FOLFIRINOX as induction treatment in rectal cancer patients with synchronous metastases: Results of the FFCD 1102 phase II trial

Abstract Aim of the study The optimal therapeutic strategy in patients with rectal cancer and synchronous unresectable metastases remains unknown. We evaluated the efficacy of FOLFIRINOX induction therapy in this setting. Patients and methods Chemotherapy-naive patients received at least 8 cycles of FOLFIRINOX. The primary end-point was the 4-month disease control (4 m DC) rate. Tumour responses were centrally reviewed and assessed by computed tomography scan for metastases (Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumours criteria) and magnetic resonance imaging for rectal tumorus. With a Simon 2-stage design and a targeted (H1) 4 m DC > 75%, 65 patients were enrolled from July 2012 to Februa…

CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells inhibit natural killer cell functions in a transforming growth factor-beta-dependent manner.

Tumor growth promotes the expansion of CD4+CD25+ regulatory T (T reg) cells that counteract T cell–mediated immune responses. An inverse correlation between natural killer (NK) cell activation and T reg cell expansion in tumor-bearing patients, shown here, prompted us to address the role of T reg cells in controlling innate antitumor immunity. Our experiments indicate that human T reg cells expressed membrane-bound transforming growth factor (TGF)–β, which directly inhibited NK cell effector functions and down-regulated NKG2D receptors on the NK cell surface. Adoptive transfer of wild-type T reg cells but not TGF-β−/− T reg cells into nude mice suppressed NK cell–mediated cytotoxicity, redu…

Trifluridine/tipiracil : an emerging strategy for the management of gastrointestinal cancers

Fluoropyrimidines are currently the backbone of treatment for gastrointestinal (GI) cancers but development of resistance to these agents remains a major problem. Trifluridine/tipiracil is an oral chemotherapeutic agent recently approved for third-line treatment of chemorefractory metastatic colorectal cancer. This article reviews the clinical value of trifluridine/tipiracil as a monotherapy, including recent trials in GI cancers, and the potential benefit of combining it with other agents in patients with GI cancers, including the preclinical rationale for combination therapy and recently completed and ongoing clinical trials. Data gathered so far suggest that trifluridine/tipiracil has t…

CanStem303C trial: A phase III study of napabucasin (BBI-608) in combination with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), leucovorin, irinotecan (FOLFIRI) in adult patients with previously treated metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC).

TPS3619 Background: Cancer stem cells are considered to be fundamentally important for resistance to therapy, recurrence and metastasis. Napabucasin is a first-in-class cancer stemness inhibitor in development identified by its ability to inhibit STAT3-driven gene transcription and spherogenesis of cancer stem cells (Li et al, PNAS 112(6):1839, 2015). Preclinically, napabucasin sensitizes cancer cells to chemotherapeutics, including 5-FU and irinotecan. Encouraging anticancer activity in advanced CRC was observed in a phase Ib/II (Bendell et al, GI ASCO 2017) study of 63 pts with disease control rate (DCR) of 93% (28/30) and overall response rate (ORR) of 33% (10/30) in FOLFIRI-naïve pts w…

Phase III study of regorafenib versus placebo as maintenance therapy in RAS wild type metastatic colorectal cancer (RAVELLO trial)

TPS789 Background: Treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) has improved due to the introduction of more active chemotherapies (CT) and novel targeted agents that have significantly increased response rate (RR), progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Recently, CORRECT and CONCUR trials have demonstrated both activity and efficacy of regorafenib, a small multi-kinase inhibitor, as monotherapy in pretreated mCRC. The wide range of action of regorafenib makes it an ideal candidate for monotherapy in earlier disease treatment lines in which different pathways could be involved in the acquisition of resistance. To improve long term efficacy of first line therapy seve…

The hard road to data interpretation: 3 or 6 months of adjuvant chemotherapy for patients with stage III colon cancer?

Background Six months of adjuvant oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy is standard for patients with stage III colon cancer following surgery. However, oxaliplatin is associated with peripheral neurotoxicity which worsens over treatment duration. Consequently, a shorter treatment duration, if equally effective, would be extremely beneficial. A pooled analysis of data for 12 834 stage III colon cancer patients, from six randomised phase III trials of adjuvant therapy, the International Duration Evaluation of Adjuvant chemotherapy study, was carried out and the results presented at the ASCO Annual Meeting 2017. To clarify the potential impact of these results on clinical practice, ESMO decided to s…

Results of the JAVELIN Gastric 100 phase 3 trial: avelumab maintenance following first-line (1L) chemotherapy (CTx) vs continuation of CTx for HER2-advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction cancer (GC/GEJC)

278 Background: We report the primary analysis of JAVELIN Gastric 100, which compared avelumab (anti–PD-L1) maintenance after 1L CTx vs continued CTx in patients (pts) with GC/GEJC. Methods: In this global, open-label, phase 3 trial (NCT02625610), eligible pts had previously untreated, unresectable, locally advanced/metastatic (LA/M) HER2− GC/GEJC. Pts without progressive disease (PD) after 12 weeks of 1L oxaliplatin/fluoropyrimidine induction were randomized 1:1 to avelumab 10 mg/kg Q2W switch maintenance or continued CTx, stratified by region (Asia vs non-Asia). Primary endpoint was overall survival (OS) post induction in all randomized or PD-L1+ (≥1% of tumor cells, 73-10 assay) pts. Re…

TH-302 + Gemcitabine (G + T) vs Gemcitabine (G) in Patients with Previously Untreated advanced Pancreatic Cancer (PAC)

ABSTRACT Background TH-302 is a hypoxia targeted prodrug with a hypoxia-triggered 2-nitroimidazole component designed to release the DNA alkylator, bromo-isophosphoramide mustard (Br-IPM), when reduced in severe hypoxia. A randomized Phase 2B study (NCT01144455) was conducted to assess the benefit of G + T to standard dose G as first-line therapy of PAC. Materials and methods An open-label multi-center study of two dose levels of TH-302 (240 mg/m2 or 340 mg/m2) in combination with G versus G alone (randomized 1:1:1). G (1000 mg/m2) and T were administered IV over 30-60 minutes on Days 1, 8 and 15 of a 28-day cycle. Patients on the G could crossover after progression and be randomized to a G…

Loss of SMARCB1 expression in colon carcinoma

International audience; SMARCB1 is a tumor suppressor gene, which is part of SWI/SNF complex involved in transcriptional regulation. Recently, loss of SMARCB1 expression has been reported in gastrointestinal carcinomas. Our purpose was to evaluate the incidence and prognostic value of SMARCB1 loss in colon carcinoma (CC). Patients with stage III CC (n = 1695), and a second cohort of 23 patients with poorly differentiated CC were analyzed. Immunohistochemistry for SMARCB1 was performed on tissue microarrays, and cases with loss of expression were controlled on whole sections. Loss of SMARCB1 was compared with the clinico-pathological and molecular characteristics, and the prognostic value wa…

Aflibercept in Combination With FOLFIRI as First-line Chemotherapy in Patients With Metastatic Colorectal Cancer (mCRC): A Phase II Study (FFCD 1302)

Abstract Background FOLFIRI (irinotecan, 5-fluorouracil, and leucovorin) + aflibercept improves median overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) in patients with previously treated metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). Our aim was to investigate efficacy and tolerability of this combination in the first line. Patients and Methods Patients with untreated documented mCRC received aflibercept plus FOLFIRI every 14 days until progression or unacceptable toxicity in an open, phase II single-arm, multicenter trial. The primary endpoint was the 6-month PFS rate. Secondary endpoints were OS and tolerability. A 2-step Simon design was used with H0: 55% and H1= 75%. Data were analyzed …

Decision for adjuvant treatment in stage II colon cancer based on circulating tumor DNA:The CIRCULATE-PRODIGE 70 trial

International audience; Background: Adjuvant treatment for stage II colon cancer remains debated. Finding a tool to select patients at risk for disease recurrence may help the clinical decision. Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) has been reported recently as a potential predictive marker for disease recurrence. We thus aim to test its ability to better select stage II colon cancer patients for adjuvant therapy.Methods: This national, phase III trial (NCT00002019-000935-15) conducted in more than 100 centers in France, plans to screen around 2640 patients in order to randomize (2:1; minimization method) 198 ctDNA positive patients. Patients aged 18 to 75 years with ECOG performance status ≤1 wit…

Phase III Trial of Avelumab Maintenance After First-Line Induction Chemotherapy Versus Continuation of Chemotherapy in Patients With Gastric Cancers: Results From JAVELIN Gastric 100.

PURPOSE The role of maintenance therapy for gastric (GC) or gastroesophageal junction cancer (GEJC) is unclear. We investigated avelumab (anti–programmed death ligand-1 [PD-L1]) maintenance after first-line induction chemotherapy for GC/GEJC. PATIENTS AND METHODS JAVELIN Gastric 100 was a global, open-label, phase III trial. Eligible patients had untreated, unresectable, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2–negative, locally advanced or metastatic GC or GEJC. Patients without progressive disease after 12 weeks of first-line chemotherapy with oxaliplatin plus a fluoropyrimidine were randomly assigned 1:1 to avelumab 10 mg/kg every 2 weeks or continued chemotherapy, stratified by region (…

Analyse des infiltrats immunitaires CD3 et CD8 chez 1280 malades atteints de cancers coliques de stade III : approche par intelligence artificielle entièrement automatisée

L’etude retrospective de tumeurs par immunohistochimie constitue un enjeu majeur dans l’amelioration de la prise en charge atteints de pathologies cancereuses. Cependant l’analyse est chronophage pour le pathologiste et reste le plus souvent semi-quantitative pouvant entrainer une perte d’information. L’intelligence artificielle, qui consiste en une approche d’analyse automatisee a haut debit, pourrait permettre de s’affranchir dans ce contexte du pathologiste en apportant de plus une information quantitative. Nous avons ainsi etudie deux parametres immunitaires, CD3 et CD8 sur 1280 lames de malades de la cohorte PETACC8 [1] , une etude europeenne de patients atteints de cancers coliques de…

Perioperative FOLFOX 4 Versus FOLFOX 4 Plus Cetuximab Versus Immediate Surgery for High-Risk Stage II and III Colon Cancers: A Phase II Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial (PRODIGE 22).

BACKGROUND Perioperative chemotherapy has proven valuable in several tumors, but not in colon cancer (CC). OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of perioperative chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced nonmetastatic CC. METHODS This is a French multicenter randomized phase II trial in patients with resectable high-risk T3, T4, and/or N2 CC on baseline computed tomography (CT) scan. Patients were randomized to receive either 6 months of adjuvant FOLFOX after colectomy (control) or perioperative FOLFOX for 4 cycles before surgery and 8 cycles after (FOLFOX peri-op). In RAS wild-type patients, a third arm testing perioperative FOLFOX-cetuximab was added…

Intratumor CMS Heterogeneity Impacts Patient Prognosis in Localized Colon Cancer

Abstract Purpose: The consensus molecular subtypes (CMS) represent a significant advance in the understanding of intertumor heterogeneity in colon cancer. Intratumor heterogeneity (ITH) is the new frontier for refining prognostication and understanding treatment resistance. This study aims at deciphering the transcriptomic ITH of colon cancer and understanding its potential prognostic implications. Experimental Design: We deconvoluted the transcriptomic profiles of 1,779 tumors from the PETACC8 trial and 155 colon cancer cell lines as weighted sums of the four CMSs, using the Weighted In Silico Pathology (WISP) algorithm. We assigned to each tumor and cell line a combination of up to three …

ESMO consensus guidelines for the management of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer

Contains fulltext : 165965.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Closed access) Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common malignancies in Western countries. Over the last 20 years, and the last decade in particular, the clinical outcome for patients with metastatic CRC (mCRC) has improved greatly due not only to an increase in the number of patients being referred for and undergoing surgical resection of their localised metastatic disease but also to a more strategic approach to the delivery of systemic therapy and an expansion in the use of ablative techniques. This reflects the increase in the number of patients that are being managed within a multidisciplinary team environment and speciali…

Prognostic value of methylator phenotype in stage III colon cancer treated with oxaliplatin-based adjuvant chemotherapy

Abstract Purpose: There are conflicting results concerning the prognostic value of the CpG island methylator phenotype (CIMP) in patients with nonmetastatic colon cancer. We studied this phenotype in stage III colon cancer characterized for mismatch repair (MMR), RAS, and BRAF status, and treated with adjuvant FOLFOX-based regimen. Experimental Design: Tumor samples of 1,907 patients enrolled in the PETACC-8 adjuvant phase III trial were analyzed. The method used was methylation-specific PCR, where CIMP+ status was defined by methylation of at least 3 of 5 following genes: IGF2, CACNA1G, NEUROG1, SOCS1, and RUNX3. Association between CIMP status and overall survival (OS), disease-free survi…

Phase III, randomised trial of avelumab versus physician's choice of chemotherapy as third-line treatment of patients with advanced gastric or gastro-oesophageal junction cancer: primary analysis of JAVELIN Gastric 300

BACKGROUND: There currently are no internationally recognised treatment guidelines for patients with advanced gastric cancer/gastro-oesophageal junction cancer (GC/GEJC) in whom two prior lines of therapy have failed. The randomised, phase III JAVELIN Gastric 300 trial compared avelumab versus physician's choice of chemotherapy as third-line therapy in patients with advanced GC/GEJC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients with unresectable, recurrent, locally advanced, or metastatic GC/GEJC were recruited at 147 sites globally. All patients were randomised to receive either avelumab 10 mg/kg by intravenous infusion every 2 weeks or physician's choice of chemotherapy (paclitaxel 80 mg/m2 on days 1, …

Does neoadjuvant FOLFOX chemotherapy improve the prognosis of high‐risk Stage II and III colon cancers? Three years' follow‐up results of the PRODIGE 22 phase II randomized multicentre trial

International audience; Aim Neoadjuvant chemotherapy has proven valuable in locally advanced resectable colon cancer (CC) but its effect on oncological outcomes is uncertain. The aim of the present paper was to report 3-year oncological outcomes, representing the secondary endpoints of the PRODIGE 22 trial. Method PRODIGE 22 was a randomized multicentre phase II trial in high-risk T3, T4 and/or N2 CC patients on CT scan. Patients were randomized between 6 months of adjuvant FOLFOX (upfront surgery) or perioperative FOLFOX (four cycles before surgery and eight cycles after; FOLFOX perioperative). In wild-type RAS patients, a third arm testing perioperative FOLFOX-cetuximab was added. The pri…

Risk factors for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) severity and mortality among solid cancer patients and impact of the disease on anticancer treatment: A French nationwide cohort study (GCO-002 CACOVID-19).

Background Cancer patients are thought to have an increased risk of developing severe Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection and of dying from the disease. In this work, predictive factors for COVID-19 severity and mortality in cancer patients were investigated. Patients and Methods In this large nationwide retro-prospective cohort study, we collected data on patients with solid tumours and COVID-19 diagnosed between March 1 and June 11, 2020. The primary endpoint was all-cause mortality and COVID-19 severity, defined as admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) and/or mechanical ventilation and/or death, was one of the secondary endpoints. Results From April 4 to June 11, 2020, 1289…

Validation of the prognostic impact of lymphocyte infiltration (LI) in patients (pts) with stage III colon cancer (CC) treated with adjuvant FOLFOX plus /- cetuximab: A PETACC8 translational study

International audience; The prognostic value of LI of CC has been demonstrated by several groups. However no validated test is available for clinical practice. We previously described an automated and reproducible method for testing LI (Allard MA et al2012) and aimed to validate it for clinical use. Methods: According to NIH criteria, we designed a prospective analysis of this biomarker in pts included in the PETACC8 phase III study. Primary objective was to compare % of pts without recurrence at 2 years in pts with high versus low LI (#NCT02364024). Secondary objectives were comparison of disease free (DFS) and overall (OS) survivals, and prognostic value of LI on these endpoints. Automate…

Colon cancer molecular subtype intratumoral heterogeneity and its prognostic impact: An extensive molecular analysis of the PETACC-8

Aflibercept in combination with irinotecan, fluorouracil and leucovorin (FOLFIRI) as first-line chemotherapy in metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) patients: A phase II multicentric study

Maintenance therapy with avelumab (MSB0010718C; anti-PD-L1) vs continuation of first-line chemotherapy in patients with unresectable, locally advanced or metastatic gastric cancer: The phase 3 JAVELIN Gastric 100 trial.

TPS4134Background: Programmed death-1 receptor ligand (PD-L1) is a key therapeutic target in the reactivation of the immune response against multiple cancers. Avelumab* is a fully human anti-PD-L1 ...

Exploratory analyses of 400 patients enrolled in 2 FFCD trials of first line treatment for metastatic pancreatic cancer

Impact of laparoscopy on oncological outcomes after colectomy for stage III colon cancer: A post-hoc multivariate analysis from PETACC8 European randomized clinical trial

Abstract Background In colon cancer (CC), surgery remains the mainstay of treatment with curative intent. Despite several clinical trials comparing open and laparoscopic approaches, data on long-term outcomes for stage III CC are lacking. Methods This post-hoc analysis of the European PETACC8 randomized phase 3 trial included patients from 340 sites between December 2005 and November 2009, with long follow-up (median 7.56 years). Patients were randomly assigned to FOLFOX or FOLFOX+cetuximab after colonic resection. The surgical approach was left to the referring surgeon's discretion. Results Among 2555 patients included, 1796 (70.29%) were operated on by open surgery and 759 (29.71%) by lap…

Avelumab versus standard second line treatment chemotherapy in metastatic colorectal cancer patients with microsatellite instability: The SAMCO-PRODIGE 54 randomised phase II trial

Abstract Immune checkpoint inhibitors have failed in treating metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) patients except those with dMMR/MSI tumors. However, until very recently we had only non-comparative promising data in this population with anti-programmed cell death 1/ programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD1/PD-L1) antibodies alone or combined with anti- cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (CTLA4) antibodies. This comparative phase II trial (NCT 03186326), conducted in more than 100 centers in France, will include dMMR/MSI mCRC patients with progression after a first-line treatment with chemotherapy ± targeted therapies, to evaluate efficacy and safety of the anti-PDL1 Avelumab versus a s…

Gemcitabine plus nab-paclitaxel until progression or alternating with FOLFIRI.3, as first-line treatment for patients with metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma: The Federation Francophone de Cancérologie Digestive-PRODIGE 37 randomised phase II study (FIRGEMAX)

Abstract Background Chemotherapy is effective in metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma (mPA), but new approaches are still needed to improve patients' survival and quality of life. We have previously published good efficacy and tolerability results on a sequential treatment strategy of gemcitabine followed by an intensified FOLFIRI (5FU+irinotecan) regimen. In the present study, we evaluated the same sequence but replaced gemcitabine by the new gemcitabine + nab-paclitaxel standard first-line combination. Patients and methods We randomised chemotherapy-naive patients with proven mPA, bilirubin levels ≤1.5 upper limit of normal values and performance status 0–2 to alternately receive gemcitab…

Evolution of checkpoint inhibitors for the treatment of metastatic gastric cancers: Current status and future perspectives.

Abstract Background Standard treatment options for patients with advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction cancer (GC/GEJC) are associated with limited efficacy and some toxicity. Recently, immunotherapy with antibodies that inhibit the programmed death 1 (PD-1)/programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) interaction has emerged as a new treatment option. This manuscript reviews early-phase and late-phase trials of immunotherapy in advanced GC/GEJC. Methods Searches for studies of immunotherapy in GC/GEJC were performed using PubMed, ClinicalTrials.gov, and abstract databases for select annual congresses. Findings were interpreted based on expert opinion. Results Monotherapy with anti–PD-1/PD-L1 …

O-7 FOLFIRI ± napabucasin in patients with previously treated metastatic colorectal cancer: Overall survival results from the phase 3 CanStem303C study

Predictive factors of severe early treatment-related toxicity in patients receiving first-line treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer: Pooled analysis of 2190 patients enrolled in Fédération Francophone de Cancérologie Digestive (FFCD) trials

Few studies have explored the association between baseline characteristics and the occurrence of early toxicities in patients treated with first-line chemotherapy for metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC).Individual patient data of 2190 patients enrolled in 10 prospective FFCD (Fédération Francophone de Cancérologie Digestive) trials were analysed. Severe early toxicity was defined as the occurrence of grade ≥III toxicity within 3 months after initiation of chemotherapy (ET3).Patients received monotherapy based on 5-FU (n = 1068), a cytotoxic doublet (n = 395) or tritherapy with a cytotoxic doublet plus anti-VEGF agent or a cytotoxic triplet (n = 727). The patients received 5-FU (100%), Irino…

Prospective validation of a lymphocyte infiltration prognostic test in stage III colon cancer patients treated with adjuvant FOLFOX.

IF 6.029; International audience; BackgroundThe prognostic value of lymphocyte infiltration (LI) of colorectal carcinoma (CC) has been demonstrated by several groups. However, no validated test is currently available for clinical practice. We previously described an automated and reproducible method for testing LI and aimed to validate it for clinical use.Patients and methodsAccording to National Institutes of Health criteria, we designed a prospective validation of this biomarker in patients included in the PETACC8 phase III study. Primary objective was to compare percentage of patients alive and without recurrence at 2 years in patients with high versus low LI (#NCT02364024). Associations…

Clinicopathological factors influence diagnostic accuracy of clinical N staging for early gastric cancer