosphamide (M) + Trastuzumab (T) and Pertuzumab (P) or TP alone. T-DM1 was offered in case of progression.

RESULTS

In total, 39 and 41 patients were randomized to TP and TPM arm respectively. Median follow-up is 54.0 months. 24-month PFS was 18.7% (95% CI 8.2-32.4) and 28.7% (95% CI 15.8-43.0), respectively. A total of 49 (61.3%) patients died of whom 37 (75.5%) from disease progression; number of deaths per arm was 27 (69.2%) for TP and 22 (53.7%) for TPM. There was no significant difference in OS between the two arms (median OS TP vs TPM: 32.1 vs 37.5 months, p 0.25). Among the 40 patients who have started T-DM1 after disease progression on TP/TPM, PFS rate at 6 months after start of T-DM1 was 43.6% (95% CI: 27.7-58.5) and grade 3 or higher AE occurred in 18 pts (45%).

CONCLUSIONS

Metronomic chemotherapy-based dual blockade (TPM), followed by T-DM1 after progression, provides an active and relatively well tolerated treatment option in an older/frail HER2+ MBC population, with a median survival of over 3 years. Nevertheless, the majority of this older/frail population died from breast cancer, highlighting the need for well tolerated and efficacious treatments in these patients.

Cellular and molecular mechanisms of breast cancer susceptibility

There is a plethora of recognized risk factors for breast cancer (BC) with poorly understood or speculative biological mechanisms. The lack of prevention options highlights the importance of understanding the mechanistic basis of cancer susceptibility and finding new targets for breast cancer prevention. Until now, we have understood risk and cancer susceptibility primarily through the application of epidemiology and assessing outcomes in large human cohorts. Relative risks are assigned to various human behaviors and conditions, but in general the associations are weak and there is little understanding of mechanism. Aging is by far the greatest risk factor for BC, and there are specific forms of inherited genetic risk that are well-understood to cause BC. We propose that bringing focus to the biology underlying these forms of risk will illuminate biological mechanisms of BC susceptibility.

Development of a Cardio-Oncology Service in Lithuania: Prediction, Prevention, Monitoring and Treatment of Cancer Treatment-Induced Cardiotoxicity

Background: Advances in cancer therapy have dramatically improved outcomes for cancer pa-tients. However, cancer treatment can cause several cardiovascular (CV) complications, increasing cardiac mortality and morbidity in cancer patients and survivors. As a result, a new cardiology subspecialty—cardio-oncology (CO)—has been developed. The goals of CO are to understand the mechanism of the cardiotoxicity (CTX) of cancer therapies and invent the best monitoring and treatment strategies to improve the survival of cancer patients. Methods: We performed a retro-spective observational study reporting on the 6-year experience of the first CO service in Vilnius, Lithuania. Cancer patients were consulted by a single part-time specialist at Vilnius University Hospital. All new patients underwent blood tests, including cardiac biomarkers and advanced transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) with stress protocol if indicated. During a follow-up, we evaluated the association of patient survival with such variables as age, gender, reasons for re-ferral, cancer location and stage, cardiovascular (CV) risk factors (RF), and rates and stage of CTX and treatment strategies. Results: 447 patients were consulted (70% females), and the median age was 64 years. Cardiovascular (CV) RF was common: 38.5% of patients had hypertension, almost 38% had dyslipidemia, 29% were obese, 10% were smokers, and 9% had diabetes. Nearly 26% of patients had a history of HF. Early biochemical cardiotoxicity was determined in 27%, early functional cardiotoxicity was seen in 17%, and early mixed cardiotoxicity—in 45% of referred patients treated with cardiotoxic cancer therapies. In addition, reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) was found in 7% of patients. Beta-blockers (BB) were administered to 61.1% of patients, while angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors/angiotensin receptor blockers (ACEI/ARB) to 54.1% of patients. In addition, 18.3% of patients received loop diuretics and almost 12% mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (MRA), respectively. A total of 143 patients died during the 6-year follow-up period. The leading cause of death was primarily cancer (92.3%). Only in 5.6% of patients, cardiovascular complications were reported as the cause of death, and 2.1% of deaths were due to the COVID−19 infection. We found that age (HR 1.020 [95% CI: (1.005−1.036)] p = 0.009); LV diastolic dysfunction (HR 1.731 [95% CI: 1.115−2.689] p = 0.015; NYHA stage II (HR 2.016 [95% CI: 1.242−3.272] p = 0.005; NYHA stage III (HR 3.545 [95% CI: 1.948−6.450] p < 0.001; kidney dysfunction (HR 2.085 [95% CI: 1.377−3.159] p = 0.001; previous cancer (HR 2.004 [95% CI: 1.219−3.295] p = 0.006); tumor progression (HR 1.853 [95% CI: 1.217−2.823] p = 0.004) and lung cancer (HR 2.907 [95%CI: 1.826−4.627] p < 0.001) were statistically significantly associated with the increased risk of all-cause death. Conclusions: CO is a rapidly growing subspecialty of cardiology that aims to remove cardiac disease as a barrier to effective cancer treatment by preventing and reversing cardiac damage caused by cancer therapies. Establishing a CO service requires a cardiologist with an interest in oncology. Continuous education, medical training, and clinical research are crucial to success. Age, previous cancer, tumor progression, kidney dysfunction, left ventricular diastolic dysfunction, and NYHA stages were associated with increased mortality.