Analysis of incidence, mortality and survival for pancreatic and biliary tract cancers across Europe, with assessment of influence of revised European age standardisation on estimates

Microbial profile in bile from pancreatic and extra-pancreatic biliary tract cancer

BACKGROUND

Dysbiotic biliary bacterial profile is reported in cancer patients and is associated with survival and comorbidities, raising the question of its effect on the influence of anticancer drugs and, recently, the suggestion of perichemotherapy antibiotics in pancreatic cancer patients colonized by the Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae.

OBJECTIVE

In this study, we investigated the microbial communities that colonize tumours and which bacteria could aid in diagnosing pancreatic and biliary cancer and managing bile-colonized patients.

METHODS

A retrospective study on positive bile cultures of 145 Italian patients who underwent cholangiopancreatography with PC and EPC cancer hospitalized from January 2006 to December 2020 in a QA-certified academic surgical unit were investigated for aerobic/facultative-anaerobic bacteria and fungal organisms.

RESULTS

We found that among Gram-negative bacteria, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas spp were the most frequent in the EPC group, while Escherichia coli, Klebsiella spp, and Pseudomonas spp were the most frequent in the PC group. Enterococcus spp was the most frequent Gram-positive bacteria in both groups. Comparing the EPC and PC, we found a significant presence of patients with greater age in the PC compared to the EPC group. Regarding Candida spp, we found no significant but greater rate in the PC group compared to the EPC group (11.7% vs 1.96%). We found that Alcaligenes faecalis was the most frequent bacteria in EPC than the PC group, among Gram-negative bacterial species.

CONCLUSIONS

Age differences in gut microbiota composition may affect biliary habitats in our cancer population, especially in patients with pancreatic cancer. Alcaligenes faecalis isolated in the culture of bile samples could represent potential microbial markers for a restricted follow-up to early diagnosis of extra-pancreatic cancer. Finally, the prevalence of Candida spp in pancreatic cancer seems to trigger new aspects about debate about the role of fungal microbiota into their relationship with pancreatic cancer.

Factors influencing early mobilisation for patients undergoing pancreatic surgery from multiple perspectives: a qualitative descriptive study

OBJECTIVES

Despite early mobilisation as a key component of enhanced recovery after surgery pathways for pancreatic surgery, the implementation of early mobilisation remains unsatisfactory. What factors influence the implementation of early mobilisation from the lens of all stakeholders is unclear. The aim of this study was to identify the influencing factors of early mobilisation in pancreatic surgery from the perspective of patients, family members and health professionals.

DESIGN

A qualitative descriptive design using individual interviews and focus groups.

SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS

Twenty-two patients undergoing pancreatic surgery, 10 family members and 10 healthcare professionals from a large university teaching hospital in China.

METHODS

We collected data on participants' views on factors influencing early mobilisation after pancreatic surgery. Two researchers independently reviewed the transcripts and emergent coding. The data were analysed using qualitative content analysis.

RESULTS

Three main categories that influenced the implementation of early mobilisation in pancreatic surgery were identified: (1) attitude towards early postoperative mobilisation (eg, perceived advantages or disadvantages of early mobilisation), (2) subjective norm (eg, impact from health professionals, family members and fellow patients) and (3) perceived behavioural control (eg, knowledge, abilities, resources and environment).

CONCLUSION

Factors influencing early mobilisation are diverse and multidimensional. The successful implementation of early mobilisation requires the dedication of both patients and healthcare professionals.

Trends in treatment patterns and survival outcomes in pancreatic cancer: A nationwide population-based study in Korea

BACKGROUND

The treatment of pancreatic cancer has evolved; however, real-world data on treatment trends remain scarce. This study investigated treatment patterns for pancreatic cancer and patient survival using a nationwide population-based study in Korea.

METHODS

Using the National Health Insurance database, data from 78,920 patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in Korea between 2006 and 2019 were extracted. Treatment patterns and survival by age group and year of diagnosis were examined.

RESULTS

Primary treatment was delivered as follows: 16,562 patients (21.0%) underwent surgery, 20,998 patients (26.6%) received chemotherapy, 1332 patients (1.7%) received chemoradiotherapy, and 40,040 patients (50.7%) received supportive care only. The proportion of patients undergoing surgery or chemotherapy increased gradually in all age groups over time. The commonly used anti-cancer drugs have changed from gemcitabine±erlotinib to gemcitabine+nab-paclitaxel and FOLFIRINOX. Survival improved mainly in patients who underwent surgery or chemotherapy. Median overall survival for all patients improved from 5.5 months in 2006-2008 to 9.8 months in 2018-2019, with greater improvement observed in younger age groups: 8.8-18.8 months, age ≤59 years, 6.8-14.6 months, age 60-69 years, 4.2-8.3 months, age 70-79 years and 2.4-3.4 months, age ≥80 years (all p < 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS

An increase in the rates of surgery and chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer was observed. Survival rates for pancreatic cancer have generally improved over the past decade and are greater in patients undergoing surgery or chemotherapy and in younger age groups.

Predictive factors of microvascular invasion in patients with intrahepatic mass-forming cholangiocarcinoma based on magnetic resonance images

PURPOSE

The aim of this retrospective study was to develop and validate a preoperative nomogram for predicting microvascular invasion (MVI) in patients with intrahepatic mass-forming cholangiocarcinoma (IMCC) based on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

METHODS

In this retrospective study, 224 consecutive patients with clinicopathologically confirmed IMCC were enrolled. Patients whose data were collected from February 2010 to December 2020 were randomly divided into the training (131 patients) and internal validation (51 patients) datasets. The data from January 2021 to November 2021 (42 patients) were allocated to the time-independent validation dataset. Univariate and multivariate forward logistic regression analyses were used to identify preoperative MRI features that were significantly related to MVI, which were then used to develop the nomogram. We used the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) and calibration curve to evaluate the performance of the nomogram.

RESULTS

Interobserver agreement of MRI qualitative features was good to excellent, with κ values of 0.613-0.882. Multivariate analyses indicated that the following variables were independent predictors of MVI: multiple tumours (odds ratio [OR]) = 4.819, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.562-14.864, P = 0.006), ill-defined margin (OR = 6.922, 95% CI 2.883-16.633, P < 0.001), and carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9) > 37 U/ml (OR = 2.890, 95% CI 1.211-6.897, P = 0.017). A nomogram incorporating these factors was established using well-fitted calibration curves. The nomogram showed good diagnostic efficacy for MVI, with AUC values of 0.838, 0.819, and 0.874 for the training, internal validation, and time-independent validation datasets, respectively.

CONCLUSION

A nomogram constructed using independent factors, namely the presence of multiple tumours, ill-defined margins, and CA 19-9 > 37 U/ml could predict the presence of MVI. This can facilitate personalised therapeutic strategy and clinical management in patients with IMCC.

Age trends in biliary tract cancer incidence by anatomical subtype: A Swedish cohort study

AIM

Studies from Western countries suggest that early-onset biliary tract cancer, a rare malignancy originating from the bile ducts (cholangiocarcinoma) or gallbladder, is increasing. We performed a population-based cohort study to outline age trends in biliary tract cancer incidence in Sweden.

METHODS

All patients with biliary tract cancer, excluding non-biliary chiefly hepatocellular histopathology, recorded in the Swedish Cancer Register in year 1993-2019 and at age 20-84 were included. Analyses were stratified by anatomical subtype; intrahepatic, gallbladder, perihilar, distal, and not specified. We analyzed absolute incidence rates by calendar period (1993-2001, 2002-2010, and 2011-2019) and annual percentage change (APC) including 95% confidence intervals (CI) across 1993-2019 for all ages and stratified into younger (20-54 years) and older (55-84 years) patients.

RESULTS

Among 14,083 patients with biliary tract cancer, 1377 (9.8%) were younger. Gallbladder cancer incidence decreased (APC -2.82, 95% CI: -3.18--2.46), while intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma increased (APC 1.74, 95% CI: 1.30-2.18), and the latter surpassed gallbladder as the most common subtype during the study period. While both intrahepatic and perihilar cholangiocarcinoma increased in both age groups, the rise was most prominent in younger adults, APC 3.01, 95% CI: 1.84-4.20 and 3.93, 95% CI: 2.08-5.81, respectively.

CONCLUSION

Intrahepatic and perihilar cholangiocarcinoma are increasing in Sweden and more so younger adults. Further studies are needed to elucidate the underlying reasons behind the observed trends.

The immune escape signature predicts the prognosis and immunotherapy sensitivity for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

Background

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is one of the deadliest malignancies worldwide. Immune escape is considered to be a reason for immunotherapy failure in PDAC. In this study, we explored the correlation between immune escape-related genes and the prognosis of PDAC patients.

Methods

1163 PDAC patients from four public databases, including The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC), Array-express, and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO), were included in our study. Cox regression analysis was used to identify the 182 immune genes which were significantly associated with overall survival (OS). And then we established an immune escape-related gene prognosis index (IEGPI) score using several datasets as the training cohort and validated it using the validation cohort. Kaplan-Meier (KM) and Cox regression analysis were used to detect the relationship of IEGPI score with OS. We further explored the relationship between the IEGPI and immune indexes. And the prediction value of response for immunotherapy in Tumor Immune Dysfunction and Exclusion (TIDE) dataset.

Results

We establish an IEGPI score based on 27 immune escape genes which were significantly related to the prognosis of OS in PDAC patients. Patients in the high-IEGPI group had a significantly worse overall survival rate compared with that in the low-IEGPI groups by KM curves and cox-regression. 5 of the 32 cancer types in TCGA could be significantly distinguished in survival rates through the low- and high-IEGPI groups. Moreover, the correlation between the IEGPI score was negatively correlated with an immune score in several datasets. And higher IEGPI better recurrence-free survival (RFS) and OS in the patients after patients were treated with both PD-1 and CTLA4 in the public datasets (P<0.05). Intriguingly, by using RT-PCR, we verified that the gene of PTPN2, CEP55, and JAK2 were all higher in the BxPC-3 and PANC-1 than HPDE5 cells. Lastly, we found that the IEGPI score was higher in K-rasLSL.G12D/+, p53LSL.R172H/+, Pdx1Cre (KPC) mice model with anti-PD-L1 than that without anti-PD-L1.

Conclusion

Using the immune escape-related genes, our study established and validated an IEGPI score in PDAC patients from the public dataset. IEGPI score has the potential to serve as a prognostic marker and as a tool for selecting tumor patients suitable for immunotherapy in clinical practice.

Enhanced recovery in elderly patients undergoing pancreatic resection: A retrospective monocentric study

Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) pathway for pancreas has demonstrated its value in clinical practice. However, there is a lack of specific evidence about its application in elderly patients. The aim of the present study was to assess the impact of age on compliance and postoperative outcomes. Patients ≥70 years old that underwent pancreatic resection within an ERAS pathway between 2012 and 2018 were included, and divided into three groups: 70-74, 75-79, and ≥80 years old. Compliance with ERAS items, length of stay, mortality, and complications were analyzed. 114 patients were included: 49, 37, and 28 patients aged 70-74, 75-79, and ≥80 years, respectively. Overall compliance to ERAS items between groups was not different (66%, 66%, and 62%, P = .201). No significant difference was observed in terms of median length of stay (14, 17, and 17 days, P = .717), overall complications (67%, 78%, and 71%, P = .529), major complications (26%, 32%, and 39%, P = .507), or mortality (0%, 3%, and 4%, P = .448) with increasing age. Application of an ERAS pathway is feasible in elderly patients with pancreatic resection. Increasing age was neither associated with poorer compliance nor worse postoperative outcomes.

Pancreatic Cancer From the Patient Perspective: The Time to Act is Now

Pancreatic cancer is a disease requiring urgent attention from governments and policymakers. Recently, a state of emergency has been declared for this cancer—being the fourth most common cause of cancer deaths in the European Union, it has the lowest survival rate of all common cancers. One of the major reasons pancreatic cancer is associated with such poor outcomes is because it is usually diagnosed at a late stage. Also, investment in research for effective targeted therapies is lacking. This is the perspective of a white paper developed by Digestive Cancers Europe, an umbrella organisation representing European patient organisations. It has been developed after consultation with pancreatic cancer patients, representatives of cancer patient organisations and leading pancreatic cancer healthcare professionals. The purpose of the paper is to highlight the key urgent unmet needs in pancreatic cancer from the patient perspective, ultimately with a view to improve patient care and outcomes in this very challenging disease.

Molecular characterization of extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma: perihilar and distal tumors display divergent genomic and transcriptomic profiles

BACKGROUND

Extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ECC) is classified into two subtypes based on anatomic origin: distal extrahepatic (DECC) and perihilar (PHCC) cholangiocarcinoma. This study aimed to shed light on its genomic and transcriptomic profiles.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS

The genomic alterations of 99 ECC (47 PHCC and 52 DECC) were investigated by next-generation sequencing of 96 genes. A subgroup of cases, representative of each subtype, was further investigated using transcriptomic analysis. Bioinformatics tools were applied for clustering and pathway analysis and defining the immune composition of the tumor microenvironment.

RESULTS

PHCC had more frequent KRAS mutations (p = 0.0047), whereas TP53 mutations were more common in DECC (p = 0.006). Potentially actionable alterations included high-tumor mutational burden and/or microsatellite instability (7.1%), PI3KCA mutations (8.1%), and MYC (10.1%) and ERBB2 amplification (5.1%). The transcriptomic profiles showed the presence of three distinct clusters, which followed the anatomic origin and differed in immune microenvironment. DECC appeared to contain two distinct tumor subgroups, one enriched for druggable alterations and one lacking actionable opportunities.

CONCLUSIONS

This study provides new insights into the molecular landscape and the actionable alterations of ECC. Our findings represent a step toward improved ECC molecular taxonomy and therapeutic strategies for precision oncology.

A prognostic model in patients with advanced biliary tract cancer receiving first-line chemotherapy

BACKGROUND

Standard treatment of advanced biliary tract cancer (aBTC) is represented by first-line chemotherapy (CT1). However, some patients do not gain any benefit from CT1, contributing to the overall dismal prognosis of aBTC. The present study aimed to devise a prognostic model in aBTC patients receiving CT1.

METHODS

A large panel of clinical, laboratory, and pathology variables, available before the start of CT1, were retrospectively assessed in a multi-centric cohort to determine their prognostic value on univariate and multivariate regression analysis. The variables that showed a significant correlation with overall survival (OS) were computed in a three-tier prognostic score. External validation of the prognostication performance was carried out.

RESULTS

Clinical histories of 935 patients (median OS 10.3 months), with diagnosis dates ranging from 2001 to 2017, were retrieved from 14 institutions. According to multivariate analysis, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status, carbohydrate antigen 19.9, albumin levels, and neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio were strongly associated with OS (p <0.01). The prognostic score could generate a highly significant stratification (all between-group p values ≤0.001) into groups of favorable (comprising 51.5% of the sample), intermediate (39.2%), and poor prognosis (9.3%): median OS was 12.7 (CI_95% 11.0-14.4), 7.1 (CI_95% 5.8-8.4), and 3.2 months (CI_95% 1.7-4.7), respectively. This OS gradient was replicated in the validation set (129 patients), with median OS of 12.7 (CI_95% 11.0-14.3), 7.5 (CI_95% 6.1-8.9), and 1.4 months (CI_95% 0.1-2.7), respectively (all between-group p values ≤0.05).

CONCLUSION

A prognostic score, derived from a limited set of easily-retrievable variables, efficiently stratified a large population of unselected aBTC patients undergoing CT1. This tool could be useful to clinicians, to ascertain the potential benefit from CT1 at the start of treatment.

Clinical insights and prognostic factors from an advanced biliary tract cancer case series: a real-world analysis

Advanced biliary tract cancer (aBTC) comprises a heterogeneous group of rare malignancies with dismal prognosis. Given the scarcity of prospective evidence, the aim of this study was to derive clinically useful insights and prognostic factors from a large, real-world series of aBTC. Clinicopathologic variables and treatment outcomes were retrospectively collected involving 940 patients diagnosed with aBTC between 2001 and 2017, and treated with first-line chemotherapy (CT1) at 14 Italian medical oncology institutions. Median overall survival (OS) was 10.3 months (CI_95% 9.5-11.1). CT1 with gemcitabine-Platinum salts doublets achieved OS of 11.7 months vs 7.5 with gemcitabine alone (HR 0.67, p < 0.001). However, a clear temporal trend towards improved OS could not be demonstrated. Radical surgery of recurrent disease achieved a relapse-free survival of 5.9 months. A substantial minority (44.5%) of patients were able to receive a second-line chemotherapy, which achieved a response rate of 7.6%, and disease control in 30% of patients with no significant differences between combination regimens and monotherapies. In a large retrospective series of real-world aBTC, outcomes of standard CT1 closely resembled those of the registrational trials. A limited set of easily retrievable independent prognostic factors was defined. Further research is needed on second-line regimens.

Psoas muscle mass, nutritional status, inflammation, and their relationship with prognosis in patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma

INTRODUCTION

some factors have been shown to be associated with survival in patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Recently, some studies suggested that malnutrition, muscle mass, and inflammation might have an effect on survival in patients with pancreatic malignancy.

OBJECTIVES

to investigate the association between psoas muscle mass, inflammation, nutritional status at the time of diagnosis, and survival in patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

METHODS

this retrospective study included 219 patients diagnosed with pancreatic carcinoma. The nutritional status, inflammation, and psoas muscle mass of the patients at the time of diagnosis were evaluated. Nutritional status was assessed using the Prognostic Nutritional Index (PNI). Leucocyte count and neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR) were used for inflammation assessment. Psoas muscle mass was calculated by using abdominal computed tomography images of the patients.

RESULTS

the mean age of patients (80 female and 139 male) was 66.6 ± 11.7 years. According to the PNI results, 155 patients had a normal nutritional status (70 %), whereas 64 patients were malnourished (30 %). The survival of the patients with normal nutritional status was significantly longer than that of those who were malnourished (p < 0.001). There was no significant relationship between psoas muscle area, leucocyte count, NLR, and survival time.

CONCLUSION

the survival of pancreatic adenocarcinoma patients with malnutrition at the time of diagnosis was significantly shorter than for patients without malnutrition.

Pancreatic cancer cachexia: three dimensions of a complex syndrome

Cancer cachexia is a multifactorial syndrome that is characterised by a loss of skeletal muscle mass, is commonly associated with adipose tissue wasting and malaise, and responds poorly to therapeutic interventions. Although cachexia can affect patients who are severely ill with various malignant or non-malignant conditions, it is particularly common among patients with pancreatic cancer. Pancreatic cancer often leads to the development of cachexia through a combination of distinct factors, which, together, explain its high prevalence and clinical importance in this disease: systemic factors, including metabolic changes and pathogenic signals related to the tumour biology of pancreatic adenocarcinoma; factors resulting from the disruption of the digestive and endocrine functions of the pancreas; and factors related to the close anatomical and functional connection of the pancreas with the gut. In this review, we conceptualise the various insights into the mechanisms underlying pancreatic cancer cachexia according to these three dimensions to expose its particular complexity and the challenges that face clinicians in trying to devise therapeutic interventions.

The Emerging Role of Immunotherapy in Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma

Biliary tract cancer, and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (iCC) in particular, represents a rather uncommon, highly aggressive malignancy with unfavorable prognosis. Therapeutic options remain scarce, with platinum-based chemotherapy is being considered as the gold standard for the management of advanced disease. Comprehensive molecular profiling of tumor tissue biopsies, utilizing multi-omics approaches, enabled the identification of iCC’s intratumor heterogeneity and paved the way for the introduction of novel targeted therapies under the scope of precision medicine. Yet, the unmet need for optimal care of patients with chemo-refractory disease or without targetable mutations still exists. Immunotherapy has provided a paradigm shift in cancer care over the past decade. Currently, immunotherapeutic strategies for the management of iCC are under intense research. Intrinsic factors of the tumor, including programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression and mismatch repair (MMR) status, are simply the tip of the proverbial iceberg with regard to resistance to immunotherapy. Acknowledging the significance of the tumor microenvironment (TME) in both cancer growth and drug response, we broadly discuss about its diverse immune components. We further review the emerging role of immunotherapy in this rare disease, summarizing the results of completed and ongoing phase I–III clinical trials, expounding current challenges and future directions.

Place of hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy in the armament against pancreatic adenocarcinoma: A survival, mortality and morbidity systematic review

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma is one of the deadliest types of cancer worldwide, with a 5-year survival rate of 8% despite recent treatment advancements. The present systematic review aimed to investigate the role of hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) following surgical resection for pancreatic adenocarcinoma, with or without peritoneal carcinomatosis. A systematic search of the MEDLINE and SCOPUS electronic databases was performed according to PRISMA guidelines. All possible relevant articles published between January 1980 and May 2019 were retrieved using multiple search terms associated with HIPEC and pancreatic adenocarcinoma. The initial search resulted in 1,244 reports, which condensed to 41 reports following screening of titles and abstracts, and subsequently to four reports following full-text thorough examination. The four reports included involved a prospective cohort study of HIPEC use in resectable pancreatic adenocarcinoma, and three retrospective studies of HIPEC use following cytoreductive surgery for peritoneal carcinomatosis due to pancreatic adenocarcinoma, resulting in a total of 47 patients. The overall survival ranged between 2 and 62 months, and the hospital mortality rate was 8.5%. Morbidity (34%) was mainly attributed to anastomotic leak or respiratory failure. Due to the small sample size and low quality of evidence of the included studies, no valid conclusions could be drawn. Therefore, further studies are required to justify the use of HIPEC as an adjuvant therapy in resectable pancreatic adenocarcinoma, while cytoreductive surgery and HIPEC in peritoneal carcinomatosis of pancreatic origin seems not only not useful but also unsafe at this level of evidence.

Recent Discoveries of Diagnostic, Prognostic and Predictive Biomarkers for Pancreatic Cancer

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is an aggressive disease with a dismal prognosis that is frequently diagnosed at an advanced stage. Although less common than other malignant diseases, it currently ranks as the fourth most common cause of cancer-related death in the European Union with a five-year survival rate of below 9%. Surgical resection, followed by adjuvant chemotherapy, remains the only potentially curative treatment but only a minority of patients is diagnosed with locally resectable, non-metastatic disease. Patients with advanced disease are treated with chemotherapy but high rates of treatment resistance and unfavorable side-effect profiles of some of the used regimens remain major challenges. Biomarkers reflect pathophysiological or physiological processes linked to a disease and can be used as diagnostic, prognostic and predictive tools. Thus, accurate biomarkers can allow for better patient stratification and guide therapy choices. Currently, the only broadly used biomarker for PDAC, CA 19-9, has multiple limitations and the need for novel biomarkers is urgent. In this review, we highlight the current situation, recent discoveries and developments in the field of biomarkers of PDAC and their potential clinical applications.

Incidence and Prognosis of Biliary Tract and Gallbladder Cancers in a Belgian Academic Hospital

BACKGROUND

Biliary tract and gallbladder cancers are rare tumors with a poor prognosis (except the ampulla type). The evolution of hepatobiliary cancer incidence varies widely around the world. According to the Belgian Cancer Registry, the number of hepatobiliary cancers has increased every year since 2004.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This retrospective study included patients diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma, ampulla cancer, or gallbladder cancer at the university hospital, CHU UCL, Godinne site, in Namur, Belgium, between 1997 and 2017. The evolution of cancer incidence was evaluated with the Mann-Kendall method, by analyzing 7 consecutive 3-year periods. We calculated survival with the Kaplan-Meier method, and we determined prognostic factors with the log-rank test and Cox models.

RESULTS

Between 1997 and 2017, we included 128 patients that were newly diagnosed in our center. According to the Mann-Kendall test, the evolution of the incidence of these cancers in our hospital increased significantly over the study period (Sen's slope = 7; p = 0.003). The 1-year overall survival was 53.0 ± 4.7%. Poor prognostic factors included age, cancer stage, local cancer extension, and metastatic disease. The independent prognostic factors of survival were age (p = 0.002), ampulla cancer (p < 0.001), and metastatic disease (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

We found that the incidence of biliary tract and gallbladder cancers increased over a period of 20 years in our center. Further investigations are needed to determine the reasons for this increase. Although new therapies are emerging, the prognosis remains poor for these cancers. Determining risk factors might promote the development of preventive approaches.

Clinical outcomes of FOLFIRINOX and gemcitabine-nab paclitaxel for metastatic pancreatic cancer in the real world setting

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES

The incidence of pancreatic cancer is increasing in developed countries. The incorporation of new therapies, to the first-line treatment of patients with good performance status led to better survival in clinical trials. However, there is a wide variability in their use and some concerns about the treatment of elderly patients who were not included in the clinical trials.

METHODS

This is a retrospective multicenter study. Data from consecutive patients diagnosed with metastatic pancreatic cancer (mPC) treated with FOLFIRINOX (FFX) or gemcitabine plus nab-paclitaxel (GnP) were analysed to evaluate efficacy (overall survival-OS) and toxicity.

RESULTS

A total of 119 patients were included. 49.6% were treated with FFX and 50.4% with GNP in first-line. The median OS was 12 months with no statistically significant differences between both regimens (12.7 m for FFX vs 10.2 m for GnP). Elevated Ca 19.9 levels and neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) increased the risk of death. Patients who received both regimens in first/second line had a median OS longer than 15 months whichever the sequence. 32 patients (27%) were older than 70-y. 54% patients received a second-line treatment, 56% in the FFX group and 44% in the GnP group. The median OS for patients older than 70 was 9.5 m versus 12.3 m for patients younger than 70. Progression of the disease was the cause of death in 67.6% of the patients.

CONCLUSIONS

In our setting, the use of FFX and GnP for treating mPC is quite similar, but superiority could not be demonstrated for any of the schemes in the first line. OS was determined by basal levels of Ca 19.9 and NLR. Patients receiving both regimens in first/second line whichever the sequence, exhibited the best survival rates. In our series, elderly patients had poorer survival rates.

Molecular and Immunological Characterization of Biliary Tract Cancers: A Paradigm Shift Towards a Personalized Medicine

Biliary tract cancers (BTCs) are a group of rare cancers that account for up to 3–5% of cancer patients worldwide. BTCs include cholangiocarcinoma (CCA), gallbladder cancer (GBC), and ampulla of Vater cancer (AVC). They are frequently diagnosed at an advanced stage when the disease is often found disseminated. A late diagnosis highly compromises surgery, the only potentially curative option. Current treatment regimens include a combination of chemotherapeutic drugs gemcitabine with cisplatin that have a limited efficiency since more than 50% of patients relapse in the first year. More recently, an inhibitor of fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) was approved as a second-line treatment, based on the promising results from the NCT02924376 clinical trial. However, novel secondary treatment options are urgently needed. Recent molecular characterization of CCA and GBC highlighted the molecular heterogeneity, etiology, and epidemiology in BTC development and lead to the classification of the extrahepatic CCA into four types: metabolic, proliferating, mesenchymal, and immune type. Differences in the immune infiltration and tumor microenvironment (TME) have been described as well, showing that only a small subset of BTCs could be classified as an immune “hot” and targeted with the immunotherapeutic drugs. This recent evidence has opened a way to new clinical trials for BTCs, and new drug approvals are highly expected by the medical community.

Estrogen-related receptor-α promotes gallbladder cancer development by enhancing the transcription of Nectin-4

Estrogen-related receptor-α (ERRα) is a nuclear receptor of transcription factor that binds to estrogen responsive elements and estrogen-related responsive elements. Estrogen-related receptor-α is involved in metabolic processes and implicated in the progression and growth of several human malignancies. However, the biologic role and clinical significance of ERRα in gallbladder cancer (GBC) remains to be clarified. Here, we reported that ERRα protein expression was notably higher in GBC tissues than in cholecystitis tissues, and that the aberrantly higher ERRα expression was positively correlated with advanced TNM stage and indicated dismal prognosis of GBC (P < .01). In GBC cell lines NOZ and OCUG, the targeted depletion of ERRα retarded the growth and suppressed the migration and invasive capabilities of GBC cells, and inhibited epithelial-mesenchymal transition by decreasing the expression of mesenchymal markers and elevating the expression of epithelial markers. Moreover, ERRα knockdown inhibited tumor growth in nude mice and led to decreased expression levels of Nectin-4, p-PI3K p85α, and p-AKT. Overexpression of ERRα in the GBC-SD cell line showed exactly the opposite effect. The targeted inhibition of Nectin-4 antagonized GBC cell proliferation and invasion, which were induced by ERRα upregulation. Moreover, Nectin-4 depletion inhibited the ERRα-induced activation of the PI3K/AKT pathway. Chromatin immunoprecipitation analysis and dual-luciferase reporter gene assays showed that ERRα enhanced the transcription of Nectin-4 by binding to the promoter of Nectin-4. In conclusion, our data indicated that ERRα could be a potential target for the genetic treatment of GBC.

Nationwide trends in incidence, treatment and survival of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

BACKGROUND

In recent years, new treatment options have become available for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) including 5-fluorouracil, leucovorin, irinotecan and oxaliplatin. The impact hereof has not been assessed in nationwide cohort studies. This population-based study aimed to investigate nationwide trends in incidence, treatment and survival of PDAC.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Patients with PDAC (1997-2016) were included from the Netherlands Cancer Registry. Results were categorised by treatment and by period of diagnosis (1997-2000, 2001-2004, 2005-2008, 2009-2012 and 2013-2016). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to calculate overall survival.

RESULTS

In a national cohort of 36,453 patients with PDAC, the incidence increased from 12.1 (1997-2000) to 15.3 (2013-2016) per 100,000 (p < 0.001), whereas median overall survival increased from 3.1 to 3.8 months (p < 0.001). Over time, the resection rate doubled (8.3%-16.6%, p-trend<0.001), more patients received adjuvant chemotherapy (3.0%-56.2%, p-trend<0.001) and 3-year overall survival following resection increased (16.9%-25.4%, p < 0.001). Over time, the proportion of patients with metastatic disease who received palliative chemotherapy increased from 5.3% to 16.1% (p-trend<0.001), whereas 1-year survival improved from 13.3% to 21.2% (p < 0.001). The proportion of patients who only received supportive care decreased from 84% to 61% (p-trend<0.001).

CONCLUSION

The incidence of PDAC increased in the past two decades. Resection rates and use of adjuvant or palliative chemotherapy increased with improved survival in these patients. In all patients with PDAC, however, the survival benefit of 3 weeks is negligible because the majority of patients only received supportive care.

Epidemiology and burden of pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer, although infrequent, has a very poor prognosis, making it currently the fourth common causes of cancer mortality in most developed countries including the European Union (EU). Its incidence varies across regions, which suggests that lifestyle factors play an important role in its etiology, although part of the variation could be ascribed to difference in diagnostic and coding practices. Because pancreatic cancer is strongly age-dependent, increasing population longevity and ageing will lead to an increase of the global burden of pancreatic cancer. It was estimated that, by 2040, the total number of cases in the EU will increase by more than 30%. Pancreatic cancer is a multifactorial disease and many risk factors have been identified. Hereditary factors are responsible for less than 10% of the cases while tobacco smoking and excess body weight, the two most important potentially modifiable risk factors, are responsible for 10 to 30% of the cases, affording a unique opportunity for preventing one of our deadliest cancers.