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Background: Lapatinib (L), a dual kinase inhibitor of epidermal growth factor receptor and ErbB2, is effective in the treatment of ErbB2+ MBC in combination with capecitabine (C) following progression after trastuzumab, anthracyclines, and taxanes. Vinorelbine (V) is an important chemotherapy option in MBC, and multiple Phase II trials have been conducted in combination with trastuzumab. This randomized, open-label, multicenter, Phase II study (LAP112620, VITAL) evaluated the efficacy and safety of L with either V or C in women with ErbB2+ MBC. Methods: Patients with MBC who had received 1 chemotherapy regimen in the metastatic setting were randomized 2:1 to either L 1250 mg orally once daily (QD) continuously plus V 20 mg/m2 intravenously on Days 1 and 8, every third week, or L 1250 mg orally QD continuously plus C 2000 mg/m2/day orally in 2 doses 12 hours apart on Days 1-14 every third week. Patients were stratified by prior receipt of therapy for MBC (Y/N) and site of metastatic disease (visceral/soft tissue or bone-only). The primary endpoint of progression-free survival (PFS) was assessed once all subjects had been followed for a minimum of 6 months or had otherwise progressed, died or withdrawn, if sooner. The primary focus was to evaluate PFS in the L plus V arm with a descriptive intent only. Other endpoints included overall response rate, overall survival, and safety. Patients progressing on one treatment arm were given the option of crossing over to the other arm. Results: 112 patients were randomized. The results and conclusions sections will be updated once the primary analysis has been completed in September 2012. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The OlympiA randomized phase III trial compared 1 year of olaparib (OL) or placebo (PL) as adjuvant therapy in patients with germline BRCA1/2 , high-risk human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative early breast cancer after completing (neo)adjuvant chemotherapy ([N]ACT), surgery, and radiotherapy. The patient-reported outcome primary hypothesis was that OL-treated patients may experience greater fatigue during treatment., Methods: Data were collected before random assignment, and at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months. The primary end point was fatigue, measured with the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue scale. Secondary end points, assessed with the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire, Core 30 item, included nausea and vomiting (NV), diarrhea, and multiple functional domains. Scores were compared between treatment groups using mixed model for repeated measures. Two-sided P values <.05 were statistically significant for the primary end point. All secondary end points were descriptive., Results: One thousand five hundred and thirty-eight patients (NACT: 746, ACT: 792) contributed to the analysis. Fatigue severity was statistically significantly greater for OL versus PL, but not clinically meaningfully different by prespecified criteria (≥3 points) at 6 months (diff OL v PL: NACT: -1.3 [95% CI, -2.4 to -0.2]; P = .022; ACT: -1.3 [95% CI, -2.3 to -0.2]; P = .017) and 12 months (NACT: -1.6 [95% CI, -2.8 to -0.3]; P = .017; ACT: -1.3 [95% CI, -2.4 to -0.2]; P = .025). There were no significant differences in fatigue severity between treatment groups at 18 and 24 months. NV severity was worse in patients treated with OL compared with PL at 6 months (NACT: 6.0 [95% CI, 4.1 to 8.0]; ACT: 5.3 [95% CI, 3.4 to 7.2]) and 12 months (NACT: 6.4 [95% CI, 4.4 to 8.3]; ACT: 4.5 [95% CI, 2.8 to 6.1]). During treatment, there were some clinically meaningful differences between groups for other symptoms but not for function subscales or global health status., Conclusion: Treatment-emergent symptoms from OL were limited, generally resolving after treatment ended. OL- and PL-treated patients had similar functional scores, slowly improving during the 24 months after (N)ACT and there was no clinically meaningful persistence of fatigue severity in OL-treated patients.

Immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI) is effective for replication-repair-deficient, high-grade gliomas (RRD-HGG). The clinical/biological impact of immune-directed approaches after failing ICI monotherapy is unknown. We performed an international study on 75 patients treated with anti-PD-1; 20 are progression free (median follow-up, 3.7 years). After second progression/recurrence (n = 55), continuing ICI-based salvage prolonged survival to 11.6 months (n = 38; P < 0.001), particularly for those with extreme mutation burden (P = 0.03). Delayed, sustained responses were observed, associated with changes in mutational spectra and the immune microenvironment. Response to reirradiation was explained by an absence of deleterious postradiation indel signatures (ID8). CTLA4 expression increased over time, and subsequent CTLA4 inhibition resulted in response/stable disease in 75%. RAS-MAPK-pathway inhibition led to the reinvigoration of peripheral immune and radiologic responses. Local (flare) and systemic immune adverse events were frequent (biallelic mismatch-repair deficiency > Lynch syndrome). We provide a mechanistic rationale for the sustained benefit in RRD-HGG from immune-directed/synergistic salvage therapies. Future approaches need to be tailored to patient and tumor biology., Significance: Hypermutant RRD-HGG are susceptible to checkpoint inhibitors beyond initial progression, leading to improved survival when reirradiation and synergistic immune/targeted agents are added. This is driven by their unique biological and immune properties, which evolve over time. Future research should focus on combinatorial regimens that increase patient survival while limiting immune toxicity. This article is featured in Selected Articles from This Issue, p. 201., (©2023 American Association for Cancer Research.)

Importance: Trastuzumab has been the standard of care for the treatment of patients with ERBB2-positive breast cancer; however, cardiac events have been reported. This long-term follow-up study provides clinical evidence supporting the similarity of a trastuzumab biosimilar (SB3) to reference trastuzumab (TRZ)., Objective: To compare cardiac safety and efficacy between SB3 and TRZ for patients with ERBB2-positive early or locally advanced breast cancer after up to 6 years of follow-up., Design, Setting, and Participants: This prespecified secondary analysis of a randomized clinical trial, conducted from April 2016 to January 2021, included patients with ERBB2-positive early or locally advanced breast cancer from a multicenter double-blind, parallel-group, equivalence phase 3 randomized clinical trial of SB3 vs TRZ with concomitant neoadjuvant chemotherapy who completed neoadjuvant and adjuvant treatment., Interventions: In the original trial, patients were randomized to either SB3 or TRZ with concomitant neoadjuvant chemotherapy for 8 cycles (4 cycles of docetaxel followed by 4 cycles of fluorouracil, epirubicin, and cyclophosphamide). After surgery, patients continued SB3 or TRZ monotherapy for 10 cycles of adjuvant treatment per previous treatment allocation. Following neoadjuvant and adjuvant treatment, patients were monitored for up to 5 years., Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcomes were the incidence of symptomatic congestive heart failure and asymptomatic, significant decrease in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). The secondary outcomes were event-free survival (EFS) and overall survival (OS)., Results: A total of 538 female patients were included (median age, 51 years [range, 22-65 years]). Baseline characteristics were comparable between the SB3 and TRZ groups. Cardiac safety was monitored for 367 patients (SB3, n = 186; TRZ, n = 181). Median follow-up was 68 months (range, 8.5-78.1 months). Asymptomatic, clinically significant LVEF decreases were rarely reported (SB3, 1 patient [0.4%]; TRZ, 2 [0.7%]). No patient experienced symptomatic cardiac failure or death due to a cardiovascular event. Survival was evaluated for the 367 patients in the cardiac safety cohort and an additional 171 patients enrolled after a protocol amendment (538 patients [SB3, n = 267; TRZ, n = 271]). No difference was observed in EFS or OS between treatment groups (EFS: hazard ratio [HR], 0.84; 95% CI, 0.58-1.20; P = .34; OS: HR, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.36-1.05; P = .07). Five-year EFS rates were 79.8% (95% CI, 74.8%-84.9%) in the SB3 group and 75.0% (95% CI, 69.7%-80.3%) in the TRZ group, and OS rates were 92.5% (95% CI, 89.2%-95.7%) in the SB3 group and 85.4% (95% CI, 81.0%-89.7%) in the TRZ group., Conclusions and Relevance: In this secondary analysis of a randomized clinical trial, SB3 demonstrated cardiac safety and survival comparable to those of TRZ after up to 6 years of follow-up in patients with ERBB2-positive early or locally advanced breast cancer., Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02771795.

Background & Aims: Constitutional mismatch repair deficiency (CMMRD) is a rare recessive childhood cancer predisposition syndrome caused by germline mismatch repair variants. Constitutional microsatellite instability (cMSI) is a CMMRD diagnostic hallmark and may associate with cancer risk. We quantified cMSI in a large CMMRD patient cohort to explore genotype-phenotype correlations using novel MSI markers selected for instability in blood., Methods: Three CMMRD, 1 Lynch syndrome, and 2 control blood samples were genome sequenced to >120× depth. A pilot cohort of 8 CMMRD and 38 control blood samples and a blinded cohort of 56 CMMRD, 8 suspected CMMRD, 40 Lynch syndrome, and 43 control blood samples were amplicon sequenced to 5000× depth. Sample cMSI score was calculated using a published method comparing microsatellite reference allele frequencies with 80 controls., Results: Thirty-two mononucleotide repeats were selected from blood genome and pilot amplicon sequencing data. cMSI scoring using these MSI markers achieved 100% sensitivity (95% CI, 93.6%-100.0%) and specificity (95% CI 97.9%-100.0%), was reproducible, and was superior to an established tumor MSI marker panel. Lower cMSI scores were found in patients with CMMRD with MSH6 deficiency and patients with at least 1 mismatch repair missense variant, and patients with biallelic truncating/copy number variants had higher scores. cMSI score did not correlate with age at first tumor., Conclusions: We present an inexpensive and scalable cMSI assay that enhances CMMRD detection relative to existing methods. cMSI score is associated with mismatch repair genotype but not phenotype, suggesting it is not a useful predictor of cancer risk., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Studies JVDB and JVCZ examined alternative ramucirumab dosing regimens as monotherapy or combined with paclitaxel, respectively, in patients with advanced/metastatic gastric/gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma. For JVDB, randomized patients ( N = 164) received ramucirumab monotherapy at four doses: 8 mg/kg every 2 weeks (Q2W) (registered dose), 12 mg/kg Q2W, 6 mg/kg weekly (QW), or 8 mg/kg on days 1 and 8 (D1D8) every 3 weeks (Q3W). The primary objectives were the safety and pharmacokinetics of ramucirumab monotherapy. For JVCZ, randomized patients ( N = 245) received paclitaxel (80 mg/m 2 -D1D8D15) plus ramucirumab (8 mg/kg- or 12 mg/kg-Q2W). The primary objective was progression-free survival (PFS) of 12 mg/kg-Q2W arm versus placebo from RAINBOW using meta-analysis. Relative to the registered dose, exploratory dosing regimens (EDRs) led to higher ramucirumab serum concentrations in both studies. EDR safety profiles were consistent with previous studies. In JVDB, serious adverse events occurred more frequently in the 8 mg/kg-D1D8-Q3W arm versus the registered dose; 6 mg/kg-QW EDR had a higher incidence of bleeding/hemorrhage. In JVCZ, PFS was improved with the 12 mg/kg plus paclitaxel combination versus placebo in RAINBOW; however, no significant PFS improvement was observed between the 12 mg/kg and 8 mg/kg arms. The lack of a dose/exposure-response relationship in these studies supports the standard dose of ramucirumab 8 mg/kg-Q2W as monotherapy or in combination with paclitaxel as second-line treatment for advanced/metastatic gastric/GEJ adenocarcinoma.

Heterozygous POLE or POLD1 germline pathogenic variants (PVs) cause polymerase proofreading associated polyposis (PPAP), a constitutional polymerase proofreading deficiency that typically presents with colorectal adenomas and carcinomas in adulthood. Constitutional mismatch-repair deficiency (CMMRD), caused by germline bi-allelic PVs affecting one of four MMR genes, results in a high propensity for the hematological, brain, intestinal tract, and other malignancies in childhood. Nonmalignant clinical features, such as skin pigmentation alterations, are found in nearly all CMMRD patients and are important diagnostic markers. Here, we excluded CMMRD in three cancer patients with highly suspect clinical phenotypes but identified in each a constitutional heterozygous POLE PV. These, and two additional POLE PVs identified in published CMMRD-like patients, have not previously been reported as germline PVs despite all being well-known somatic mutations in hyper-mutated tumors. Together, these five cases show that specific POLE PVs may have a stronger "mutator" effect than known PPAP-associated POLE PVs and may cause a CMMRD-like phenotype distinct from PPAP. The common underlying mechanism, that is, a constitutional replication error repair defect, and a similar tumor spectrum provide a good rationale for monitoring these patients with a severe constitutional polymerase proofreading deficiency according to protocols proposed for CMMRD., (© 2021 The Authors. Human Mutation published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Cancers arising from germline DNA mismatch repair deficiency or polymerase proofreading deficiency (MMRD and PPD) in children harbour the highest mutational and microsatellite insertion-deletion (MS-indel) burden in humans. MMRD and PPD cancers are commonly lethal due to the inherent resistance to chemo-irradiation. Although immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have failed to benefit children in previous studies, we hypothesized that hypermutation caused by MMRD and PPD will improve outcomes following ICI treatment in these patients. Using an international consortium registry study, we report on the ICI treatment of 45 progressive or recurrent tumors from 38 patients. Durable objective responses were observed in most patients, culminating in a 3 year survival of 41.4%. High mutation burden predicted response for ultra-hypermutant cancers (>100 mutations per Mb) enriched for combined MMRD + PPD, while MS-indels predicted response in MMRD tumors with lower mutation burden (10-100 mutations per Mb). Furthermore, both mechanisms were associated with increased immune infiltration even in 'immunologically cold' tumors such as gliomas, contributing to the favorable response. Pseudo-progression (flare) was common and was associated with immune activation in the tumor microenvironment and systemically. Furthermore, patients with flare who continued ICI treatment achieved durable responses. This study demonstrates improved survival for patients with tumors not previously known to respond to ICI treatment, including central nervous system and synchronous cancers, and identifies the dual roles of mutation burden and MS-indels in predicting sustained response to immunotherapy., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

POLE mutations are a major cause of hypermutant cancers, yet questions remain regarding mechanisms of tumorigenesis, genotype-phenotype correlation, and therapeutic considerations. In this study, we establish mouse models harboring cancer-associated POLE mutations P286R and S459F, which cause rapid albeit distinct time to cancer initiation in vivo , independent of their exonuclease activity. Mouse and human correlates enabled novel stratification of POLE mutations into three groups based on clinical phenotype and mutagenicity. Cancers driven by these mutations displayed striking resemblance to the human ultrahypermutation and specific signatures. Furthermore, Pole -driven cancers exhibited a continuous and stochastic mutagenesis mechanism, resulting in intertumoral and intratumoral heterogeneity. Checkpoint blockade did not prevent Pole lymphomas, but rather likely promoted lymphomagenesis as observed in humans. These observations provide insights into the carcinogenesis of POLE -driven tumors and valuable information for genetic counseling, surveillance, and immunotherapy for patients. SIGNIFICANCE: Two mouse models of polymerase exonuclease deficiency shed light on mechanisms of mutation accumulation and considerations for immunotherapy. See related commentary by Wisdom and Kirsch p. 5459 ., (©2020 American Association for Cancer Research.)

Trastuzumab is a monoclonal antibody used as a standard treatment for breast and metastatic gastric cancer when the cancer cells overexpress HER2, a membrane-bound receptor activated by EGF family of ligands. Due to the high cost of the therapy and no refund of the drug in many countries, there is still a large group of patients who do not have the opportunity to receive trastuzumab. A biosimilar is a medical product highly similar to another already approved biological medicine. Biosimilars are approved according to the same standards of pharmaceutical quality, safety and efficacy that apply to all biological medicines. Clinically effective biosimilars may expand patient access to trastuzumab therapy. In the coming months, European Medicines Agency (EMA) continues to increase the number of biosimilar approvals for trastuzumab, helping to promote competition that can lower therapy costs., (© 2018 MEDPRESS.)

Purpose This phase III study compared SB3, a trastuzumab (TRZ) biosimilar, with reference TRZ in patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive early breast cancer in the neoadjuvant setting ( ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02149524). Patients and Methods Patients were randomly assigned to receive neoadjuvant SB3 or TRZ for eight cycles concurrently with chemotherapy (four cycles of docetaxel followed by four cycles of fluorouracil, epirubicin, and cyclophosphamide) followed by surgery, and then 10 cycles of adjuvant SB3 or TRZ. The primary objective was comparison of breast pathologic complete response (bpCR) rate in the per-protocol set; equivalence was declared if the 95% CI of the ratio was within 0.785 to 1.546 or the 95% CI of the difference was within ± 13%. Secondary end points included comparisons of total pathologic complete response rate, overall response rate, event-free survival, overall survival, safety, pharmacokinetics, and immunogenicity. Results Eight hundred patients were included in the per-protocol set (SB3, n = 402; TRZ, n = 398). The bpCR rates were 51.7% and 42.0% with SB3 and TRZ, respectively. The adjusted ratio of bpCR was 1.259 (95% CI, 1.085 to 1.460), which was within the predefined equivalence margins. The adjusted difference was 10.70% (95% CI, 4.13% to 17.26%), with the lower limit contained within and the upper limit outside the equivalence margin. The total pathologic complete response rates were 45.8% and 35.8% and the overall response rates were 96.3% and 91.2% with SB3 and TRZ, respectively. Overall, 96.6% and 95.2% of patients experienced one or more adverse event, 10.5% and 10.7% had a serious adverse event, and 0.7% and 0.0% had antidrug antibodies (up to cycle 9) with SB3 and TRZ, respectively. Conclusion Equivalence for efficacy was demonstrated between SB3 and TRZ on the basis of the ratio of bpCR rates. Safety and immunogenicity were comparable.

The diagnosis of duodenal adenocarcinoma is still a complex gastrological and oncological problem. The described case illustrates the unusual character of the course, the reasonableness of the diagnostic procedures and the scope of the therapy undertaken. The causes of anemia, which was the first symptom of the disease, were not revealed in the tests carried out at this stage - gastroscopy, colonoscopy, with normal other basic laboratory tests. At the next episode, after 6 months from the first, the presence of a bleeding lesion within the duodenum was revealed. Further imaging and endoscopic examinations as well as the results of histopathological examinations from duodenum collected material were enabled the diagnosis of adenocarcinoma. In urgent mode, the operation was performed using the Whipplle method, removing the duodenum, the pyloric part of the stomach, the part of the pancreas head and the gallbladder. After 6 weeks, chemotherapy was applied in accordance with accepted standards, obtaining stabilization and gradual improvement of the general condition of the patient, which was confirmed in the performed tests.

Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed malignancy in women around the globe. It is also the world's first cause of female deaths from cancer. With the introduction of screening programs in most developed countries, more and more cases of this cancer are diagnosed at local or localized stages, enabling radical treatment to be successful. At the same time, systemic treatment of early breast cancer is one of the most complex issues in clinical oncology. Because of the many prognostic factors that need to be taken into account when considering eligibility for treatment such as age, reproductive status (before or after menopause), type of cancer and severity of the disease, it is impossible to establish clear standards of conduct for many clinical situations. The international biennial St Gallen conference, the world's most prominent breast cancer specialists, who are struggling to address major clinical problems in the treatment of early breast cancer. St Gallen's recommendations address all issues related to the treatment of early breast cancer (in particular surgery, radiotherapy, and systemic treatment) and are set by a group of 52 experts by voting. This method allows us to establish consensus on issues that can not be clearly identified in the results of randomized clinical trials. In this way, more than 200 clinical issues were answered. The most important changes in day-to-day practice are the duration of ajuvant hormone therapy (10 instead of 5 years), the possibility of using aromatase inhibitors (in combination with ovarian function suppresion) in premenopausal women with high risk of recurrence and the timing of sentinel node biopsy after neo-adjuvant chemotherapy. There are also recommendations, which patients should undergo genetic testing to assess the risk of recurrence of breast cancer.

Purpose: Antiemetic guidelines recommend co-administration of targeted prophylactic medications inhibiting molecular pathways involved in emesis. NEPA is a fixed oral combination of a new NK 1 receptor antagonist (RA), netupitant (NETU 300 mg), and palonosetron (PALO 0.50 mg), a pharmacologically distinct 5-HT 3 RA. NEPA showed superior prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) compared with oral PALO in a single chemotherapy cycle; maintenance of efficacy/safety over continuing cycles is the objective of this study., Methods: This study is a multinational, double-blind study comparing a single oral dose of NEPA vs oral PALO in chemotherapy-naïve patients receiving anthracycline/cyclophosphamide-based chemotherapy along with dexamethasone 12 mg (NEPA) or 20 mg (PALO) on day 1. The primary efficacy endpoint was delayed (25-120 h) complete response (CR: no emesis, no rescue medication) in cycle 1. Sustained efficacy was evaluated during the multicycle extension by calculating the proportion of patients with overall (0-120 h) CR in cycles 2-4 and by assessing the probability of sustained CR over multiple cycles., Results: Of 1455 patients randomized, 1286 (88 %) participated in the multiple-cycle extension for a total of 5969 cycles; 76 % completed ≥4 cycles. The proportion of patients with an overall CR was significantly greater for NEPA than oral PALO for cycles 1-4 (74.3 vs 66.6 %, 80.3 vs 66.7 %, 83.8 vs 70.3 %, and 83.8 vs 74.6 %, respectively; p ≤ 0.001 each cycle). The cumulative percentage of patients with a sustained CR over all 4 cycles was also greater for NEPA (p < 0.0001). NEPA was well tolerated over cycles., Conclusions: NEPA, a convenient, guideline-consistent, fixed antiemetic combination is effective and safe over multiple cycles of chemotherapy.

Background: MABp1, an antibody that targets interleukin 1α, has been associated with antitumour activity and relief of debilitating symptoms in patients with advanced colorectal cancer. We sought to establish the effect of MABp1 with a new primary endpoint in patients with advanced colorectal cancer., Methods: Eligible patients for the double-blind phase of this ongoing, placebo-controlled, randomised, phase 3 trial, had metastatic or unresectable disease, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status score 1 or 2, systemic inflammation, weight loss, and other disease-related morbidities associated with poor prognosis, and were refractory to oxaliplatin and irinotecan. Patients were randomly assigned 2:1 to receive either MABp1 or placebo. Randomisation codes were obtained from a centrally held list via an interactive web response system. Patients received an intravenous infusion of 7·5 mg/kg MABp1 or placebo given every 2 weeks for 8 weeks. The primary endpoint was assessed in patients who received at least one dose of MABp1 or placebo (modified intention-to-treat population), and was a composite of stable or increased lean body mass and stability or improvement in two of three symptoms (pain, fatigue, or anorexia) at week 8 compared with baseline measurements. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02138422., Findings: Patients were enrolled between May 20, 2014, and Sept 2, 2015. The double-blind phase of the study was completed on Nov 3, 2015. Of 333 patients randomly assigned treatment, 207 received at least one dose of MABp1 and 102 at least one dose of placebo. 68 (33%) and 19 (19%) patients, respectively, achieved the primary endpoint (relative risk 1·76, 95% CI 1·12-2·77, p=0·0045). The most common grade 3-4 adverse events in the MABp1 group compared with in the placebo group were anaemia (eight [4%] of 207 vs five [5%] of 102 patients), increased concentration of alkaline phosphatase (nine [4%] vs two [2%]), fatigue (six [3%] vs seven [7%]), and increased concentration of aspartate aminotransferase (six [3%] vs two [2%]). After 8 weeks, 17 (8%) patients in the MABp1 group and 11 (11%) in the placebo group had died, but no death was judged to be related to treatment. The incidence of serious adverse events was not significantly different in the MABp1 group and placebo groups (47 [23%] vs 33 [32%], p=0·07)., Interpretation: The primary endpoint was a useful means of measuring clinical performance in patients. MABp1 might represent a new standard in the management of advanced colorectal cancer., Funding: XBiotech., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Lapatinib plus capecitabine (lap+cap) is approved as treatment for patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive metastatic breast cancer (MBC), who have progressed on prior trastuzumab in the metastatic setting. We previously reported progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS) and safety results from this open-label, multicentre, phase II study (VITAL; NCT01013740) conducted in women with HER2 positive MBC, to evaluate the efficacy and safety of lap plus vinorelbine (lap+vin), an important chemotherapy option for MBC, compared with lap+cap. In total, 112 patients were randomised 2:1 to treatment with lap+vin (N = 75) or lap+cap (N = 37). Results showed that the median PFS (primary endpoint) and OS (secondary endpoint) post-randomisation were comparable between treatment arms, with no new safety signals detected. Here, we assessed the final OS in this study at 40 months post-randomisation. At the time of final analyses, 24 (32%) patients were ongoing in the lap+vin arm, compared with 14 (38%) patients in the lap+cap arm (92% in both arms had discontinued treatment). Median OS in the lap+vin arm was 23.3 months (95% confidence intervals [CI]: 18.5, 31.1), compared with 20.3 months (95% CI: 16.4, 31.8) in the lap+cap arm. The median follow-up in the lap+vin arm was 18.86 months (95% CI: 10.68, 26.02), compared with 19.38 (95% CI: 25.56) months in the lap+cap arm. Similar rates of death (56-57%) were observed in both arms. The final OS was consistent with the previously reported data and suggest that lap+vin offers an effective treatment option for women with HER2-positive MBC., (Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Background: Bosutinib is an oral, selective Src/Abl tyrosine kinase inhibitor with activity in breast cancer (BC). We evaluated bosutinib plus exemestane as second-line therapy in previously treated hormone receptor-positive (HR+) locally advanced or metastatic BC., Methods: This was a phase II study with patients enrolled in a single-arm safety lead-in phase. Patients receiving bosutinib at 400 mg or 300 mg/day (based on toxicity) plus exemestane at 25 mg/day were monitored for adverse events (AEs) and dose-limiting toxicities for 28 days, and initial efficacy was assessed. After the lead-in and dose-determination phase, randomized evaluation of combination therapy versus exemestane was planned., Results: Thirty-nine of 42 patients (93%) experienced treatment-related AEs including diarrhea in 28 (67%) and hepatotoxicity in 11 (26%); overall serious treatment-related AEs were recorded in 4 (10%). No liver toxicity met Hy's law criteria. Dose-limiting toxicities occurred in 5 of 13 patients receiving 400 mg (38%) and 3 of 26 patients receiving 300 mg (12%) of bosutinib; all resolved on treatment discontinuation. One patient (300 mg/day) achieved confirmed partial response; three (400 mg/day, n = 2; 300 mg/day, n = 1) maintained stable disease for >24 weeks; a best response of progressive disease occurred in 15 of 42 patients (36%). Median progression-free survival was 12.3 weeks (80% confidence interval: 11.0-15.6)., Conclusion: The risk-benefit profile of bosutinib at 300 mg/day plus exemestane resulted in early study termination before the randomized portion. Alternative bosutinib regimens merit investigation in BC.

Background: Endocrine therapy resistance in hormone receptor-positive (HR+) breast cancer (BC) may involve crosstalk between HRs and growth factor signaling pathways. We evaluated bosutinib, a dual Src/Abl tyrosine kinase inhibitor that has previously demonstrated some antitumor activity in BC, plus letrozole as first-line endocrine therapy in locally advanced or metastatic HR+/HER2- BC. METHODS; Sixteen postmenopausal women were enrolled in a phase II study evaluating the safety/efficacy of bosutinib plus letrozole. In the single-arm safety/dose-confirming lead-in (part 1), patients received oral bosutinib at 400 mg/day plus letrozole at 2.5 mg/day; adverse events (AEs) and dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs) were monitored, and initial efficacy was assessed. A randomized efficacy/safety phase (part 2) was planned to evaluate the combination versus letrozole monotherapy., Results: Fifteen of 16 subjects experienced treatment-related AEs, most commonly diarrhea (69%). Treatment-related hepatotoxicity AEs (primarily alanine aminotransferase [ALT] or aspartate aminotransferase [AST] elevations) occurred in 6 of 16 patients (38%). Four of 15 evaluable patients (27%) experienced a DLT (grade 3/4 ALT/AST elevations, n = 2; grade 3 rash, n = 1; grade 3 diarrhea or vomiting, n = 1), including 1 Hy's law hepatotoxicity case. All DLTs resolved following treatment discontinuation. One patient achieved confirmed partial response; one had stable disease for >24 weeks. Study termination occurred before part 2., Conclusion: The unfavorable risk-benefit ratio did not warrant further investigation of bosutinib plus letrozole.

Lapatinib is approved in combination with capecitabine for treatment of patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive metastatic breast cancer (MBC) who have progressed on prior trastuzumab in the metastatic setting. Vinorelbine is an important chemotherapy option for MBC. We evaluated efficacy and safety of lapatinib plus vinorelbine, compared with lapatinib plus capecitabine, in women with HER2-positive MBC. In this open-label, multicenter, phase II study, eligible patients (N = 112) were randomized 2:1 to lapatinib plus vinorelbine [(N = 75) 1,250 mg orally once daily (QD) continuously plus 20 mg/m(2)/day intravenously] or lapatinib plus capecitabine [(N = 37) 1,250 mg orally QD continuously plus 2,000 mg/m(2)/day orally, 2 doses]. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS). Other endpoints included overall survival (OS) and safety. Patients progressing within the study were given the option of crossover to the other treatment arm; time to second progression was an exploratory endpoint. Patient demographics, stratification, and prognostic factors were well balanced between treatments. Median PFS in both arms was 6.2 months [95 % confidence interval (CI) 4.2, 8.8 (lapatinib plus vinorelbine); 4.4, 8.3 (lapatinib plus capecitabine)]. Median OS on lapatinib plus vinorelbine was 24.3 months (95 % CI 16.4, NE) and 19.4 months (95 % CI 16.4, 27.2) on lapatinib plus capecitabine. In total, 42 patients opted to cross over; median PFS was 3.2 months (95 % CI 1.7, 5.1) on lapatinib plus vinorelbine and 4.0 months (95 % CI 2.1, 5.8) on lapatinib plus capecitabine. Lapatinib plus vinorelbine offers an effective treatment option for patients with HER2-overexpressing MBC, having displayed comparable efficacy and tolerability rates to lapatinib plus capecitabine.

Case of Primitive Neuroectodermal Tumor (PNET) in a 47 years old woman with renal failure and nephrotic syndrome is presented. Few similar cases in adults reported in the literature with a variable, nonspecific clinical presentation and an aggressive course are discussed.

Purpose: Oral mucositis (OM) is one of the most debilitating and common side effects in patients treated with high-dose chemotherapy supported by haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). We tested the effectiveness of palifermin to avoid oral mucosal injury induced by the conditioning regimen., Patients and Methods: Twenty patients with haematological malignancies were treated with palifermin for prevention of OM during HSCT procedures. Nine patients received allogeneic haematopoietic stem cells, and in 11 autologous HSCT was performed. The control group was composed of patients who had been treated with HSCT previously, before the palifermin era. The source of graft was peripheral blood., Results: Among patients treated with palifermin no grade 2-4 OM was observed. No patient had to receive opioid analgesics or total parenteral nutrition. 30% of the patients developed grade 1 OM of 4-5 days' duration. In the control group OM was observed in all cases, with 50% of the patients developing grade 3-4 OM. Median duration of OM was 10 and 12 days for auto- and allogeneic patients, respectively. In comparison with the control group, treatment with palifermin was associated with significant reduction of grade 2-4 OM, shorter duration of OM, less analgesics intake, and reduced number of days with antibiotic treatment. Additionally, allogeneic patients treated with palifermin had shorter time to platelet engraftment., Conclusion: Palifermin reduces incidence, severity and duration of OM, and decreases the number of days with analgesics and antibiotics. For allogeneic patients it can shorten the time to platelet engraftment, but this observation needs further studies.

Purpose: When a patient with germ cell tumor (GCT) fails to be cured with high dose chemotherapy (HDC) and autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (auto- BMT) the overall prognosis is very poor and any further treatment has only palliative character. A question requiring answer is how intense should this kind of treatment be, and what can be expected from it., Patients and Methods: Of 44 patients with GCT who were transplanted after HDC in our centre between 1999- 2005, 17 experienced treatment failure. Amongst them 14 had marker-positive relapse or confirmed germ cell histology. Another 3 had second primary neoplasms. Of the 17 patients 14 received further treatment that consisted of surgery alone in 2, chemotherapy in 2, radiotherapy in 1, combined surgery + chemotherapy in 5, chemotherapy +surgery + radiotherapy in 3 and chemotherapy + radiotherapy in 1 patient., Results: The median survival from the time of relapse was 3 months in all patients, and 6 months in the 14 patients who received further treatment. In 6 patients with relapse confined to a single site the median survival was 11 months. Three patients in this group are alive with overall survival (OS) of 37.4+, 24.3+ and 6.2+ months (all had multimodal treatment: chemotherapy + surgery or radiotherapy, and all achieved durable complete response/CR)., Conclusion: Our results suggest that GCT patients who have relapsed/ progressed after HDC may benefit from further treatment. Best chances for long term survival have those who experience relapse confined to one metastatic site and receive combined treatment (surgery or radiotherapy plus systemic therapy).