Review
Immunology
Yinan Yu, Xueying Jin, Xiaoling Zhu, Yan Xu, Wei Si, Jianguo Zhao
Summary: Through meta-analysis, the study found that PD-1/PD-L1 immune checkpoint inhibitors combined with chemotherapy can significantly improve the progression-free survival of patients with metastatic triple negative breast cancer, but only significantly improve the overall survival in PD-L1 positive population. In addition, the incidence of immune-related adverse events is significantly higher in the ICIs group compared to chemotherapy, which needs to be taken seriously.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Oncology
Jan-Malte Placke, Camille Soun, Jenny Bottek, Rudolf Herbst, Patrick Terheyden, Jochen Utikal, Claudia Pfoehler, Jens Ulrich, Alexander Kreuter, Christiane Pfeiffer, Peter Mohr, Ralf Gutzmer, Friedegund Meier, Edgar Dippel, Michael Weichenthal, Lisa Zimmer, Elisabeth Livingstone, Juergen C. Becker, Georg Lodde, Antje Sucker, Klaus Griewank, Susanne Horn, Eva Hadaschik, Alexander Roesch, Dirk Schadendorf, Daniel Robert Engel, Selma Ugurel
Summary: This study investigated the digitally quantified tumor PD-L1 expression for predicting the outcome of PD-1-based immune checkpoint blockade therapy. Results showed that patients with PD-L1-positive tumors had better response and prolonged progression-free survival and overall survival. Both digital and physician quantification of PD-L1 expression were independent predictors of survival in patients receiving PD-1-based ICB therapy.
FRONTIERS IN ONCOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Nour el Imane Issam Salah, Farida Marnissi, Abdelhakim Lakhdar, Mehdi Karkouri, Mohamed Elbelhadji, Abdallah Badou
Summary: This study analyzed the expression of a novel immune checkpoint, VISTA, in the rare and deadly tumor UM. The results showed that VISTA expression was associated with tumor aggressiveness, T cell exhaustion, and poor overall survival. VISTA may serve as a prognostic marker and a potential target for immunotherapy in UM patients.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Zhiren Wang, Leyla Estrella Cordova, Pavani Chalasani, Jianqin Lu
Summary: This study focuses on the therapeutic effects of camptothesome for metastatic triple-negative breast cancer, demonstrating its superior efficacy in inducing immunogenic cell death and potentiating PD-L1 checkpoint blockade therapy. The results show promising potential for camptothesome in modulating the tumor immune microenvironment for improved treatment of intractable TNBC.
MOLECULAR PHARMACEUTICS
(2022)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ivana De Risi, Angela Monica Sciacovelli, Michele Guida
Summary: Immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI) has significantly improved the survival of patients with metastatic melanoma (MM), but it also comes with new and sometimes irreversible toxicities. There is currently no consensus on the optimal duration of ICI therapy, and controlled prospective studies are needed.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Jan-Malte Placke, Mona Kimmig, Klaus Griewank, Rudolf Herbst, Patrick Terheyden, Jochen Utikal, Claudia Pfoehler, Jens Ulrich, Alexander Kreuter, Peter Mohr, Ralf Gutzmer, Friedegund Meier, Edgar Dippel, Julia Welzel, Daniel Robert Engel, Sophia Kreft, Antje Sucker, Georg Lodde, Frederik Krefting, Ingo Stoffels, Joachim Klode, Alexander Roesch, Lisa Zimmer, Elisabeth Livingstone, Eva Hadaschik, Juergen C. Becker, Michael Weichenthal, Alpaslan Tasdogan, Dirk Schadendorf, Selma Ugurel
Summary: The study found that the detection of PD-L1 in lymph node metastases was more strongly correlated with the outcome of PD-1-based immunotherapy in melanoma, while there was no correlation in skin/subcutaneous metastases. This suggests that PD-L1 results in skin/subcutaneous metastases should be used with caution for clinical decision making.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Jia Guo, Peng Liu, Benliang Wei, Ying Peng, Jinsong Ding, Hailun Zhang, Guanxiong Zhang, Juan Su, Hong Liu, Wenhu Zhou, Xiang Chen
Summary: This study found that adenosine A1 receptor (ADORA1) is overexpressed in melanoma tissue and is positively correlated with tumor malignancy and advancement. Inhibition of ADORA1 can specifically damage melanoma cells and induce immunogenic cell death (ICD). To compensate for this, researchers designed and fabricated a hybrid nanomedicine that combines ADORA1 inhibitor with PD-L1 blockage, enhancing melanoma immunotherapy.
Article
Oncology
Tuba N. Gide, Elizabeth C. Paver, Zarwa Yaseen, Nigel Maher, Nurudeen Adegoke, Alexander M. Menzies, Ines Pires da Silva, James S. Wilmott, Georgina V. Long, Richard A. Scolyer
Summary: This study evaluated the association between LAG-3 expression and clinical outcomes in metastatic melanoma patients treated with anti-LAG-3 and anti-PD-1 immunotherapy. The results showed that LAG-3 expression was related to treatment response and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes, and patients with ≥ 1% LAG-3+ cells had longer progression-free survival.
Article
Oncology
Steven H. Sun, Colin D. Angell, Himanshu Savardekar, Debasish Sundi, David Abood, Brooke Benner, Mallory J. DiVincenzo, Megan Duggan, Fouad Choueiry, Thomas Mace, Prashant Trikha, Gabriella Lapurga, Courtney Johnson, Erick J. Carlson, Catherine Chung, Blake R. Peterson, Jing Zhao, Kari L. Kendra, William E. Carson III
Summary: Inhibition of BTK activation reduces the activation of tumor-associated suppressor cells and improves the therapeutic response to anti-PD-L1 antibody, enhancing the immunotherapy of advanced melanoma.
CANCER IMMUNOLOGY IMMUNOTHERAPY
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Fuhua Yang, Yifei Zhang, Zhi Chen, Lu Zhang
Summary: VISTA is upregulated in inflammatory tissues of apical periodontitis, acting as a negative regulator to suppress inflammation and bone loss.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Oncology
Julian Steininger, Frank Friedrich Gellrich, Alexander Schulz, Dana Westphal, Stefan Beissert, Friedegund Meier
Summary: Malignant melanoma is a highly aggressive and metastatic skin cancer, with immunotherapy and targeted therapy showing significant improvement in treatment outcomes by enhancing immune responses and inhibiting abnormal cell growth.
Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Pieter H. Nienhuis, Ines F. Antunes, Andor W. J. M. Glaudemans, Mathilde Jalving, David Leung, Walter Noordzij, Riemer H. J. A. Slart, Erik F. J. de Vries, Geke A. P. Hospers
Summary: This pilot study explores the variability in metastatic tracer uptake and its relation to tumor response in melanoma patients using F-18-BMS986192 PET for PD-L1 expression. The study finds that baseline F-18-BMS986192 uptake can predict a reduction in lesion volume induced by ICI treatment, and follow-up PET scans can detect treatment-induced toxicity.
JOURNAL OF NUCLEAR MEDICINE
(2022)
Review
Oncology
Xi-Yang Tang, Yan-Lu Xiong, Xian-Gui Shi, Ya-Bo Zhao, An-Ping Shi, Kai-Fu Zheng, Yu-Jian Liu, Tao Jiang, Nan Ma, Jin-Bo Zhao
Summary: Immunotherapy is a major treatment for tumors, but low response rate and high rates of immune-related adverse events are still problematic. This review focuses on IGSF11 and VISTA in tumors, examining their structure, expression, and functional regulation. IGSF11 and VISTA are highly expressed in tumors and participate in the regulation of immune cells and cytokine production. The downregulation of both inhibits tumor growth. Preclinical and clinical trials emphasize their predictive role in tumor prognosis. IGSF11 and VISTA have enormous potential in tumor immunotherapy.
BIOMARKER RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Oncology
Anngela C. Adams, Elizabeth S. Borden, Anne M. Macy, Nick Thomson, Haiyan Cui, Mark Gimbel, Melissa A. Wilson, Kenneth H. Buetow, Denise J. Roe, David J. DiCaudo, Jade Homsi, Karen Taraszka Hastings
Summary: This study found that high expression of GILT mRNA in tumor samples and GILT protein in melanoma cells is associated with improved survival in patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI). These findings suggest that GILT may serve as a biomarker to predict the response to ICI in patients with metastatic melanoma.
Review
Immunology
Alexander S. Martin, Michael Molloy, Andrey Ugolkov, Reinhard W. von Roemeling, Randolph J. Noelle, Lionel D. Lewis, Melissa Johnson, Laszlo Radvanyi, Robert E. Martell
Summary: V-domain Ig suppressor of T-cell activation (VISTA) is a novel immunotherapy target for solid tumors, playing key roles in maintaining T cell quiescence and regulating myeloid cell populations. Understanding the biology of VISTA and its interactions with tumor and immune cells is crucial for anti-VISTA therapy. We provide a general framework to describe patterns of VISTA expression in correlation with other immune biomarkers across solid tumors, facilitating the investigation of effective tumor microenvironments for VISTA-targeted treatment.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Oncology
Alison M. Weppler, Laetitia Da Meda, Ines Pires da Silva, Wen Xu, Giovanni Grignani, Alexander M. Menzies, Matteo S. Carlino, Georgina Long, Serigne N. Lo, Ina Nordman, Christopher B. Steer, Megan Lyle, Claudia Trojaniello, Paolo A. Ascierto, Celeste Lebbe, Shahneen Sandhu
Summary: The response to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma (mMCC) is not durable off treatment, but retreatment shows promising results.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CANCER
(2023)
Article
Oncology
Hansol Lee, Angela L. Ferguson, Camelia Quek, Ismael A. Vergara, Ines Pires daSilva, Ruth Allen, Tuba Nur Gide, Jordan W. Conway, Lambros T. Koufariotis, Nicholas K. Hayward, Nicola Waddell, Matteo S. Carlino, Alexander M. Menzies, Robyn P. M. Saw, Elena Shklovskaya, Helen Rizos, Serigne Lo, Richard A. Scolyer, Georgina V. Long, Umaimaintha Palendira, James S. Wilmott
Summary: This study characterized intratumoral macrophage populations in melanoma biopsies and investigated the association between CD16-expressing macrophage densities and treatment outcomes for patients receiving anti-PD-1 monotherapy or a combination with anti-CTLA-4. The results showed that patients who responded to combination therapy had higher CD16 macrophage densities compared to those who did not respond. Additionally, patients with high intratumoral densities of CD16 macrophages had a significantly longer progression-free survival. These findings suggest that CD16 macrophages may serve as a potential biomarker for response to combination immunotherapies in metastatic melanoma patients.
CLINICAL CANCER RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Oncology
Andrew T. Li, Jenaleen Law, Sydney Ch'ng, Richard A. Scolyer, John F. Thompson, Serigne N. Lo, Alexander H. R. Varey
Summary: This study provides external validation of the EORTC-DeCOG nomograms for predicting prognosis in melanoma patients. The nomograms perform well in predicting recurrence and distant metastasis, but show poorer performance in predicting overall mortality.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CANCER
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Andrew J. Sawyer, Ellis Patrick, Jarem Edwards, James S. Wilmott, Timothy Fielder, Qianting Yang, Daniel L. Barber, Joel D. Ernst, Warwick J. Britton, Umaimainthan Palendira, Xinchun Chen, Carl G. Feng
Summary: Sawyer et al. used multiplex imaging to profile 726 individual lesions in human tuberculosis granulomas, revealing their diversity. They identified four distinct lesion types that form a histopathological superstructure around necrotic granulomas. This study provides spatial resolution at the single-cell level and shows the heterogeneity of TB granulomas in human tissues.
JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Oncology
Lodewijka H. J. Holtkamp, Serigne N. Lo, John F. Thompson, Andrew J. Spillane, Jonathan R. Stretch, Robyn P. M. Saw, Kerwin F. Shannon, Omgo E. Nieweg, Angela M. Hong
Summary: This study evaluated the long-term node field control and survival of melanoma patients with node field recurrence following prior node dissection who underwent salvage surgery with adjuvant radiotherapy. The results showed that while adjuvant radiotherapy achieved control of the node field, disease progression at distant sites was common and the survival outcomes were poor.
JOURNAL OF SURGICAL ONCOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Pathology
Eva R. Shteinman, Ismael A. Vergara, Robert V. Rawson, Serigne N. Lo, Naoyuki Maeda, Kumiko Koyama, Ines Pires Da Silva, Georgina V. Long, Richard A. Scolyer, James S. Wilmott, Alexander M. Menzies
Summary: Overexpression of HER3 is associated with metastasis and drug resistance in melanoma. This study examined HER3 expression in melanoma biopsies and found that HER3 expression was associated with specific molecular and clinical characteristics. These findings suggest that HER3 could be a potential therapeutic target in melanoma.
Article
Dermatology
Elvira Moscarella, Pascale Guitera, Richard A. Scolyer, Lilian Rocha, Luc Thomas, Andrea Ronchi, Camila Scharf, Gabriella Brancaccio, Giuseppe Argenziano
Summary: This case series aims to raise awareness on the issue of misdiagnosis of early lentigo maligna as junctional nevi. The study retrieved cases from three pigmented lesion clinics in Italy, Australia, and France, and found that initial histopathologic diagnosis of junctional nevus or dysplastic junctional nevus later turned out to be melanoma. Clinicians should question the histologic diagnosis of junctional or dysplastic junctional nevus on the head/neck area if the clinical or dermoscopic features are discordant.
DERMATOLOGY PRACTICAL & CONCEPTUAL
(2023)
Article
Oncology
Rachel S. Goodman, Lorenza Di Guardo, Andrea Maurichi, Brendan Kirwin, Adnan Khattak, Vito Vanella, Joanna Lee, Aleigha Lawless, Juliane Czapla, Andrea Spagnoletti, Margherita Ambrosini, Elisabeth Livingstone, Georgina V. Long, Ryan J. Sullivan, Matteo S. Carlino, Victoria Atkinson, Claudia Trojanello, Paolo A. Ascierto, Dirk Schadendorf, Lydia Warburton, Alexander M. Menzies, Mario Santinami, Douglas B. Johnson
Summary: This retrospective multicenter cohort study evaluated patients who received BRAF/MEK inhibitors and had a progression-free survival of 4 years or more, and found that over 75% of patients still had durable antitumor responses after nearly 8 years of median follow-up. Similar results were observed in patients who discontinued therapy. Long-term toxicities were uncommon and low-grade.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CANCER
(2023)
Letter
Dermatology
Serigne N. Lo, Alexander H. R. Varey, Mary-Ann El Sharouni, Richard A. Scolyer, John F. Thompson
JOURNAL OF THE EUROPEAN ACADEMY OF DERMATOLOGY AND VENEREOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Pathology
Catriona a. Mckenzie, Ruta Gupta, Louise Jackett, Lyndal Anderson, Vivien Chen, Jane E. Dahlstrom, Michael Dray, Gelareh Farshid, Chris Hemmings, Rooshdiya Karim, James G. Kench, Sonja Klebe, Nicole Kramer, Priyanthi Kumarasinghe, Fiona Maclean, Adrienne Morey, Minh Anh Nguyen, Sandra O'Toole, Beverley Rowbotham, Elizabeth L. C. Salisbury, Richard A. Scolyer, Katie Stewart, Lynette Waring, Caroline L. Cooper, Wendy A. Cooper
Summary: Although women make up more than one-third of pathologists in Australia and at least 50% since 2019, they are underrepresented in senior leadership roles and various areas such as scientific publications and professional awards. This disparity is not unique to pathology but is evident in the broader medical and academic communities. Gender stereotypes, discrimination, structural and organizational barriers, as well as social and cultural factors, contribute to the lack of gender equity and equality in pathology, medicine, and academia. It is crucial to have diverse leadership that represents the whole professional body and the broader community for optimal health outcomes. Individuals and organizations have a responsibility and moral duty to address gender disparities, inequities, and inequalities by actively addressing gender biases and systemic barriers hindering appropriate levels of representation by women.
Editorial Material
Pathology
Ruta Gupta, Christina I. Selinger, Bruce Ashford, Margaret S. T. Chua, Jonathan R. Clark, Diona L. Damian, Louise A. Jackett, Craig James, Stuart Johnson, Rahul Ladwa, Duncan Lambie, Catriona Mckenzie, Swee T. Tan, Richard A. Scolyer
Summary: Non-melanocytic skin cancers (NMSCs) have a higher incidence rate and cost compared to other cancers. Lack of standardized pathology reporting protocols can result in suboptimal patient management. The Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia has developed an NMSC pathology reporting protocol, which was trialled and implemented in multiple centers. Further considerations should be given to expanding the protocol to include all relevant specimens.
Meeting Abstract
Oncology
Jordan W. Conway, Felix Marsh-Wakefield, Kazi J. Nahar, Serigne N. Lo, Ismael A. Vergara, Tuba N. Gide, Grace H. Attrill, Jorja Braden, Matteo S. Carlino, Robyn P. Saw, John F. Thompson, Andrew J. Spillane, Kerwin F. Shannon, Brindha Shivalingam, Alexander M. Menzies, Umaimainthan Palendira, James S. Wilmott, Georgina V. Long, Richard A. Scolyer, Ines Pires Da Silva
Meeting Abstract
Oncology
Reinhard Dummer, Caroline Robert, Richard A. Scolyer, Janis M. Taube, Michael T. Tetzlaff, Andrew Hill, Jean-Jacques Grob, David C. Portnoy, Celeste Lebbe, Muhammad A. Khattak, Jonathan Cohen, Gil Bar-Sela, Inderjit Mehmi, Ronnie Shapira Frommer, Nicolas Meyer, Yixin Ren, Mizuho Fukunaga-Kalabis, Clemens Krepler, Georgina V. Long
Article
Oncology
Adriana Hepner, Judith M. Versluis, Roslyn Wallace, Clara Allayous, Lauren Julia Brown, Claudia Trojanielloh, Camille Lea Gerardi, Yanina J. L. Jansenj, Prachi Bhave, Bart Neyns, Andrew Haydon, Olivier Michielin, Joanna Manganan Oliver Klein, Alexander N. Shoushtari, Allison Betof Warner, Paolo Antonio Ascierto, Jennifer Leigh McQuade, Matteo S. Carlino, Lisa Zimmer, Celeste Lebbe, Douglas B. Johnson, Shahneen Sandhu, Victoria Atkinson, Christian U. Blank, Serigne N. Lo, Georgina V. Long, Alexander M. Menzies
Summary: Acquired resistance to PD-1 therapy in melanoma is mainly oligometastatic, and patients may have a favorable survival outcome following salvage treatment.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CANCER
(2024)
Article
Pathology
Juliana Mota Siqueira, Yoshitsugu Mitani, Camilla Oliveira Hoff, Flavia Bonini, Luana Guimaraes de Sousa, Mario L. Marques-Piubelli, Anurag Purushothaman, Mutsumi Mitani, Hui Dai, Shiaw-Yih Lin, Michael T. Spiotto, Ehab Y. Hanna, Daniel J. McGrail, Adel K. El-Naggar, Renata Ferrarotto
Summary: B7-H4 expression pattern varies among different types of salivary gland carcinomas, and high B7-H4 expression is associated with poor prognosis in adenoid cystic carcinoma.
Article
Pathology
Basile Tessier-Cloutier, Felix K. F. Kommoss, David L. Kolin, Kristyna Nemejcova, Dupreez Smith, Jennifer Pors, Colin J. R. Stewart, W. Glenn Mccluggage, William D. Foulkes, Andreas von Deimling, Martin Kobel, Cheng-Han Lee
Summary: This study provides a detailed analysis of the clinical, pathological, immunohistochemical, and molecular features of DDOC/UDOC. The majority of patients presented with extraovarian disease and had rapid disease progression resulting in high mortality rate.
Review
Pathology
Sophia J. Wagner, Christian Matek, Sayedali Shetab Boushehri, Melanie Boxberg, Lorenz Lamm, Ario Sada, Dominik J. E. Winter, Carsten Marr, Tingying Peng
Summary: Computational pathology research driven by deep learning faces challenges in reproducibility and reusability. Codebase with good documentation and robustness and generalizability of models are crucial. The reuse of computational pathology algorithms is limited, and their application in clinical settings is even rarer. This study evaluates 160 peer-reviewed articles, providing criteria for data and code availability and statistical analysis of results.
Article
Pathology
Andres M. Acosta, Lynette M. Sholl, Fiona Maclean, Chia-Sui Kao, Thomas M. Ulbright
Summary: This study assessed the clinicopathologic and genomic features of 14 cases of testicular sex cord-stromal tumors. The results showed that CTNNB1 mutations are rare in these tumors, and most of them have genomic alterations similar to testicular sex cord-stromal tumors with pure or predominant spindle cell components.
Article
Pathology
Toru Odate, Kaishi Satomi, Takashi Kubo, Yuko Matsushita, Toshihide Ueno, Akira Kurose, Kohei Shomori, Tokiko Nakai, Reiko Watanabe, Keiko Segawa, Shusa Ohshika, Naritomo Miyake, Sayaka Kudo, Tatsunori Shimoi, Eisuke Kobayashi, Motokiyo Komiyama, Seiichi Yoshimoto, Fumihiko Nakatani, Akira Kawai, Yasushi Yatabe, Shinji Kohsaka, Koichi Ichimura, Hitoshi Ichikawa, Akihiko Yoshida
Summary: Inflammatory rhabdomyoblastic tumors (IRMTs) are newly recognized skeletal muscle tumors with uncertain malignant potential. This study investigated 13 IRMTs using clinicopathologic, genetic, and epigenetic methods. The results showed specific histologic features and genetic mutations in these tumors, and most of them exhibited benign behavior.
Article
Pathology
Dale L. Davis, Adam C. Lechner, David B. Chapel, Jonathan C. Slack, Chrystalle Katte Carreon, Bradley J. Quade, Carlos Parra-Herran
Summary: The Amsterdam Consensus Statement introduced the term maternal vascular malperfusion (MVM) to classify a group of findings related to impaired maternal-placental circulation. The study found that features such as low placental weight, accelerated villous maturation, decidual arteriopathy, and infarcts are associated with adverse obstetrical outcomes, while the role of other features like distal villous hypoplasia, excess multinucleated trophoblast, and retroplacental hemorrhage needs further research.
Review
Pathology
Alain C. Borczuk
Summary: COVID-19 is an acute respiratory illness that can progress to acute respiratory distress syndrome. While most patients recover completely, some may experience persistent respiratory dysfunction, known as long COVID. The pathogenesis involves immune and cellular disturbances.
Article
Pathology
Annikka Weissferdt, Cheuk H. Leung, Heather Lin, Boris Sepesi, William N. William, Stephen G. Swisher, Tina Cascone, J. Jack Lee, Abujiang Pataer
Summary: Neoadjuvant treatment of non-small cell lung cancer challenges traditional processing of pathology specimens, and accurate evaluation of residual tumor is crucial for assessing treatment efficacy.