Immune-related adverse events induced by programmed death protein-1 inhibitors from the perspective of lymphoma immunotherapy

Lymphoma,which is highly malignant,stems from lymph nodes and lymphoid tissue.Lymphoma cells express programmed death-ligand 1/2(PD-L1/PD-L2),which binds with programmed cell death 1 protein(PD-1)to establish inhibitory signaling that impedes the normal function of T cells and allows tumor cells to escape immune system surveillance.Recently,immune checkpoint inhibitor immunotherapies such as PD-1 inhibitors(nivolumab and pembrolizumab)have been introduced into the lymphoma treatment algorithm and have shown remarkable clinical efficacy and greatly improve prognosis in lymphoma patients.Accordingly,the number of lymphoma patients who are seeking treatment with PD-1 inhibitors is growing annually,which results in an increasing number of patients developing immune-related adverse events(irAEs).The occurrence of irAEs inevitably affects the benefits provided by immunotherapy,particularly when PD-1 inhibitors are applied.However,the mechanisms and characteristics of irAEs induced by PD-1 inhibitors in lymphoma need further investigation.This review article summarizes the latest research advances in irAEs during treatment of lymphoma with PD-1 inhibitors.A comprehensive understanding of irAEs incurred in immunotherapy can help to achieve better efficacy with PD-1 inhibitors in lymphoma.

Ganoderma Lucidum Spore Oil enhances the effect of cyclophosphamide via inhibiting programmed death-1 and prolongs the survival of H22 tumor-bearing mice

OBJECTIVE:To investigate the effect of Ganoderma Lucidum Spore Oil(GLSO)on the tumor growth and survival of H22 tumor-bearing mice treated with cyclophosphamide(CTX),and explore the underlying mechanism.METHODS:Allograft H22 hepatocellular carcinoma mouse model was applied to investigate the effect of GLSO on the tumor growth and survival of animals,and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to analyze the life span.Plasma biochemical examination was used to determine the levels of alanine aminotransferase(ALT),aspartate aminotransferase(AST),urea(UREA)and creatinine(CRE).Western blot analysis was performed to detect Programmed Death-1(PD-1),Programmed Death Ligand 1(PD-L1),Janus Kinase 2(JAK2),phosphorylated Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3(p-STAT3),and Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3(STAT3)expression.RESULTS:GLSO increased the anti-tumor effect of CTX and prolonged the survival of H22 tumor-bearing mice treated with CTX.Meanwhile,GLSO increased the thymus index and showed no obvious toxicity to liver functions of animals.GLSO also decreased the level of UREA in H22 tumor-bearing mice treated with CTX.Furthermore,GLSO could inhibit the expression of PD-1 in spleen,which was independent of JAK2 expression and STAT3 phosphorylation.However,GLSO did not affect the expression of PD-L1,JAK2,and p-STAT3 in tumor tissue.CONCLUSION:GLSO could strengthen the anti-tumor effect of CTX and prolong the life span of H22 tumorbearing mice,while the underlying mechanism might be relevant to the amelioration effect of thymus function and inhibition of PD-1 expression in spleen.Furthermore,these findings implied the promising role of GLSO in combination with CTX to extend the survival of patients in clinical chemotherapy of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Tislelizumab in previously treated,locally advanced unresectable/metastatic microsatellite instability-high/mismatch repair-deficient solid tumors

Objective:The open-label,phase II RATIONALE-209 study evaluated tislelizumab(anti-programmed cell death protein 1 antibody)as a tissue-agnostic monotherapy for microsatellite instability-high(MSI-H)/mismatch repair-deficient(dMMR)tumors.Methods:Adults with previously treated,locally advanced unresectable or metastatic MSI-H/dMMR solid tumors were enrolled.Patients received tislelizumab 200 mg intravenously every 3 weeks.Objective response rate(ORR;primary endpoint),duration of response(DoR),and progression-free survival(PFS)were assessed by independent review committee(Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors v1.1).Results:Eighty patients were enrolled and treated;75(93.8%)patients had measurable disease at baseline.Most had metastatic disease and received at least one prior therapy for advanced/metastatic disease(n=79;98.8%).At primary analysis(data cutoff July 8,2021;median follow-up 15.2 months),overall ORR[46.7%;95%confidence interval(95%CI),35.1−58.6;one-sided P<0.0001]and ORR across tumor-specific subgroups[colorectal(n=46):39.1%(95%CI,25.1–54.6);gastric/gastroesophageal junction(n=9):55.6%(95%CI,21.2−86.3);others(n=20):60.0%(95%CI,36.1−80.9)]were significantly greater with tislelizumab vs.a prespecified historical control ORR of 10%;five(6.7%)patients had complete responses.Median DoR,PFS,and overall survival were not reached with long-term follow-up(data cutoff December 5,2022;median follow-up 28.9 months).Tislelizumab was well tolerated with no unexpected safety signals.Treatment-related adverse events(TRAEs)of grade≥3 occurred in 53.8%of patients;7.5%of patients discontinued treatment due to TRAEs.Conclusions:Tislelizumab demonstrated a significant ORR improvement in patients with previously treated,locally advanced unresectable or metastatic MSI-H/dMMR tumors and was generally well tolerated.

Immunotherapy:A new standard in the treatment of metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma

Renal cell cancer(RCC)represents 2%-3% of all adulthood cancers and is the most common malignant neoplasm of the kidney(90%).In the mid-nineties of the last century,the standard of treatment for patients with metastatic RCC was cytokines.Sunititib and pazopanib were registered in 2007 and 2009,respectively,and have since been the standard first-line treatment for metastatic clear cell RCC(mccRCC).Renal cell cancer is a highly immunogenic tumor with tumor infiltrating cells,including CD8+T lymphocytes,dendritic cells,natural killer cells(NK)and macrophages.This observation led to the design of new clinical trials in which patients were treated with immunotherapy.With the growing evidence that proangiogenic factors can have immunomodulatory effects on the host’s immune system,the idea of combining angiogenic drugs with immunotherapy has emerged,and new clinical trials have been designed.In the last few years,several therapeutic options have been approved[immunotherapy and immunotherapy/tyrosine kinase inhibitors(TKI)]for the first-line treatment of mccRCC.Nivolumab/ipilimumab is approved for the treatment of patients with intermediate and poor prognoses.Several checkpoint inhibitors(pembrolizumab,nivolumab,avelumab)in combination with TKI(axitinib,lenvatinib,cabozantinib)are approved for the treatment of patients regardless of their International mRCC Database Consortium prognostic group and PD-L1 expression.There is no specific and ideal biomarker that could help in selecting the ideal patient for the appropriate first-line treatment.

Prognostic role of plasma levels ofγ-glutamyl transpeptidase in patients with advanced gastric cancer treated with anti-PD-1 immunotherapy

Objective Antibodies targeting programmed cell death protein 1(PD-1)have become the mainstay of treatment for chemotherapy-refractory gastric cancer,characterized by high levels of programmed cell death ligand-1(PDL-1)expression.However,the routine clinical implementation of PDL-1 testing is currently limited by the lack of robust detection methods.In this regard,the role of plasmaγ-glutamyl transpeptidase(GGT),an N-terminal nucleophilic hydrolase,as an independent predictor of the efficacy of anti-PD-1 therapy remains unknown.In this study,we aimed to assessed the prognostic role of changes in plasma GGT levels(6 weeks vs.baseline)in patients with advanced gastric cancer treated with anti-PD-1 immunotherapy.Methods We retrospectively analyzed data from 57 patients with gastric cancer treated with anti-PD-1 antibodies(camrelizumab,sintilimab,nivolumab,tislelizumab,and toripalimab)at the Union Hospital,Tongji Medical College,Huazhong University of Science and Technology,Wuhan,China,from July 2018 to February 2021.Results We found that after 6 weeks of treatment,there were significant differences between responders and non-responders with respect to plasma GGT levels(P<0.001).Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that the continuous value of the 6-week difference in GGT levels(OR=1.437,95%CI=1.116-1.849,P=0.005)and 6-week difference in GGT≥0 or<0(OR=53.675,95%CI=6.379-451.669,P<0.001)were independent predictors of disease control.Survival analysis indicated that a reduction in plasma GGT6 levels during treatment was significantly associated with a favorable progression-free survival(PFS)and overall survival(P<0.001).Consistently,univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses revealed that a reduction in plasma GGT6 levels during treatment was an independent predictor of PFS(HR=1.033,95%CI=1.013-1.053,P=0.001).Conclusion Alterations in plasma GGT levels during treatment can be used as a predictor of disease progression and survival in patients with advanced gastric cancer undergoing treatment with anti-PD-1 antibodies.

Favorable response to immunotherapy in a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor with temozolomide-induced high tumor mutational burden

Neuroendocrine neoplasm of the pancreas is a rare tumor with limited treatment options.Among such tumors,treatment for pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor(PanNET)G3 is the most difficult.Temozolomide(TMZ)is commonly used to treat PanNET.However,TMZ may cause tumor gene alkylation,which induces drug resistance and rapid disease progression.Herein,we present a case of a female who was diagnosed with PanNET G3 and achieved a partial response to toripalimab,an anti-programmed cell death-ligand 1(anti-PD-L1)monoclonal antibody,after multiple cycles of TMZ treatment.Genomic profiling revealed that compared with the patient’s samples collected at baseline,the postTMZ-treatment samples had markedly higher levels of tumor mutational burden(TMB)associated with characteristic alkylating mutational signature representing a positive correlation with favorable response to anti-PD-1 treatment.In addition,we observed a germline truncating mutation of MUTYH(W156*)that was considered to be pathogenic and potentially conferred to genomic instability.This case suggests that anti-PD-1 therapy could be a treatment option for PanNET patients with increased TMB after TMZ-based treatment.