Association between time to progression and subsequent survival inceritinib-treated patients with advanced ALK-positive non-small-cell lung cancer

Objective: Time to progression (TTP) is a surrogate marker of overall survival (OS). However, OS is also dependent on post-progression survival (PPS). This study evaluated the association between TTP and the duration of PPS among adult patients who received ceritinib (Zykadia¹) for the treatment of advanced anaplastic lymphoma kinase positive (ALK+) non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Research design and methods: A pooled analysis was performed on 181 ASCEND-1 (phase I) and ASCEND-2 (phase II) patients who experienced disease progression while on ceritinib. TTP was assessed on its association with PPS in a Kaplan–Meier analysis and in Cox proportional hazard models, adjusted for clinical covariates.

Main outcome measures: Main outcomes measured include TTP, PPS, and OS.

Results: Patients with TTP ≥6 months experienced significantly longer PPS compared to those with TTP <6 months (median: 9.8 vs. 6.5 months, log-rank p-value <?.01). When TTP was assessed as a continuous variable, every 3 months of longer TTP was associated with a 21% lower hazard of death following progression (hazard ratio [HR]: 0.79, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.63–1.00; adjusted HR: 0.79, 95% CI: 0.64–0.99). This positive association translated into an OS benefit: each 3 months of longer TTP was associated with a lower hazard of death (adjusted HR: 0.46, 95% CI: 0.37–0.58). Median OS was 20.0 months for patients with TTP ≥6 months and was 10.9 months for patients with TTP <6 months.

Conclusions: A longer duration of TTP after treatment with ceritinib was significantly associated with a longer duration of both PPS and OS.     

塞来昔布联合化疗对转移性或术后复发性晚期胃癌的疗效及药物不良反应

目的 分析塞来昔布联合化疗治疗转移性或术后复发性胃癌的疗效和安全性。方法 收集2010年9月至2016年12月转移性或术后复发性胃癌患者,分为塞来昔布+化疗组和单纯化疗组,治疗6个周期。比较两组患者间临床资料、无进展生存期（PFS）、总生存期（OS）的差异,并进一步分析COX-2阳性亚组的生存情况,评价药物安全性。结果 共纳入患者176例,塞来昔布+化疗组89例,单纯化疗组87例。两组患者客观缓解率、疾病控制率比较,差异均无统计学意义（P>0.05）。两组患者中位OS（P=0.59）和中位PFS（P=0.734）比较,差异均无统计学意义。塞来昔布+化疗组COX-2阳性患者中位OS为14个月,单纯化疗组COX-2阳性患者为10个月,差异有统计学意义（P=0.010）;塞来昔布+化疗组COX-2阳性患者中位PFS为7.5个月,单纯化疗组COX-2阳性患者为5个月,差异有统计学意义（P<0.001）。两组患者的药物不良反应均以恶心最为常见,但差异无统计学意义。结论 塞来昔布联合化疗可延长COX-2阳性晚期胃癌患者的OS和PFS,且不增加药物不良反应。     

Comparative effectiveness of everolimus and axitinib as second targeted therapies for metastatic renal cell carcinoma in the US: a retrospective chart review

Background Second targeted therapies for metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) include mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitors (mTORis) and tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). This observational study compares overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) of patients treated with everolimus (an mTORi) and axitinib (a TKI) following first TKI, and assesses the impact of type and duration of first TKI on the relative effectiveness of these second targeted therapies.

Methods Retrospective reviews of medical records were conducted by medical oncologists or hematologists/oncologists recruited from a nationwide panel. Included patients with mRCC were required to have discontinued a first TKI (sunitinib, sorafenib, or pazopanib) for medical reasons, and to have initiated everolimus or axitinib as second targeted therapy between February 2012 and January 2013. OS and PFS were compared between patients treated with everolimus vs. axitinib using multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression models. Comparative results were also stratified by type and duration of first TKI.

Results Included patients (n?=?325 for everolimus and n?=?127 for axitinib) had a mean age of 61 years and 31% were female. Sunitinib was the most commonly used first TKI (73%). After adjusting for patient characteristics, no statistically significant differences were observed in OS or PFS between everolimus and axitinib. When stratifying by type and duration of first TKI, there was no statistically significant difference in OS between everolimus and axitinib in all subgroups except for patients with?<6 months on sunitinib or sorafenib as first TKI. No significant difference in PFS was observed in any subgroup.

Limitations Important limitations include potential missing or inaccurate data in medical charts, and confounding due to unobserved factors.

Conclusions In this retrospective chart review, no significant differences were detected in OS or PFS between axitinib and everolimus as second targeted therapy. Longer duration of first TKI was not associated with increased effectiveness of subsequent axitinib compared to everolimus.     

A triplet chemotherapy regimen of cisplatin,fluorouracil and paclitaxel for locoregionally recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma cases contraindicated for re-irradiation/surgery

Objective: Salvage treatment for locoregionally recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma remains a significant challenge. The present study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy, toxicity and prognostic factors of a triplet chemotherapy regimen involving cisplatin, fluorouracil and paclitaxel (TPF) for locoregionally recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) cases contraindicated for re-irradiation/surgery.

Methods: Patients with locoregionally recurrent NPC unsuitable for re-irradiation/surgery were treated with TPF therapy. The chemotherapy drugs were administered as follows: 135 mg/m² paclitaxel on day 1, 25 mg/m²/day cisplatin on days 1–3, followed by continuously infused intravenous fluorouracil for 120 h at a variable dosage from 600 to 800 mg/m²/day, depending on prior radiation.

Results: Twenty-seven patients were enrolled. The overall response was 66.7%. The median progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were 8.5 and 27.2 months, respectively. Toxicity was mild to moderate. Neutropenia and leukopenia were the primary grade 3–4 chemotherapy toxicities. 6 patients who regained the potential for re-radiotherapy or surgery showed significantly better outcomes than those treated with chemotherapy alone (median PFS: 20.8 vs. 7.1 months, P = 0.005; median OS: 54.2 vs. 20.6 months, P = 0.021).

Conclusion: TPF triplet chemotherapy showed a high response rate for locoregionally recurrent NPC with an acceptable toxicity profile.     

Real-world use of osimertinib in non–small cell lung cancer: ASTRIS study Korean subgroup analysis

Abstract

Objective: ASTRIS is a large real-world, open-label, multinational clinical study of osimertinib in patients with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) T790M mutation-positive advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have previously received a tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI). We report data from the Korean ASTRIS subgroup.

Methods: Adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC with a confirmed T790M mutation, WHO performance status of 0–2 and prior EGFR-TKI therapy, received osimertinib 80?mg once daily. Efficacy outcomes were overall survival (OS), investigator-assessed response rate (RR) and progression-free survival (PFS), and time to treatment discontinuation (TTD).

Results: At data cut-off (20 October 2017), 466 Korean patients were enrolled. Baseline EGFR molecular testing was mainly performed on biopsied tissue (75.1%). Baseline mutations co-occurring with T790M included exon 19 deletions (60.7%) and L858R (32.8%). 1-year OS was 82.7% (OS data not matured at data cut-off). Overall, RR was 71.0%, median PFS was 12.4?months and median TTD was 15.0?months. In patients with/without CNS metastases, RR was 68.0% and 79.6%, respectively; median PFS, 10.8 and 11.0?months, respectively; and median TTD, 11.2 and 14.7?months, respectively. Overall, 31.1% of patients experienced ≥1 adverse event (AE), leading to dose modification (12.0%), discontinuation (5.2%) or death (2.8%). Serious AEs (24.9%) included pulmonary embolism (1.7%), pleural effusion (1.7%), and pneumonia (1.5%).

Conclusion: In this real-world subgroup analysis of Korean patients in the ASTRIS study, osimertinib demonstrated comparable clinical efficacy to that attained in the global ASTRIS study and other clinical trials, with no new safety concerns.     

Treatment outcome of docetaxel,capecitabine and cisplatin regimen for patients with refractory and relapsed nasopharyngeal carcinoma who failed previous platinum-based chemotherapy

Objective: Although cisplatin combined with 5-fluorouracil is a common first-line regimen for advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), there are no standard regimens for refractory or relapsed patients. A study of DXD regimen [cisplatin (D), capecitabine (X) and docetaxel (D)] was conducted to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity for patients with refractory or relapsed NPC.

Methods: The regimen was administered as follows: 50 mg/m² docetaxel and 50 mg/m² cisplatin on day 1 and 800 mg/m² capecitabine on days 1 – 14, repeated every 3 – 4 weeks.

Results: Thirty patients were enrolled. The overall response and complete remission rate was 46.4 and 21.4%. Median follow-up was 24 months; median overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were 14.0 and 8.0 months. Five-year OS and PFS rates were 14.8 and 13.3%, respectively. Four patients achieved long-term tumor-free survival (range, 53.8 – 125.3 months). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that Epstein–Barr virus DNA status (p = 0.003) and therapeutic effect (p < 0.001) were significant independent factors for OS and PFS. The main grade 3/4 toxicities included neutropenia (26.6%), anemia (13.3%) and thrombocytopenia (10.0%). There were no chemotherapy-related deaths.

Conclusion: The DXD regimen appeared to be effective and well tolerated by patients with refractory or relapsed NPC. Further investigation is warranted.     

An adjusted indirect comparison of everolimus and sorafenib therapy in sunitinib-refractory metastatic renal cell carcinoma patients using repeated matched samples

Objective: To date, no trial data exist comparing treatment outcomes for everolimus versus sorafenib. The current analysis indirectly compares the overall survival (OS) benefit of everolimus and sorafenib as second-line treatment options.

Research design and methods: A single-arm sorafenib study is selected as a basis to match an everolimus sunitinib-refractory subpopulation of the RECORD-1 trial. Only patients with clear cell histology are included. An adjusted matching approach is taken where 1000 repeated random samples matched to the sorafenib population on risk score distribution are produced, and a 95% CI around the mean of all sampled median OS is generated.

Main outcome measures: The main outcome measures include adjusted median OS and progression-free survival.

Results: In all, 45 clear cell histology sorafenib patients and 1000 samples of N = 41 sunitinib-refractory everolimus patients are considered for analysis. After adjusted matching, the estimated median OS benefit is 32.7 weeks (95% CI: 22, 64) and 81.5 weeks (95% CI: 78, 86) for sorafenib and everolimus patients, respectively.

Conclusion: Results suggest that sunitinib-refractory metastatic renal cell carcinoma patients treated with everolimus may experience significantly improved OS outcomes compared to those treated with sorafenib. However, because this is not a randomized controlled trial, the results should be interpreted as those from an observational study.     

Progression-free survival and time to progression as surrogate markers of overall survival in patients with advanced gastric cancer: analysis of 36 randomized trials

Progression-free survival (PFS) and time to progression (TTP) have been reported to correlate with overall survival (OS) in several types of cancers. To our knowledge, however, their use in the evaluation of new agents for AGC has not been investigated. We evaluated the potential of PFS and TTP to act as surrogates of OS in clinical trial settings. Randomized trials of systemic chemotherapy for advanced gastric cancer were identified by comprehensive electronic and manual search. Correlations between PFS/TTP and OS were evaluated. Thirty-six trials with a total of 83 treatment arms and 10,484 patients were selected for analysis. The nonparametric Spearman rank correlation coefficient (ρ) between median PFS/TTP and OS was 0.70 (95% CI, 0.59 to 0.82) and the correlation coefficient between hazard ratios in PFS/TTP and OS was 0.80 (95% CI, 0.68 to 0.92). Correlation tended to be higher in trials reporting PFS (ρ?=?0.85; 0.72-0.97) than in those reporting TTP (ρ?=?0.60; 0.24-0.97), trials in Non-Asian countries (ρ?=?0.80; 0.61-0.99) than Asia (ρ?=?0.67; 0.39-0.94), trials in patients with measurable lesions only (ρ?=?0.91; 0.77-1.00) than in those including non-measurable lesions (ρ?=?0.71; 0.50-0.93), albeit that none of these differences was significant. Our results indicate that improvements in PFS/TTP in advanced gastric cancer strongly correlate with improvements in OS. Further research is needed to clarify the surrogacy of PFS/TTP for OS or the role of PFS as the true end point in future randomized clinical trials of chemotherapy for AGC.     

Comparative efficacy of brigatinib versus ceritinib and alectinib in patients with crizotinib-refractory anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive non-small cell lung cancer

Objective: Brigatinib, ceritinib, and alectinib are approved to treat crizotinib-refractory anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive (ALK+) non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but no trial has compared them head-to-head. A matching-adjusted indirect comparison (MAIC) was conducted to estimate the relative efficacy of these agents in the crizotinib-refractory setting.

Methods: MAIC is a propensity score-type method that adjusts for differences in baseline characteristics between trials to estimate relative efficacy. Analyses were based on patient-level data from the ALTA trial for brigatinib and published summary-level trial data from ASCEND-1 and ASCEND-2 for ceritinib and NP28761 and NP28673 for alectinib. Objective response rate (ORR), progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) were compared.

Results: After matching, all key baseline characteristics were balanced between trials. Compared with ceritinib, brigatinib was associated with longer PFS (ASCEND-1: median 15.7 vs 6.9 months, hazard ratio (HR) [95% confidence interval]?=?0.38 [0.26–0.57]; ASCEND-2: median?=?18.3 vs 7.2 months, HR?=?0.33 [0.20–0.56]) and OS (ASCEND-1: not available; ASCEND-2: median 27.6 vs 14.9 months, HR?=?0.33 [0.17–0.63]). Versus alectinib, brigatinib was associated with longer PFS (NP28761: median?=?17.6 vs 8.2 months, HR?=?0.56 [0.36–0.86]; NP28673: median?=?17.6 vs 8.9 months, HR?=?0.61 [0.40–0.93]); results for OS were inconclusive (NP28761: median?=?27.6 vs 22.7 months, HR?=?0.70 [0.42–1.16]; NP28673: median?=?27.6 vs 26.0 months, HR?=?0.66 [0.39–1.09]). ORR was similar.

Conclusion: In crizotinib-refractory ALK?+?NSCLC patients, relative efficacy estimates suggest brigatinib may have prolonged PFS and OS vs ceritinib and prolonged PFS vs alectinib.     

The correlation between metastasis-free survival and overall survival in non-metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer patients from the Medical Data Vision claims database in Japan

Background and purpose: Several recent randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in non-metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer (nmCRPC) have demonstrated a significant improvement in metastasis-free survival (MFS); however, an improvement in overall survival (OS) is not reported yet. Since the surrogacy of MFS to OS has not been formally investigated in nmCRPC in Japan, this study evaluated the correlation between MFS and OS among a nmCRPC population in Japan.

Methods: This is a retrospective longitudinal observational cohort study in patients with nmCRPC using the Japanese Medical Data Vision (MDV) database covering over 20 million patients. A total of 1236 patients with CRPC who had no prior medical history of cancer except prostate cancer and no distant metastasis, and who fulfilled PCWG2 criteria, were identified. Following the identification of nmCRPC, patients’ medical records were investigated for subsequent events of metastasis and death.

Results: The median follow-up time was 24?months. Median MFS was 28?months (95% CI: 24.0 to 33.0?months) and median OS could not be estimated (95% CI: not estimated). There was a statistically significant correlation between MFS and OS (Pearson’s correlation coefficient?=?0.62; 95% CI: 0.58–0.65; p?<?.0001, Spearman’s correlation coefficient?=?0.62; 95% CI: 0.58–0.65; p?<?.0001 and Kendall’s τ statistic?=?0.53; 95% CI: 0.49–0.56; p?<?.0001).

Conclusions: The results of this study indicate a significant correlation between MFS and OS. It may justify the usefulness of MFS as surrogate for OS in nmCRPC.     

Assessment of Correlation Between Early and Late Efficacy Endpoints to Identify Potential Surrogacy Relationships in Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma: a Literature-Based Meta-analysis of 108 Phase II and Phase III Studies

Correlations between early and late efficacy endpoints were assessed to identify potential surrogate endpoints for overall survival (OS) or progression-free survival (PFS) with clinical trial-level data in three non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) subtypes: diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), follicular lymphoma (FL), and mantle cell lymphoma (MCL). One hundred and eight phase II–III trials (129 trial arms) in DLBCL, FL, and MCL were identified and included in the database. Correlations between efficacy endpoints were analyzed using weighted linear regression and Pearson’s coefficient of determination (R ²). In newly diagnosed DLBCL, 6-month PFS was strongly correlated with 2-year OS (R ²?=?0.81, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.51–0.96). Six-month PFS was strongly correlated with 3-year PFS (R ²?=?0.89, 95% CI 0.62–0.96) in FL and was moderately correlated with 2-year OS (R ²?=?0.69, 95% CI 0.40–0.91) in MCL trials. Linear regression determined that a 10% increase in 6-month PFS would yield a 13%?±?1.2% increase in 2-year OS in DLBCL, a 23%?±?1.1% increase in 3-year PFS in FL, or a 6.7%?±?1.0% increase in 2-year OS in MCL. Both 6-month PFS and complete response (CR) rate were moderately correlated with median PFS in FL trials with R ²?=?0.66 (95% CI 0.52–0.98) and R ²?=?0.69 (95% CI 0.22–0.89), respectively. Six-month PFS is a potential surrogate endpoint for 2-year OS in newly diagnosed DLBCL and MCL and for 3-year PFS in FL. Both 6-month PFS and CR rate are potential surrogate endpoints for median PFS in FL patients. Confirmation and validation of these correlations may facilitate early interpretation of NHL trials.     

Angiogenesis inhibitors for patients with ovarian cancer: a meta-analysis of 12 randomized controlled trials

Objectives:

To investigate the effects of angiogenesis inhibitors in the treatment of patients with advanced or recurrent ovarian cancer, a meta-analysis was performed and overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), and toxicity were assessed.

Patients and methods:

The PubMed and Embase databases, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched for publications between January 2000 and June 2015. Hazard ratios (HRs) with their 95% confidence intervals (CIs), or data for calculating HRs with 95% CIs were derived.

Results:

The 12 trials in this meta-analysis were divided into three groups: four trials with a VEGF inhibitor (the bevacizumab group), six trials with VEGFR inhibitors (the VEGFRIs group), and two trials with an angiopoietin inhibitor (the trebananib group). PFS improvement was seen in all groups (HR?=?0.61, 95% CI 0.48 to 0.79, P?<?0.001 for bevacizumab; HR?=?0.71, 95% CI 0.59 to 0.87, P?=?0.001 for VEGFRIs; and HR?=?0.67, 95% CI 0.62 to 0.72, P?<?0.001 for trebananib). Regarding OS, bevacizumab showed a trend of improvement (HR?=?0.90, 95% CI 0.80 to 1.01, P?=?0.079), VEGFRIs showed no improvement (HR?=?0.92, 95% CI 0.75 to 1.11, P?=?0.368), and trebananib demonstrated a significant prolongation (HR?=?0.81, 95% CI 0.67 to 0.99, P?=?0.036). Bevacizumab was associated with more class-specific adverse events (RR?=?4.05, 95% CI 1.99 to 8.27, P?<?0.001). Although the toxicity profiles differed, VEGFRIs developed common higher incidences of hypertension, diarrhea, and fatigue. A higher incidence of edema was reported in the trebananib group (RR?=?2.60, 95% CI 0.84 to 8.00, P?=?0.097).

Conclusions:

Anti-angiogenic therapy showed clear PFS benefit with increased toxicity, but its role in OS was undefined for ovarian cancer which emphasized the need for patient selection.     

Encorafenib in combination with binimetinib for unresectable or metastatic melanoma with BRAF mutations

Introduction: Combination treatment with a BRAF inhibitor and MEK inhibitor is the standard of care for patients with advanced BRAF^V600 mutation-positive melanoma. With the currently available combinations of dabrafenib plus trametinib and vemurafenib plus cobimetinib, median progression-free survival (PFS) of over 12 months has been achieved. However, treatment resistance and disease recurrence remain a clinical challenge.

Areas covered: Encorafenib in combination with bimetinib offers a new approach that may offer benefits over existing BRAF/MEK inhibitor combinations.

Expert opinion: While other BRAF/MEK inhibitor combinations have achieved a median overall survival (OS) of 22 months, patients with advanced BRAF mutation-positive melanoma treated with encorafenib plus binimetinib achieved a median OS of 33.6 months in the phase III COLUMBUS trial. PFS also appears to be improved with encorafenib plus binimetinib. This improved efficacy may be related to the distinct pharmacokinetics of encorafenib, with prolonged binding to the target molecule providing greater BRAF inhibition and increased potency compared with other drugs in the same class. Increased specificity of encorafenib may also result in better tolerability with less off-target effects, including reduced occurrence of pyrexia and photosensitivity. Encorafenib plus binimetinib seems likely to emerge as a valuable therapeutic alternative to established BRAF/MEK inhibitor combinations.     

Q-TWiST analysis of panitumumab plus FOLFOX4 versus FOLFOX4 alone in patients with previously untreated wild-type RAS metastatic colorectal cancer

Introduction:

Panitumumab plus infusional 5-fluorouracil, leucovorin, and oxaliplatin (FOLFOX4) significantly improved overall survival versus FOLFOX4 alone in patients with previously untreated wild-type RAS metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). We applied a quality-adjusted time without symptoms of disease or toxicity (Q-TWiST) analysis to provide an integrated measure of clinical benefit, with the objective of comparing quality-adjusted survival between the two arms. We acknowledge that there are limitations associated with Q-TWIST methodology for crossover trials.

Methods:

For each treatment arm, the truncated mean times spent in the toxicity (TOX: grade 3 or 4 adverse events), time without symptoms of disease or toxicity (TWiST), and relapse (REL: after disease progression) states were estimated by the product-limit method, and adjusted using utility weights derived from patient-reported EuroQol 5-dimension measures. Sensitivity analyses were performed in which utility weights (varying from 0 to 1) were applied to time in the TOX and REL health states.

Results:

Quality-adjusted overall survival time was statistically significantly longer with panitumumab plus FOLFOX4 (20.5 months) than with FOLFOX4 alone (18.2 months) (P?=?0.025).

Conclusion:

In patients with previously untreated wild-type RAS mCRC, panitumumab plus FOLFOX4 significantly improved quality-adjusted survival compared with FOLFOX4 alone.     

Impact of intraoperative MRI-guided resection on resection and survival in patient with gliomas: a meta-analysis

Objective: This study addressed the benefit of intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging (iMRI) compared with conventional neuronavigation-guided resection in patients with gliomas.

Research design and methods: The Medline, PubMed, Cochrane, and Google Scholar databases were searched up to 26 September 2015. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs), two-arm prospective studies, and retrospective studies in patients with glioblastoma/glioma who had received surgical treatment were included.

Main outcome measures: The primary outcome measures were the extent of tumor resection and tumor size reduction for using iMRI-guided or conventional neuronavigation-guided neurosurgery. Secondary outcomes included impact of surgery on 6 month progression-free survival (PFS), 12 month overall survival (OS) rates and surgical duration.

Results: We found that iMRI was associated with greater rate of gross total resection (rGTR) compared with conventional neuronavigation procedures (3.16, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.07–4.83, P?P values ≥.065). Intraoperative MRI was associated with a higher rate of progression-free survival (PFS) compared with conventional neuronavigation (odds ratio, 1.84; 95% CI 1.15–2.95; P?=?.012), but the rate of overall survival (OS) between groups was similar (P?=?.799). Limitations of the study included the fact that data from non-RCTs was used, the small study population, and heterogeneity of outcomes across studies.

Conclusions: Our findings indicate that iMRI more frequently resulted in more complete resections leading to improved PFS in patients with malignant gliomas.     

Moderate anemia at diagnosis is an independent prognostic marker of the EUTOS,Sokal, and Hasford scores for survival and treatment response in chronic-phase,chronic myeloid leukemia patients with frontline imatinib

Objectives: This study aimed to examine the prognostic value of anemia for the diagnosis of chronic myeloid leukemia in the chronic phase (CML-CP) receiving imatinib.

Methods: One hundred and fifty-four CML-CP patients were enrolled. The influences of moderate anemia with hemoglobin (Hb)?Results: Moderate anemia was identified in 44 (28.6%) patients. These patients had more aggressive baseline features and higher risks, as assessed by scoring systems, and less favorable treatment responses vs those without anemia, including 3M-EMR (50.0% vs 69.1%), a complete cytogenetic response at 6 months (20.5% vs 50.9%), and a major molecular response at 12 months (22.5% vs 45.2%), with a median follow-up of 54.0 months. Furthermore, an Hb of 10?g/dl better distinguished DMR, EFS, PFS, and OS than the EUTOS, Sokal, and Hasford scores, and better predicted the responses and survivals in combination with 3M-EMR than 3M-EMR alone.

Conclusions: This finding highlights the significance of anemia in CML-CP, and suggests that patients with anemia at diagnosis should be carefully monitored and might benefit from more potent TKIs if not achieving 3M-EMR.     

Treatment patterns,overall survival,healthcare resource use and costs in elderly Medicare beneficiaries with chronic myeloid leukemia using second-generation tyrosine kinase inhibitors as second-line therapy

Objective Though the median age at diagnosis is 64 years, few studies focus on elderly (≥65 years) patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). This study examines healthcare outcomes among elderly Medicare beneficiaries with CML who started nilotinib or dasatinib after imatinib.

Research design and methods Patients were identified in the Medicare Research Identifiable Files (2006–2012) and had continuous Medicare Parts A, B, and D coverage.

Main outcome measures Treatment patterns, overall survival (OS), monthly healthcare resource utilization and medical costs were measured from the second-line tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) initiation (index date) to end of Medicare coverage.

Results Despite similar adherence, dasatinib patients (N?=?379) were more likely to start on the recommended dose (74% vs. 53%; p?<?0.001), and to have dose reductions (21% vs. 11%, adjusted hazard ratio [HR]?=?1.94; p?=?0.002) or dose increases (9% vs. 7%; adjusted HR?=?1.81; p?=?0.048) than nilotinib patients (N?=?280). Fewer nilotinib patients discontinued (59% vs. 67%; adjusted HR?=?0.80; p?=?0.026) or switched to another TKI (21% vs. 29%; adjusted HR?=?0.72; p?=?0.044) than dasatinib patients. Nilotinib patients had longer median OS (>4.9 years vs. 4.0 years; p?=?0.032) and 37% lower mortality risk than dasatinib patients (adjusted HR?=?0.63; p?=?0.008). Nilotinib patients had 23% fewer inpatient admissions, 30% fewer emergency room visits, 13% fewer outpatient visits (all p?<?0.05), and lower monthly medical costs (by $513, p?=?0.024) than dasatinib patients.

Limitations Lack of clinical assessment (disease phase and response to first-line therapy) and retrospective nature of study (unobservable potential confounding factors, non-randomized treatment choice).

Conclusions In the current study of elderly CML patients, initiation of second-line TKIs frequently occurs at doses lower than the recommended starting doses and, despite this, many patients require dose adjustments. Here, nilotinib patients required fewer dose adjustments than dasatinib patients. Further research focusing on elderly CML patients is warranted in order to help define future best clinical practices.     

Efficacy and safety of doublet versus single agent as salvage treatment for metastatic breast cancer pretreated with anthracyclines and taxanes: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Aim: To perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials to compare the efficacy and safety of doublet versus single agent as salvage treatment for pretreated metastatic breast cancer.

Methods: A comprehensive literature search was performed to identify relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs). All clinical studies were independently identified by two authors for inclusion. Demographic data, treatment regimens, objective response rate (ORR), and progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were extracted and analyzed using Comprehensive MetaAnalysis software (Version 2.0).

Results: Thirteen RCTs involving 4878 pretreated metastatic breast cancer patients were ultimately identified. The pooled results demonstrated that doublet combination therapy significantly improved ORR (RR 1.13, 95% CI: 1.01–1.27, p?<?.001) and PFS (hazard ration [HR] 0.83, 95% CI: 0.73–0.96, p?=?.011), but not OS (HR 0.93, 95% CI: 0.86–1.01, p?=?.065). Similar results were observed in sub-group analysis according to treatment regimens. Additionally, more incidences of grade 3 or 4 myelosuppression toxicities nausea and fatigue were observed in doublet combination therapy.

Conclusions: In comparison with a single agent alone, doublet combination therapy as salvage treatment for pretreated metastatic breast cancer patients significantly improves ORR and PFS, but not OS. Further studies are recommended to identify patients who will most likely benefit from the appropriate doublet combination therapy.     

Adjuvant docetaxel and carboplatin chemotherapy administered alone or with radiotherapy in a “sandwich” protocol in patients with advanced endometrial cancer: a single-institution experience

Objective: To evaluate the outcomes of adjuvant chemotherapy administered alone or with radiotherapy in a “sandwich” protocol in patients with advanced endometrial cancer.

Methods: The authors retrospectively reviewed the clinical records of patients with staged III – IV disease who received adjuvant chemotherapy (docetaxel plus carboplatin) administered alone or interposed with radiotherapy between January 2004 and August 2010.

Results: Of the 35 study patients, 10 (28.6%) had stage IIIA disease, 15 (42.9%) had IIIC1 disease, 7 (20.0%) had IIIC2 disease and 3 (8.6%) had IVB disease. Nine (90.0%) of the 10 patients with stage IIIA disease received four to six cycles of adjuvant docetaxel and carboplatin chemotherapy alone. All 25 patients with stage IIIC – IVB disease and 1 patient with stage IIIA disease received radiotherapy sandwiched between chemotherapy cycles (total, three to six cycles). The 3-year progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) rates were 73.0 and 87.0%, respectively, for all patients. For patients with stage IIIC – IVB disease, the 3-year PFS and OS rates were 62.4 and 81.8%, respectively.

Conclusion: Combination chemotherapy with docetaxel and carboplatin interposed with radiotherapy is efficacious and well tolerated for stage IIIC – IVB endometrial cancer. Adjuvant chemotherapy alone with docetaxel and carboplatin might be sufficient for stage IIIA disease.