Varicella Zoster Virus vasculopathy in a patient treated with immune checkpoint inhibitor for lung cancer

A scoping review of vasculitis as an immune-related adverse event from checkpoint inhibitor therapy of cancer: Unraveling the complexities at the intersection of immunology and vascular pathology

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE

Vasculitis as an immune-related adverse event (irAE) from checkpoint inhibitor therapy (ICI) to treat cancer is a rare clinical event, and little is known regarding its nosology, clinical manifestations, or response to treatment and outcomes.

METHODS

To address these gaps, we used the Preferred Reporting Items for Systemic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) framework to further define this complication. Two independent PUBMED searches in September and November of 2022 revealed 127 publications with 37 excluded from title by relevance, 43 excluded by article type, and 23 excluded due to lack of biopsy results, or biopsy negative for vasculitis. Twenty-nine documented cases from 24 publications were included for final analysis. Basic demographics, ICI details, timing of onset of vasculitis symptoms, irAE treatment and outcomes were collected. The vasculitides were classified using 2022 ACR/EULAR Vasculitis Classification Criteria as well as 2012 Revised Chapel-Hill Nomenclature. Adaptations from Naidoo et al. 2023 [1] consensus definitions for irAEs were used and efforts were made to classify steroid-responsive versus unresponsive irAEs.

RESULTS

Of the 29 cases reviewed, the average age of patients was 62.1 ± 11.0, composed of 58.6 % (n = 17) male and 41.3 % (n = 12) female. Prominent cancer types were lung cancer (41.4 %; n = 12), melanoma (41.4 %; n = 12), and renal cancer (10.3 %; n = 3), with majority being stage 4 (75.9 %, n = 22) and stage 3 (10.3 %, n = 3). Only 8 cases met the ACR/EULAR criteria, and by Chapel-Hill Nomenclature, approximately a third were small-vessel vasculitis (31.0 %; n = 9) with n = 4 positive for ANCA. Most biopsies were taken from the skin (37.9 %, n = 11) and kidney (24.1 %, n = 7). Patients were either treated with single (65.5 %, n = 19), dual (17.2 %; n = 5), or sequential (17.2 %; n = 5) ICI regimen which included anti-PD-1 therapy in all but one case, with mean of 8.7 ± 10.5 cycles received. Mean time to onset of symptoms from start of ICI was 7.2 ± 7.8 months, with 55.2 % occurring >3 months since the initial immunotherapy. Vasculitis treatment included glucocorticoids in 96 % of cases and immunotherapy was often discontinued (44.8 %; n = 13). Clinical improvement of irAE was documented in 86.2 % (n = 25). Data were missing in terms of fate of ICI (34.5 %; n = 10) and tumor outcomes (41.4 %; n = 12). Cancer progressed in 20.7 % (n = 6), stable in 34.5 % (n = 10) cases, and 6 patients died of all-causes.

CONCLUSION

Vasculitis as an irAE appears clinically heterogeneous and rare. Among reported cases with adequate documentation, vasculitis is of delayed onset following the initiation of immunotherapy. Outcomes of ICI-vasculitis were generally favorable, responding to glucocorticoids and immunotherapy withdrawal. There is an urgent need for more standardized reporting of rare irAEs such as vasculitis to clarify clinical risks, classification, relationship to immunotherapy and outcomes.

Infections Simulating Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Toxicities: Uncommon and Deceptive

Use of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), a revolutionary treatment in modern oncology, is frequently complicated by immune-related adverse events (irAEs), which can be confused with infections, and vice versa, thus complicating management decisions. In this study, we review the published cases of infections as simulators of irAEs in cancer patients.

Recommendation for the diagnosis and management of immune checkpoint inhibitor related infections

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have been widely used in the management of malignant tumors. Programmed death 1 (PD‐1)/PD‐1 ligand (PD‐L1) inhibitors have been introduced to treat non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in recent years. Currently, PD‐1/PD‐L1 inhibitors are considered to have minor side effects and do not independently increase the risk of infection. However, they may cause immune‐related adverse events (irAEs) that require immunosuppressive therapy with corticosteroids and/or immunosuppressants, leading to opportunistic infections. Furthermore, there have been reports describing reactivation of chronic/latent infections without irAEs or having received immunosuppressants. Thus, immune checkpoint inhibitor related infections have received more attention worldwide. In this paper, we review available clinical data, describe the potential mechanism, and propose recommendations for the diagnosis and clinical management of PD‐1/PD‐L1 inhibitor‐related infections.

[Recommendation of Diagnosis and Management for the Infections Related to Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors]

免疫检查点抑制剂（immune checkpoint inhibitors, ICIs）已成功应用于多种恶性肿瘤治疗，其中程序化细胞死亡蛋白（programmed death 1, PD-1）/程序化细胞死亡配体-1（programmed death ligand 1, PD-L1）抑制剂近年来开始用于非小细胞肺癌中。目前认为PD-1/PD-L1抑制剂具有较小的副作用，并不会增加感染风险。但目前出现了免疫治疗相关不良事件（immune-related adverse events, irAEs）使用糖皮质激素和免疫抑制剂后出现机会性感染，及未出现irAEs的情况下发生潜伏/慢性感染重新激活的病案报道，使得免疫检查点抑制剂相关感染开始受到重视。本文将针对PD-1/PD-L1抑制剂相关感染的现有临床数据、可能机制及诊治建议进行叙述。