Search

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is frequently locally advanced, but has a high risk of recurrence after initial treatment. Immune checkpoint blockade with PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors has revolutionized treatment in the recurrent setting, but resistance to these therapies frequently occurs. Combination of checkpoint inhibitors with the ATR inhibitor ceralasertib could provide an exciting opportunity, with encouraging clinical activity reported in melanoma and non-small cell lung cancer (Kwon et al. 2022; Kim et al. 2022; Besse et al. OA15.05 IASLC 2022 WCLC). This phase 1b trial provided a unique opportunity to understand the immunomodulatory impact of DNA Damage Response (DDR) inhibitors in a clinical setting. NCT03022409 is an open-label, randomized window of opportunity trial where patients with HNSCC were treated with either the PARP inhibitor olaparib (300mg BID) or ceralasertib (160mg BID) for 9-21 days, prior to definitive surgery (or on-treatment biopsy). 21 patients were randomized; n=12 to ceralasertib and n=9 to olaparib, and ceralasertib data will be presented here. Translational endpoints on frozen and fixed tumor biopsies included spatial pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamic biomarkers, multiplexed fluorescence of tumor infiltrating immune cells and gene expression panels. Blood assessments included cytokine detection, immune cell phenotyping and gene expression. Primary endpoint analysis utilized a bespoke prognostic immune-focused gene signature and secondary endpoint an IHC immunoscore, both aimed to measure if tumors would shift from a ‘cold’ to ‘hot/active’ immune state. We observed an ‘on-drug’ selective suppression of proliferating Ki67+ T-cells (but not total T-cells) in the tumor microenvironment and periphery, followed by a repopulation and median rebound of 63.8% and 187.5% above baseline levels for peripheral helper (CD4+Ki67+; n=8) and cytotoxic (CD8+Ki67+; n=7) T-cells respectively, when ceralasertib dose stopped. IL-12 plasma cytokine levels dropped on ceralasertib treatment and returned to baseline levels ‘off-drug’ in 8/10 patients. Type-I interferon (IFN1) gene expression associated signatures were also upregulated in PBMCs, suggestive of an immune priming effect. 0/2 and 2/4 patients on ceralasertib met their primary and secondary endpoints respectively, however, interpretation is limited due to small numbers of evaluable patients. 1 patient had a grade 3 serious adverse event of chest pain in the ceralasertib arm. There were no unexpected safety findings for either drug and adverse events were generally low grade. The translational data has generated new insights into the immunomodulatory effect of ceralasertib. Further evaluation of the combination of ceralasertib with immune checkpoint blockade is warranted to explore this novel immune mechanism of action. Citation Format: Gemma N. Jones, Sonia Iyer, Marta Milo, Pei-Jen Lou, Melonie A. Nance, Carlos A. Gomez-Roca, Nathan Standifer, Paola Marco-Casanova, Shaan Gill, Michael Surace, Richard Bystry, Maria Alexandrova, Sophie Willis, Jaime Rodriguez-Canales, Andreas Dannhorn, Bienvenu Loembé, Alan Lau, Natalia Lukashchuk, Elizabeth A. Harrington, Elhan Sanai, Emma Dean, Umamaheswar Duvvuri. Immunomodulatory effects of the ATR inhibitor ceralasertib in a window of opportunity biomarker trial in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2023; Part 2 (Clinical Trials and Late-Breaking Research); 2023 Apr 14-19; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(8_Suppl):Abstract nr CT198.

Introduction: Tertiary Lymphoid Structures (TLS) are highly organized ectopic lymphoid structures found in inflamed or tumor tissues, acting as sites of lymphoid recruitment and immune activation. A high TLS density within the tumor is commonly associated with an increased prognostic effect of TILs and with an improved disease free survival and overall survival for patients. However, the existence of conflicting studies suggest that multiple TLS features should be taken into account when assessing their prognostic value, such as their location, cellular composition, maturation stage and spatial organisation, as those may affect their functionalities. Methods: With the aim of gaining insights into TLS biology and evaluating the prognostic role of TLS in Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma (NSCLC) according to their multiple features, we developed a TLS multiplex immunofluorescent (mIF) panel that includes T cell (CD3, CD8), B cell (CD20), Follicular Dendritic cell (CD21, CD23) and mature dendritic cell (DC-LAMP) markers. We deployed this panel across a cohort of primary tumors from NSCLC patients (n=408) and established a mIF image analysis workstream to assess the status and spatial location of each cell within the tissue. A H&E staining of the same tissue section was performed to evaluate mIF spatial data in relation to the tumor context. Additional multi-omics assessments were conducted across the same cohort including; whole exome sequencing, NanoString transcriptomics, and immunohistochemistry (e.g. PD-L1, FOXP3). We have leveraged clinical metadata, including demographics (e.g. age, sex, smoking status) and clinical risk factors (e.g. stage, grade, Standard of Care treatment) with clinical follow up (e.g. OS, PFS) for prevalence analysis, novel biomarker identification, and survival association. Results: Assessment of the prevalence of each cell phenotype within the tumor tissue and TLS (tumor centre vs invasive margin; tumor epithelium vs stroma), the distance between each cell type, and the distance of non-TLS immune cells to the closest TLS will be described, demonstrating the different types of lymphoid aggregates and TLS and their functional status. An integrative analysis combining these spatial biology data with multi-omics and clinical data will be presented evaluating the prognostic value of TLS composition, maturation status and spatial organization, in correlation with additional biomarkers and clinical characteristics. Conclusion: This exploratory study using cutting-edge technologies enables us to better understand how TLS orchestrate an organised anti-tumour response, defining TLS spatial biomarker signatures, TLS gene signatures, and TLS features associated with NSCLC patient outcomes to evaluate in the clinic. Citation Format: Julie Berthe, Felix Segerer, Emily C. Jennings, Alma Andoni, Marco Testori, Megha Saraiya, Miljenka Vuko, Harald Hessel, Andreas Spitzmüller, Mari Heininen-Brown, Jorge Blando, Felicia Ng, Emma Jones, Sophie Willis, Michael Surace, Rieneke van de Ven, Tanja De Gruijl, Helen Angell. A multi-modal analysis approach leveraging multiplexed spatial phenotyping and multi-omics analysis to better understand the prognostic value of tertiary lymphoid structures in non-small cell lung cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2022; 2022 Apr 8-13. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(12_Suppl):Abstract nr 1711.

Introduction: Predictive biomarkers of anti‒PD-(L)1 therapies have largely focused on the tumor - T cell axis where tumor cell PD-L1 expression has demonstrated its clinical utility in predicting overall survival (OS) in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Although, other immune cell subsets were shown to be associated with clinical efficacy, their relative impact and combined effect in predicting improved long-term survival warrant further investigation. Using computational image analysis of multiplex immunofluorescence (mIF) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) immune marker panels, we sought to identify single and combined biomarkers of the tumor immune contexture in association with long-term OS in advanced NSCLC patients treated with Durvalumab. Methods: Pre-treatment tumor samples from advanced NSCLC patients (n = 210) enrolled in durvalumab nonrandomized phase 1/2 trial (10 mg/kg Q2W, CP1108/NCT01693562), were stained using IHC and 6-marker mIF panels to detect markers of immune cells, cell functional state and tertiary lymphoid structure (TLS) (PD-L1, CD8, PD-1, Ki67, CD68, CD20, CD1c, NKp46, CD66b, ICOS, FOXP3). Cell marker density (cells/mm2), distribution and proximity were quantified and analyzed in association with overall survival. Results: Computational image analysis of the tumor immune contexture revealed a greater immune inflamed phenotype, both innate (macrophages, dendritic cells) and adaptive (T and B cells), in NSCLC patients with long OS >2 years compared to those with short OS < 1 year (fold change > 2, p < 0.0001). Patient subgroup with high density of individual immune subsets show a median OS (mOS) of 10-20 months (p < 0.01 high vs. low subgroups) while combined markers of innate and adaptive immune cells show an improved mOS > 2 years (p < 0.001). Specifically, among the key findings, combined biomarkers of CD68+ PD-L1+ macrophages and CD8+ T cells predicts for a significant increase in OS for patients with high vs low marker density (HR = 0.21, 95%CI 0.12 - 0.39, p Conclusion: These findings demonstrate the importance of both tertiary lymphoid structure and high pre-existing innate-adaptive immunity in driving long-term overall survival of durvalumab-treated patients with NSCLC and highlight the need for the development of multiparametric predictive biomarkers beyond tumor-T cell axis. Citation Format: Lina Meinecke, Jorge Blando, Thomas Herz, Michael Surace, Thomas Padel, Monica Azqueta Gavaldon, Harald Hessel, Farzad Sekhavati, Megha Saraiya, Anmarie Boutrin, Karma Da Costa, Jaime Rodriguez Canales, Ashok Gupta, Carl Barrett, Zachary Aaron Cooper, Ikbel Achour. Presence of TLS and combined high densities of PD-L1+ macrophages & CD8+ T cells predict long-term overall survival for patients with advanced NSCLC treated with durvalumab [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2022; 2022 Apr 8-13. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(12_Suppl):Abstract nr 1235.