56P Updated overall survival (OS) from the phase III TOPAZ-1 study of durvalumab (D) or placebo (PBO) plus gemcitabine and cisplatin (+ GC) in patients (pts) with advanced biliary tract cancer (BTC)

Durvalumab plus gemcitabine and cisplatin in advanced biliary tract cancer (TOPAZ-1): patient-reported outcomes from a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial

BACKGROUND

In the ongoing, randomised, double-blind phase 3 TOPAZ-1 study, durvalumab, a PD-L1 inhibitor, plus gemcitabine and cisplatin was associated with significant improvements in overall survival compared with placebo, gemcitabine, and cisplatin in people with advanced biliary tract cancer at the pre-planned intermin analysis. In this paper, we present patient-reported outcomes from TOPAZ-1.

METHODS

In TOPAZ-1 (NCT03875235), participants aged 18 years or older with previously untreated, unresectable, locally advanced, or metastatic biliary tract cancer with an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0 or 1 and one or more measurable lesions per Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST; version 1.1) were randomly assigned (1:1) to the durvalumab group or the placebo group using a computer-generated randomisation scheme. Participants received 1500 mg durvalumab or matched placebo intravenously every 3 weeks (on day 1 of the cycle) for up to eight cycles in combination with 1000 mg/m2 gemcitabine and 25 mg/m2 cisplatin intravenously on days 1 and 8 every 3 weeks for up to eight cycles. Thereafter, participants received either durvalumab (1500 mg) or placebo monotherapy intravenously every 4 weeks until disease progression or other discontinuation criteria were met. Randomisation was stratified by disease status (initially unresectable vs recurrent) and primary tumour location (intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma vs extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma vs gallbladder cancer). Patient-reported outcomes were assessed as a secondary outcome in all participants who completed the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer's 30-item Quality of Life of Cancer Patients questionnaire (QLQ-C30) and the 21-item Cholangiocarcinoma and Gallbladder Cancer Quality of Life Module (QLQ-BIL21). We calculated time to deterioration-ie, time from randomisation to an absolute decrease of at least 10 points in a patient-reported outcome that was confirmed at a subsequent visit or the date of death (by any cause) in the absence of deterioration-and adjusted mean change from baseline in patient-reported outcomes.

FINDINGS

Between April 16, 2019, and Dec 11, 2020, 685 participants were enrolled and randomly assigned, 341 to the durvalumab group and 344 to the placebo group. Overall, 345 (50%) of participants were male and 340 (50%) were female. Data for the QLQ-C30 were available for 318 participants in the durvalumab group and 328 in the placebo group (median follow-up 9·9 months [IQR 6·7 to 14·1]). Data for the QLQ-BIL21 were available for 305 participants in the durvalumab group and 322 in the placebo group (median follow-up 10·2 months [IQR 6·7 to 14·3]). The proportions of participants in both groups who completed questionnaires were high and baseline scores were mostly similar across treatment groups. For global health status or quality of life, functioning, and symptoms, we noted no difference in time to deterioration or adjusted mean changes from baseline were observed between groups. Median time to deterioration of global health status or quality of life was 7·4 months (95% CI 5·6 to 8·9) in the durvalumab group and 6·7 months (5·6 to 7·9) in the placebo group (hazard ratio 0·87 [95% CI 0·69 to 1·12]). The adjusted mean change from baseline was 1·23 (95% CI -0·71 to 3·16) in the durvalumab group and 0·35 (-1·63 to 2·32) in the placebo group.

INTERPRETATION

The addition of durvalumab to gemcitabine and cisplatin did not have a detrimental effect on patient-reported outcomes. These results suggest that durvalumab, gemcitabine, and cisplatin is a tolerable treatment regimen in patients with advanced biliary tract cancer.

FUNDING

AstraZeneca.

Efficacy and safety of anlotinib plus anti-PD-1 agents in patients with refractory advanced biliary tract cancers

BACKGROUND

Anlotinib has demonstrated promising anti-tumor efficacy in various solid tumors. Additionally, there is evidence suggesting that immune therapy can enhance the systemic responses of anlotinib. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness and safety of combining anlotinib with PD-1 inhibitors compared to fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy as a second-line treatment option for advanced biliary tract cancers (BTCs).

METHODS

A total of 242 patients with BTCs were screened at the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from October 2015 to October 2022. Among them, 78 patients who received either anlotinib plus PD-1 inhibitors (AP) or fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy (FB) as second-line treatment were included in the study. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS), and the secondary endpoints included objective response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR), overall survival (OS), safety, and predictive tumor biomarkers.

RESULTS

Among the 78 patients with BTCs, 39 patients received AP, while 39 patients were administered FB. The ORR in the AP group was 20.5%, compared to 5.1% in the FB group. The DCR was 87.2% in the AP group and 66.7% in the FB group. The AP group demonstrated significantly better ORR and DCR compared to the FB group (p = 0.042, p = 0.032). The median PFS and OS in the AP group were 7.9 months (95% CI: 4.35-11.45) and 13.9 months (95% CI: 5.39-22.41), respectively. In the FB group, the median PFS and OS were 4.1 months (95% CI: 3.17-5.03) and 13.2 months (95% CI: 8.72-17.68), respectively. The AP group exhibited significantly better median PFS than the FB group (p = 0.027). In the subgroup analysis, patients without liver metastasis had a much longer PFS in the AP group compared to the FB group (14.3 vs. 5.5 months, p = 0.016). Similarly, patients with CEA ≤ 5 μg/L also demonstrated a longer PFS in the AP group compared to the FB group (8.7 vs. 3.9 months, p = 0.008).

CONCLUSIONS

The combination of anlotinib and PD-1 inhibitors demonstrated a promising clinical effect compared to fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy in the second-line treatment of refractory advanced BTCs. Liver metastases and CEA levels may serve as predictive factors for identifying patients who may benefit from AP therapy.

Practical guidelines for molecular testing of cholangiocarcinoma in clinical practice: Italian experts' position paper

Biliary tract cancers (BTCs) represent a spectrum of malignancies associated with a dismal prognosis. Recent genomic profiling studies have provided a deeper understanding of the complex and heterogenous molecular landscape of BTCs, identifying several actionable genetic alterations, and expanding treatment options. Due to the high number and complexity of genetic alterations which require testing, next-generation sequencing (NGS) is currently the preferred approach over conventional methods (i.e., immunohistochemistry, fluorescence in-situ hybridization and PCR) for molecular profiling of BTCs and should be performed upfront in all BTC patients. However, BTC sampling often yields low tumor cellularity tissue, hampering NGS analysis. Future perspectives to overcome this obstacle include liquid biopsy and optimization of biopsy protocols. In this position paper, the authors discuss the current histopathologic, molecular, and therapeutic landscape of BTCs, provide a critical overview of the available testing methods for molecular diagnostics, and propose a practical diagnostic algorithm for molecular testing of BTC samples.

Second-Line Chemotherapy for Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinomas: What Is the Real Gain?

BACKGROUND

The presence of actionable alterations in advanced biliary tract cancer patients opened new therapeutic possibilities for second-line treatments. However, for around 60% of the patients, chemotherapy remains the only therapeutic option. The aim of our study was to evaluate outcomes and prognostic parameters in patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinomas treated with second-line chemotherapy.

METHODS

A total of 255 consecutive metastatic intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) patients were retrospectively reviewed and clinicopathologic and survival data were collected.

RESULTS

Fourty-four percent of ICC patients underwent second-line chemotherapy. In particular, younger ICC patients with better ECOG PS status, and with disease control after first-line chemotherapy were those who were treated with second-line treatments. Median progression-free survival in the patients treated with second-line chemotherapy was 3 months. Finally, the patients affected by intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma with better ECOG PS, with prior surgical resection of the primary tumor, who responded to first-line chemotherapy, and had better progression-free survival with second-line chemotherapy, were associated with better outcomes in multivariate analysis.

CONCLUSIONS

Not all patients seem to benefit from second-line chemotherapy. To improve therapeutic decisions, performance status and disease control with first-line chemotherapy should lead to the decision on the usefulness of second-line treatments in advanced ICC patients.

Durvalumab: A Review in Advanced Biliary Tract Cancer

Durvalumab (Imfinzi®), a therapeutic human monoclonal antibody which binds to and blocks the activity of the immunosuppressive programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) protein, is approved in the USA, EU, Japan and other countries in combination with gemcitabine and cisplatin for adults with advanced biliary tract cancer. In the pivotal phase 3 TOPAZ-1 trial, durvalumab plus gemcitabine and cisplatin significantly prolonged overall survival and progression-free survival compared with placebo plus gemcitabine and cisplatin in adults with advanced biliary tract cancer. Benefit from durvalumab was seen irrespective of primary tumour location, disease status at diagnosis (unresectable or recurrent), or initial levels of PD-L1 expression. The tolerability of durvalumab plus gemcitabine and cisplatin was manageable. Overall, the addition of durvalumab to gemcitabine and cisplatin is a valuable new treatment option for adults with advanced biliary tract cancer.

Case report: Remarkable response to sintilimab, lenvatinib, and nab-paclitaxel in postoperative metastatic chemotherapy-resistant combined hepatocellular-cholangiocarcinoma

Background: Combined hepatocellular-cholangiocarcinoma (cHCC-CCA) is a highly aggressive malignancy with a poor prognosis. However, there are no consensus treatment guidelines, and decisions are usually extrapolated from intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Given that cHCC-CCA owns the unequivocal presence of both hepatocytic and cholangiocytic differentiation, a combination regimen of anti-PD1 antibody, multikinase inhibitor, and chemotherapy targeting against both components might be an optimal choice. Case presentation: We present the case of a patient with postoperative metastatic chemotherapy-resistant cHCC-CCA who exhibited a durable response and reasonable tolerability to a combination therapy consisting of the anti-PD1 antibody sintilimab, multikinase inhibitor lenvatinib, and nab-paclitaxel, despite having a low tumor mutational burden (TMB-L), microsatellite stability (MSS), and negative programmed cell death 1 ligand 1 (PD-L1). Conclusion: The combination regimen of immune checkpoint inhibitor sintilimab, multikinase inhibitor lenvatinib, and chemotherapy with nab-paclitaxel, which targets both the HCC and ICC components, may represent a promising treatment option for patients with cHCC-CCA. Further research is warranted to validate these findings in larger patient cohorts.

Immunotherapy and Targeted Therapy for Advanced Biliary Tract Cancer: Adding New Flavors to the Pizza

Biliary tract cancers (BTCs) are a rare pathology and can be divided into four major subgroups: intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, hilar cholangiocarcinoma, and gallbladder cancer. In the era of precision oncology, the development of next-generation sequencing (NGS) allowed a better understanding of molecular differences between these subgroups. Thus, the development of drugs that can target these alterations and inhibit the abnormal pathway activation has changed the prognosis of BTC patients. Additionally, the development of immune checkpoint inhibitors and a better understanding of tumor immunogenicity led to the development of clinical trials with immunotherapy for this scenario. The development of biomarkers that can predict how the immune system acts against the tumor cells, and which patients benefit from this activation, are urgently needed. Here, we review the most recent data regarding targeted treatment and immunotherapy in the scenario of BTC treatment, while also discussing the future perspectives for this challenging disease.

Emerging Systemic Therapies in Advanced Unresectable Biliary Tract Cancer: Review and Canadian Perspective

Biliary tract cancer (BTC) is a group of rare and aggressive malignancies with a dismal prognosis. There is currently a significant lack in effective treatment options for BTC, with gemcitabine-cisplatin remaining the first-line standard of care treatment for over a decade. A wave of investigational therapies, including new chemotherapy combinations, immunotherapy, and biomarker-driven targeted therapy have demonstrated promising results in BTC, and there is hope for many of these therapies to be incorporated into the Canadian treatment landscape in the near future. This review discusses the emerging therapies under investigation for BTC and provides a perspective on how they may fit into Canadian practice, with a focus on the barriers to treatment access.