Background The anatomic difficulties that we have to deal with in open surgery for rectal cancer have not been overcome with the laparoscopic approach. In the search for a solution, a change of ...concept arose: approaching the rectum from below. The main objectives of this study were to show the potential advantages of the hybrid transabdominal-transanal total mesorectal excision (taTME). This approach may improve quality of the mesorectal specimens. Second, proctectomy can be technically easier and more safely performed “down to up,” which would result in shorter surgical times, lower conversion rates, and less morbidity. Study Design A prospective series of hybrid taTME was conducted from October 2011 to November 2014. Results During the study period, 140 procedures were performed. Mean operative time was 166 minutes. There were no conversions or intraoperative complications. Macroscopic quality assessment of the resected specimen was complete in 97.1% and nearly complete in 2.1%. Thirty-day morbidity was minor (Clavien-Dindo I + II) in 24.2% and major (Clavien-Dindo III + IV) in 10 %. No patient died within the first 30 days postsurgery (Clavien-Dindo V). The mean follow-up was 15 months, with a 2.3% local recurrence rate and a 7.6% rate of systemic recurrence. Conclusions Pathologic analysis showed a very good macroscopic quality of TME specimens, which is the most important prognostic factor in rectal cancer. Intraoperative outcomes regarding conversion, surgical times, and intraoperative complications are very satisfactory. Short-term morbidity and oncologic outcomes are as good as in other laparoscopic TME series.
Metastasis is the main cause of death for patients with breast cancer. Many studies have characterized the genomic landscape of breast cancer during its early stages. However, there is evidence that ...genomic alterations are acquired during the evolution of cancers from their early to late stages, and that the genomic landscape of early cancers is not representative of that of lethal cancers
. Here we investigated the landscape of somatic alterations in 617 metastatic breast cancers. Nine driver genes (TP53, ESR1, GATA3, KMT2C, NCOR1, AKT1, NF1, RIC8A and RB1) were more frequently mutated in metastatic breast cancers that expressed hormone receptors (oestrogen and/or progesterone receptors; HR
) but did not have high levels of HER2 (HER2
; n = 381), when compared to early breast cancers from The Cancer Genome Atlas. In addition, 18 amplicons were more frequently observed in HR
/HER2
metastatic breast cancers. These cancers showed an increase in mutational signatures S2, S3, S10, S13 and S17. Among the gene alterations that were enriched in HR
/HER2
metastatic breast cancers, mutations in TP53, RB1 and NF1, together with S10, S13 and S17, were associated with poor outcome. Metastatic triple-negative breast cancers showed an increase in the frequency of somatic biallelic loss-of-function mutations in genes related to homologous recombination DNA repair, compared to early triple-negative breast cancers (7% versus 2%). Finally, metastatic breast cancers showed an increase in mutational burden and clonal diversity compared to early breast cancers. Thus, the genomic landscape of metastatic breast cancer is enriched in clinically relevant genomic alterations and is more complex than that of early breast cancer. The identification of genomic alterations associated with poor outcome will allow earlier and better selection of patients who require the use of treatments that are still in clinical trials. The genetic complexity observed in advanced breast cancer suggests that such treatments should be introduced as early as possible in the disease course.
Major advances have been achieved in the characterization of early breast cancer (eBC) genomic profiles. Metastatic breast cancer (mBC) is associated with poor outcomes, yet limited information is ...available on the genomic profile of this disease. This study aims to decipher mutational profiles of mBC using next-generation sequencing.
Whole-exome sequencing was performed on 216 tumor-blood pairs from mBC patients who underwent a biopsy in the context of the SAFIR01, SAFIR02, SHIVA, or Molecular Screening for Cancer Treatment Optimization (MOSCATO) prospective trials. Mutational profiles from 772 primary breast tumors from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) were used as a reference for comparing primary and mBC mutational profiles. Twelve genes (TP53, PIK3CA, GATA3, ESR1, MAP3K1, CDH1, AKT1, MAP2K4, RB1, PTEN, CBFB, and CDKN2A) were identified as significantly mutated in mBC (false discovery rate FDR < 0.1). Eight genes (ESR1, FSIP2, FRAS1, OSBPL3, EDC4, PALB2, IGFN1, and AGRN) were more frequently mutated in mBC as compared to eBC (FDR < 0.01). ESR1 was identified both as a driver and as a metastatic gene (n = 22, odds ratio = 29, 95% CI 9-155, p = 1.2e-12) and also presented with focal amplification (n = 9) for a total of 31 mBCs with either ESR1 mutation or amplification, including 27 hormone receptor positive (HR+) and HER2 negative (HER2-) mBCs (19%). HR+/HER2- mBC presented a high prevalence of mutations on genes located on the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway (TSC1 and TSC2) as compared to HR+/HER2- eBC (respectively 6% and 0.7%, p = 0.0004). Other actionable genes were more frequently mutated in HR+ mBC, including ERBB4 (n = 8), NOTCH3 (n = 7), and ALK (n = 7). Analysis of mutational signatures revealed a significant increase in APOBEC-mediated mutagenesis in HR+/HER2- metastatic tumors as compared to primary TCGA samples (p < 2e-16). The main limitations of this study include the absence of bone metastases and the size of the cohort, which might not have allowed the identification of rare mutations and their effect on survival.
This work reports the results of the analysis of the first large-scale study on mutation profiles of mBC. This study revealed genomic alterations and mutational signatures involved in the resistance to therapies, including actionable mutations.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Summary Background Brain metastases occur in 30–50% of patients with metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer. In the case of diffuse brain metastases, treatment is based on whole brain radiotherapy ...(WBRT). Few systemic options are available. We aimed to investigate the combination of lapatinib plus capecitabine for the treatment of previously untreated brain metastases from HER2-positive breast cancer. Methods In this single-arm phase 2, open-label, multicentre study, eligible patients had HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer with brain metastases not previously treated with WBRT, capecitabine, or lapatinib. Tretament was given in 21 day cycles: patients received lapatinib (1250 mg, orally) every day and capecitabine (2000 mg/m2 , orally) from day 1 to day 14. The primary endpoint was the proportion of patients with an objective CNS response, defined as a 50% or greater volumetric reduction of CNS lesions in the absence of increased steroid use, progressive neurological symptoms, and progressive extra-CNS disease. All responses had to be confirmed 4 weeks after initial response. Efficacy analyses included all patients who received the study drugs and were assessable for efficacy criteria. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov , number NCT00967031. Findings Between April 15, 2009, to Aug 2, 2010, we enrolled 45 patients, 44 (98%) of whom were assessable for efficacy, with a median follow-up of 21·2 months (range 2·2–27·6). 29 patients had an objective CNS response (65·9%, 95% CI 50·1–79·5); all were partial responses. Of all 45 treated patients, 22 (49%) had grade 3 or grade 4 treatment-related adverse events, of which the most common were diarrhoea in nine (20%) patients and hand-foot syndrome in nine (20%) patients. 14 (31%) patients had at least one severe adverse event; treatment was discontinued because of toxicity in four patients. No toxic deaths occurred. Interpretation The combination of lapatinib and capecitabine is active as first-line treatment of brain metastases from HER2-positive breast cancer. A phase 3 trial is warranted. Funding GlaxoSmithKline-France and UNICANCER.
Summary Background Breast cancer is characterised by genomic alterations. We did a multicentre molecular screening study to identify abnormalities in individual patients with the aim of providing ...targeted therapy matched to individuals' genomic alterations. Methods From June 16, 2011, to July 30, 2012, we recruited patients who had breast cancer with a metastasis accessible for biopsy in 18 centres in France. Comparative genomic hybridisation (CGH) array and Sanger sequencing on PIK3CA (exon 10 and 21) and AKT1 (exon 4) were used to assess metastatic biopsy samples in five centres. Therapeutic targets were decided on the basis of identified genomic alterations. The primary objective was to include 30% of patients in clinical trials testing a targeted therapy and, therefore, the primary outcome was the proportion of patients to whom a targeted therapy could be offered. For the primary endpoint, the analyses were done on the overall population registered for the trial. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov , number NCT01414933. Findings 423 patients were included, and biopsy samples were obtained from 407 (metastatic breast cancer was not found in four). CGH array and Sanger sequencing were feasible in 283 (67%) and 297 (70%) patients, respectively. A targetable genomic alteration was identified in 195 (46%) patients, most frequently in PIK3CA (74 25% of 297 identified genomic alterations), CCND1 (53 19%), and FGFR1 (36 13%). 117 (39%) of 297 patients with genomic tests available presented with rare genomic alterations (defined as occurring in less than 5% of the general population), including AKT1 mutations, and EGFR, MDM2, FGFR2, AKT2, IGF1R , and MET high-level amplifications. Therapy could be personalised in 55 (13%) of 423 patients. Of the 43 patients who were assessable and received targeted therapy, four (9%) had an objective response, and nine others (21%) had stable disease for more than 16 weeks. Serious (grade 3 or higher) adverse events related to biopsy were reported in four (1%) of enrolled patients, including pneumothorax (grade 3, one patient), pain (grade 3, one patient), haematoma (grade 3, one patient), and haemorrhagic shock (grade 3, one patient). Interpretation Personalisation of medicine for metastatic breast cancer is feasible, including for rare genomic alterations. Funding French National Cancer Institute, Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Odyssea, Operation Parrains Chercheurs.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common and recurrent types of cancer, with high mortality rates. Several clinical trials and meta-analyses have determined that the use of pharmacological ...inhibitors of cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2), the enzyme that catalyses the rate-limiting step in the synthesis of prostaglandins (PG) from arachidonic acid, can reduce the incidence of CRC as well as the risk of recurrence of this disease, when used together with commonly used chemotherapeutic agents. These observations suggest that inhibition of COX-2 may be useful in the treatment of CRC, although the current drugs targeting COX-2 are not widely used since they increase the risk of health complications. To overcome this difficulty, a possibility is to identify genes regulated by COX-2 activity that could give an advantage to the cells to form tumors and/or metastasize. The modulation of those genes as effectors of COX-2 may cancel the beneficial effects of COX-2 in tumor transformation and metastasis. A review of the available databases and literature and our own data have identified some interesting molecules induced by prostaglandins or COX-2 that have been also described to play a role in colon cancer, being thus potential pharmacological targets in colon cancer. Among those mPGES-1, DUSP4, and 10, Programmed cell death 4, Trop2, and many from the TGFβ and p53 pathways have been identified as genes upregulated in response to COX-2 overexpression or PGs in colon carcinoma lines and overexpressed in colon tumor tissue. Here, we review the available evidence of the potential roles of those molecules in colon cancer in the context of PG/COX signaling pathways that could be critical mediators of some of the tumor growth and metastasis advantage induced by COX-2. At the end, this may allow defining new therapeutic targets/drugs against CRC that could act specifically against tumor cells and would be effective in the prevention and treatment of CRC, lacking the unwanted side effects of COX-2 pharmacological inhibitors, providing alternative approaches in colon cancer.
The activity of DNA repair enzyme 8-oxoguanine DNA glycosylase (OGG1), which excises oxidized base 8-oxoguanine (8-OG) from DNA, is closely linked to mutagenesis, genotoxicity, cancer, and ...inflammation. To test the roles of OGG1-mediated repair in these pathways, we have undertaken the development of noncovalent small-molecule inhibitors of the enzyme. Screening of a PubChem-annotated library using a recently developed fluorogenic 8-OG excision assay resulted in multiple validated hit structures, including selected lead hit tetrahydroquinoline 1 (IC50 = 1.7 μM). Optimization of the tetrahydroquinoline scaffold over five regions of the structure ultimately yielded amidobiphenyl compound 41 (SU0268; IC50 = 0.059 μM). SU0268 was confirmed by surface plasmon resonance studies to bind the enzyme both in the absence and in the presence of DNA. The compound SU0268 was shown to be selective for inhibiting OGG1 over multiple repair enzymes, including other base excision repair enzymes, and displayed no toxicity in two human cell lines at 10 μM. Finally, experiments confirm the ability of SU0268 to inhibit OGG1 in HeLa cells, resulting in an increase in accumulation of 8-OG in DNA. The results suggest the compound SU0268 as a potentially useful tool in studies of the role of OGG1 in multiple disease-related pathways.
High-flow nasal cannula oxygen therapy (HFNC) has been shown to be a useful therapy in the treatment of patients with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), but its efficacy is still unknown in ...patients with COVID-19. Our objective is to describe its utility as therapy for the treatment of ARDS caused by SARS-CoV-2.
A retrospective, observational study was performed at a single centre, evaluating patients with ARDS secondary to COVID-19 treated with HFNC. The main outcome was the intubation rate at day 30, which defined failure of therapy. We also analysed the role of the ROX index to predict the need for intubation.
In the study period, 196 patients with bilateral pneumonia were admitted to our pulmonology unit, 40 of whom were treated with HFNC due to the presence of ARDS. The intubation rate at day 30 was 52.5%, and overall mortality was 22.5%. After initiating HFNC, the SpO
/FiO
ratio was significantly better in the group that did not require intubation (113.4±6.6
93.7±6.7, p=0.020), as was the ROX index (5.0±1.6
4.0±1.0, p=0.018). A ROX index less than 4.94 measured 2 to 6 h after the start of therapy was associated with increased risk of intubation (HR 4.03 95% CI 1.18 - 13.7; p=0.026).
High-flow therapy is a useful treatment in ARDS in order to avoid intubation or as a bridge therapy, and no increased mortality was observed secondary to the delay in intubation. After initiating HFNC, a ROX index below 4.94 predicts the need for intubation.
The objective of this phase II trial was to assess the efficacy and toxicity of weekly paclitaxel for patients with metastatic or unresectable angiosarcoma.
Thirty patients were entered onto the ...study from April 2005 through October 2006. Paclitaxel was administered intravenously as a 60-minute infusion at a dose of 80 mg/m(2) on days 1, 8, and 15 of a 4-week cycle. The primary end point was the nonprogression rate after two cycles.
The progression-free survival rates after 2 and 4 months were 74% and 45%, respectively. With a median follow-up of 8 months, the median time to progression was 4 months and the median overall survival was 8 months. The progression-free survival rate was similar in patients pretreated with chemotherapy and in chemotherapy-naïve patients (77% v 71%). Three patients with locally advanced breast angiosarcoma presented partial response, which enabled a secondary curative-intent surgery with complete histologic response in two cases. One toxic death occurred as a result of a thrombocytopenia episode. Six patients presented with grade 3 toxicities and one patient presented with a grade 4 toxicity. Anemia and fatigue were the most frequently reported toxicities.
Weekly paclitaxel at the dose schedule used in the current study was well tolerated and demonstrated clinical benefit.