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A retrospective study was conducted to investigate the efficacy and toxicity of single-agent nab-paclitaxel in 67 patients with platinum-resistant non-small cell lung cancer in Kansai Medical University Hospital from August 2013 to December 2015. Overall, 25% of patients experienced disease progression, 48% exhibited a partial response, 27% had stable disease and 0% had a complete response. The median progression-free survival (PFS) time was 4.8 months and the median overall survival time was 18.2 months. There was no statistically significant difference in PFS between patients with non-squamous carcinoma and squamous carcinoma, or between second-line use and post-second-line use. The most common severe adverse event was neutropenia, followed by interstitial lung disease, infection and fatigue. The results revealed that single agent nab-paclitaxel was associated with an acceptable level of toxicity and a favorable response. This regimen has been developed recently, thus it has not been sufficiently evaluated its toxicity and efficacy. Additional studies to evaluate these parameters in non-small cell lung cancer are warranted.

BACKGROUND Epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors significantly prolong the progression-free survival of patients with non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, most patients develop tumor regrowth and their prognosis remains poor. A new treatment strategy for NSCLC harboring EGFR mutation is therefore necessary. METHODS In phase I, eligible patients were administered oral erlotinib daily and intravenous pemetrexed, carboplatin, and bevacizumab every 3 weeks for four cycles with maintenance of pemetrexed and bevacizumab until progressive disease was observed. The dose of erlotinib was 100 mg for dose level 1 and 150 mg for dose level 2. The doses of pemetrexed, carboplatin, and bevacizumab were fixed at 500 mg/m2, area under the concentration-time curve of 6 mg/mL · min, and 15 mg/kg, respectively. The dose-limiting toxicities were grade 3/4 neutropenia with fever or infection, grade 4 leukopenia lasting for ≥7 days, grade 4 thrombocytopenia, grade 3/4 uncontrollable nonhematological toxicity, and delayed administration of the subsequent cycle by >2 weeks because of adverse events. RESULTS Six patients were enrolled in phase I (dose level 1, n = 3; dose level 2, n = 3). During the induction phase, grade 3 neutropenia without fever was observed in one patient at dose level 1 and two patients at dose level 2. Grade 3 anemia was reported in one patient at dose level 1 and grade 3 thrombocytopenia was reported in two patients at dose level 1 and dose level 2, respectively. CONCLUSION Four-drug combination therapy is a feasible and promising.

Bevacizumab(Avastin®), a humanized therapeutic monoclonal antibody that targets vascular endothelial growth factor, is widely used in cancer treatment. Patients who are treated with bevacizumab have an increased risk of developing systemic hypertension. However, the relationship between bevacizumab‐induced hypertension and clinical outcome remains unclear. We aimed to evaluate the effect of bevacizumab‐induced hypertension in terms of prognosis in patients with colorectal cancer and non‐small cell lung cancer. The study included 632 patients, 317 patients with non‐small cell lung cancer and 315 patients with colorectal cancer. All patients were treated with bevacizumab in combination with standard chemotherapy protocols, between April 2007 and December 2014. Blood pressure was measured before each treatment cycle. In the patient group with colorectal cancer, treated with bevacizumab, Grade 2–3 hypertension was present in 27.6%. In hypertensive patients with colorectal cancer, median overall survival was 42.6 months, compared with 20.6 months for normotensive patients in this group (P = 0.00071). In the patient group with non‐small cell lung cancer, treated with bevacizumab, Grade 2–3 hypertension was present in 20.5%. In hypertensive patients with non‐small cell lung cancer, median overall survival was 43.0 months, compared with 26.3 months for normotensive patients in this group (P = 0.00451). Patients who developed hypertension during treatment with bevacizumab for colorectal cancer and non‐small cell lung cancer had significantly prolonged overall survival when compared with normotensive patients. Bevacizumab‐induced hypertension may represent a biomarker for clinical benefit in cancer patients treated with bevacizumab.

Background: Bevacizumab-based chemotherapy has been shown to extend progression-free survival (PFS) of lung cancer, but its effect on overall survival (OS) remains unclear. However, bevacizumab beyond disease progression (BBP) significantly improved OS in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer. Methods: Therefore, we retrospectively analysed 22 patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who were treated with docetaxel plus BBP at the Department of Thoracic Oncology, Kansai Medical University Hirakata Hospital, between November 2009 and March 2013. Results: The response rate was 31.8% and the disease control rate was 86.4%. The median PFS was 4.5 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.5 - 8.7 months) and the median OS was 17.2 months (95% CI, 8.5 - 25.9 months). Grade 3 and 4 adverse events included leukocytopenia (68.2%), neutropenia (77.3%), fatigue (9.1%), proteinuria (9.1%), febrile neutropenia (4.5%), anemia (4.5%), and anorexia (4.5%). Conclusion: Docetaxel plus BBP was found to be generally well tolerated and effective.

The present study evaluated the efficacy and safety of pemetrexed, carboplatin and bevacizumab, followed by maintenance pemetrexed and bevacizumab, in chemotherapy-naive patients with stage IIIB/IV non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The patients were administered pemetrexed (500 mg/m 2 ), carboplatin (area under the concentration-time curve, 6.0 mg/ml x min) and bevacizumab (15 mg/kg) intravenously every three weeks for up to six cycles. Patients who did not experience tumor progression remained on maintenance pemetrexed and beva- cizumab until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity occurred. The primary endpoint was the overall response rate. Of the 26 patients enrolled between March 2010 and April 2011, three were excluded due to brain metastases, therefore the intention-to-treat (ITT) population consisted of 23 patients. The median age was 64 years (range, 40-74 years) and 15 patients were male. In total, six patients had a perfor- mance status of 0, and 20 had stage IV tumors. The response rate was 69.6% (95% confidence interval (CI), 47.1-86.8), the disease control rate was 100% and the time to response was 1.2 months (95% CI, 0.72-1.93). The median progression-free survival time was 8.6 months (95% CI, 5.9-10.9) and the median overall survival time was 18.6 months (95% CI, 12.9- 24.8). There were no grade 3 or worse hemorrhagic events and the feasibility was modest. Overall, pemetrexed and carboplatin plus bevacizumab, followed by maintenance pemetrexed and bevacizumab, was effective and tolerable in the patients with non-squamous NSCLC, and the time to response was relatively short.

A 61-year-old woman with lung cancer developed delayed transfusion-related acute lung injury (TRALI) syndrome after transfusion of plasma- and leukoreduced red blood cells (RBCs) for gastrointestinal bleeding due to intestinal metastasis. Acute lung injury (ALI) recurred 31 days after the first ALI episode. Both ALI episodes occurred 48 hours after transfusion. Laboratory examinations revealed the presence of various antileukocyte antibodies including antiplatelet antibody in the recipient's serum but not in the donors' serum. The authors speculate that antiplatelet antibodies can have an inhibitory effect in the recipient, which can modulate the bona fide procedure of ALI and lead to a delay in the onset of ALI. This case illustrates the crucial role of a recipient's platelets in the development of TRALI.

Dendritic cells (DCs) are initiators of innate immunity and acquired immunity as cells linking these two bio-defence systems through the production of cytokines such as interferon-α (IFN-α) and interleukin-12 (IL-12). Nucleic acids such as DNA from damaged cells or pathogens are important activators not only for anti-microbial innate immune responses but also in the pathogenesis of IFN-related autoimmune diseases. Plasmacytoid DCs are regarded as the main effectors for the DNA-mediated innate immunity by possessing DNA-sensing toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9). We here found that double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) complexed with lipotransfectants triggered activation of human monocyte-derived DCs (moDCs), leading to the preferential production of IFN-α but not IL-12. This indicates that myeloid DCs also function as supportive effectors against the invasion of pathogenic microbes through the DNA-mediated activation in innate immunity. The dsDNA with lipotransfectants can be taken up by moDCs without co-localization of endosomal LAMP1 staining, and the dsDNA-mediated IFN-α production was not impaired by chloroquine. These findings indicate that moDC activation by dsDNA does not involve the endosomal TLR pathway. In contrast, single-stranded RNA (ssRNA) stimulated moDCs to secrete IL-12 but not IFN-α. This process was inhibited by chloroquine, suggesting an involvement of the TLR pathway in ssRNA-mediated moDC activation. As might be inferred from our findings, myeloid DCs may function as a traffic control between innate immunity via IFN-α production and acquired immunity via IL-12 production, depending on the type of nucleic acids. Our results provide a new insight into the biological action of myeloid DCs underlying the DNA-mediated activation of protective or pathogenic immunity.

背景．肺および気管支に発生する粘表皮癌は肺癌のなかの稀な組織型であり，進行期での有効な治療は確立していない．症例．41歳男性．頭痛，背部痛を主訴に近医を受診し，右下顎部腫瘤生検より腫瘍性病変を，胸部CTで右肺門部腫瘤を認め，当科へ紹介された．気管支鏡検査にて右中葉気管支内腔を狭窄する広基性腫瘤を認め，生検にて高悪性度の粘表皮癌と診断した．FDG-PETでは縦隔リンパ節，肝，骨，皮膚，筋肉に多発する集積像がありcT1N2M1，stage IVと診断した．カルボプラチン，パクリタキセル併用療法を開始するも，治療抵抗性であり肝転移，骨転移の増大をみた．2次治療として，ゲフィチニブを投与したところ奏効が得られ，腫瘍サンプルよりexon19欠失を検出した．結論．粘表皮癌にはEGFR遺伝子変異を伴う症例が存在し，EGFRチロシンキナーゼ阻害薬により抗腫瘍効果が得られる可能性がある．

Atopic dermatitis is a major allergic disease that develops through dysregulation of Th2-mediated inflammation. Although dendritic cells (DCs) have been thought to play a critical role in the upstream phase of the allergic cascade, conventional drugs such as steroids and chemical mediator antagonists target the effector cells or factors in allergic inflammation. Recently, it has been demonstrated that interaction between thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) and human DCs plays an essential role in evoking inflammatory Th2 responses in allergy through OX40 ligand expression on DCs. In this study, we provide evidence that R848, an imidazoquinoline compound, which is a TLR ligand and a strong Th1 response-inducing reagent, is a potent adjuvant for the alteration of the Th2-inducing potency of human DCs activated by TSLP (TSLP-DCs). R848 inhibited the inflammatory Th2-inducing capacity of TSLP-DCs and redirected them to possessing an IL-10 and IFN-γ-producing regulatory Th1-inducing capacity. This functional alteration depended on both repression of OX40 ligand expression and induction of IL-12 production from DCs by the addition of R848. Additionally, R848 had the ability to inhibit the TSLP-mediated expansion and maintenance of the Th2 memory response. These findings suggest that imidazoquinoline may be a useful in the treatment of allergic diseases that are triggered by TSLP.

Dendritic cells (DCs) are initiators of innate immunity and acquired immunity as cells linking these two bio-defence systems through the production of cytokines such as interferon-α (IFN-α) and interleukin-12 (IL-12). Nucleic acids such as DNA from damaged cells or pathogens are important activators not only for anti-microbial innate immune responses but also in the pathogenesis of IFN-related autoimmune diseases. Plasmacytoid DCs are regarded as the main effectors for the DNA-mediated innate immunity by possessing DNA-sensing toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9). We here found that double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) complexed with lipotransfectants triggered activation of human monocyte-derived DCs (moDCs), leading to the preferential production of IFN-α but not IL-12. This indicates that myeloid DCs also function as supportive effectors against the invasion of pathogenic microbes through the DNA-mediated activation in innate immunity. The dsDNA with lipotransfectants can be taken up by moDCs without co-localization of endosomal LAMP1 staining, and the dsDNA-mediated IFN-α production was not impaired by chloroquine. These findings indicate that moDC activation by dsDNA does not involve the endosomal TLR pathway. In contrast, single-stranded RNA (ssRNA) stimulated moDCs to secrete IL-12 but not IFN-α. This process was inhibited by chloroquine, suggesting an involvement of the TLR pathway in ssRNA-mediated moDC activation. As might be inferred from our findings, myeloid DCs may function as a traffic control between innate immunity via IFN-α production and acquired immunity via IL-12 production, depending on the type of nucleic acids. Our results provide a new insight into the biological action of myeloid DCs underlying the DNA-mediated activation of protective or pathogenic immunity.

Background The survival impact of neutropenia in chemotherapy for advanced NSCLC has been well discussed. We retrospectively analyzed the contribution of the severity of neutropenia to the survival of the patients who were treated with carboplatin and paclitaxel. Methods We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of all patients with NSCLC who were treated from January 1999 to December 2010 in Kansai Medical University Takii Hospital. Patients were included in this study if they had an advanced NSCLC (IIIb or IV) that was treated with front-line chemotherapy with carboplatin and paclitaxel. Results 402 patients of NSCLC were treated in our hospital during above period. One hundred and sixty-seven patients were met to the eligible criteria. The median age was 65 (31–79). Female and male were 42 and 125 respectively. Adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and large cell carcinoma were 118, 44 and 4, respectively. Grade 3/4, 1/2 and 0 neutropenia were observed in 55.7, 23.4 and 21.0%, respectively. The overall response rates of the groups of grade 3/4, 1/2 and 0 neutropenia were 40.7, 38.5 and 21.9%, respectively. The MST for the patients of grade 3/4, 1/2 and 0 neutropenia were 13.3, 10.0 and 9.7 months, respectively. On univariate analysis, OS was significantly longer in the patients of grade 3/4 neutropenia than their counterparts (P = 0.0122). In addition, multivariate analysis revealed that the grade 3/4 neutropenia was an independent favorable prognostic factor for OS (HR: 0.357, P = 0.0005). However, there was no significant difference between grade 1/2 and 0 neutropenia. Conclusion The previous report showed that there was no significant difference between grade 3/4 and 1/2 neutropenia from the view point of survival benefit. However, our results clearly showed that only grade 3/4 neutropenia, other than grade 1/2, have survival implications for front-line chemotherapy for advanced NSCLC.

Background Hodgkin Reed–Sternberg (H-RS) cell is the tumor cell of classical Hodgkin disease (cHD), and their characteristics are still unclear. KM-H2 was established as an H-RS cell line from pleural effusion of a patient with cHD. We investigated the implications of extracellular matrix (ECM) for adhesion and function of H-RS cell. Methods Adhesion assay was carried out with the in situ crystal violet staining method. Cell staining was carried out using monoclonal antibodies conjugated with fluoro-dye. Stained cells were analyzed by a FACScan. Results We seeded KM-H2 onto the gelatin-coated or non-coated dish. KM-H2 cultured on a non-coated dish grown as a floating cell and formed a cell cluster (referred to hereafter as fl-KM-H2). However, KM-H2 tightly adhered onto the surface of dish and achieved a cell spreading following cultivation on a gelatin-coated dish for 24 h (referred to hereafter as ad-KM-H2). When KM-H2 was cultured on a gelatin-coated well, the significant increase of the number of the adhesive cell was observed. Moreover, ad-KM-H2 abundantly expressed E-cadherin whereas fl-KM-H2 lacked the expression of E-cadherin. Because E-cadherin was widely accepted hallmark of mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition (MET), we concluded that gelatin could promote EMT in KM-H2. These MET of KM-H2 was also induced by type I collagen and fibronectin. However, type IV collagen and laminin failed to promote MET. In addition, we found that the P38 MAP kinase inhibitor (SB202190) could inhibit MET without loss of cell viability. On the contrary, the inhibitors of Erk or Akt could not inhibit MET of KM-H2. In addition, we revealed that Serine 910 of FAK was constitutively phosphorylated in KM-H2. Conclusion ECM components could induce MET in KM-H2. Further investigation might become a milestone to explore an alternative molecular target for antitumor therapy.

Introduction Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) play not only a central role in the antiviral immune response in innate host defense, but also a pathogenic role in the development of the autoimmune process by their ability to produce robust amounts of type I interferons (IFNs), through sensing nucleic acids by toll-like receptor (TLR) 7 and 9. Thus, control of dysregulated pDC activation and type I IFN production provide an alternative treatment strategy for autoimmune diseases in which type I IFNs are elevated, such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Here we focused on IκB kinase inhibitor BAY 11-7082 (BAY11) and investigated its immunomodulatory effects in targeting the IFN response on pDCs. Methods We isolated human blood pDCs by flow cytometry and examined the function of BAY11 on pDCs in response to TLR ligands, with regards to pDC activation, such as IFN-α production and nuclear translocation of interferon regulatory factor 7 (IRF7) in vitro. Additionally, we cultured healthy peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) with serum from SLE patients in the presence or absence of BAY11, and then examined the inhibitory function of BAY11 on SLE serum-induced IFN-α production. We also examined its inhibitory effect in vivo using mice pretreated with BAY11 intraperitonealy, followed by intravenous injection of TLR7 ligand poly U. Results Here we identified that BAY11 has the ability to inhibit nuclear translocation of IRF7 and IFN-α production in human pDCs. BAY11, although showing the ability to also interfere with tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α production, more strongly inhibited IFN-α production than TNF-α production by pDCs, in response to TLR ligands. We also found that BAY11 inhibited both in vitro IFN-α production by human PBMCs induced by the SLE serum and the in vivo serum IFN-α level induced by injecting mice with poly U. Conclusions These findings suggest that BAY11 has the therapeutic potential to attenuate the IFN environment by regulating pDC function and provide a novel foundation for the development of an effective immunotherapeutic strategy against autoimmune disorders such as SLE.