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Gao Z, Kang SW, Erstad D, Azar J, Van Buren G, Fisher W, Sun Z, Rubinstein MP, Lee HS, Camp ER. Pre-treatment inflamed tumor immune microenvironment is associated with FOLFIRINOX response in pancreatic cancer. Front Oncol 2023; 13:1274783. [PMID: 38074633 PMCID: PMC10701674 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1274783] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 10/31/2023] [Indexed: 02/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction Pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is an aggressive tumor with limited response to both chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Pre-treatment tumor features within the tumor immune microenvironment (TiME) may influence treatment response. We hypothesized that the pre-treatment TiME composition differs between metastatic and primary lesions and would be associated with response to modified FOLFIRINOX (mFFX) or gemcitabine-based (Gem-based) therapy. Methods Using RNAseq data from a cohort of treatment-naïve, advanced PDAC patients in the COMPASS trial, differential gene expression analysis of key immunomodulatory genes in were analyzed based on multiple parameters including tumor site, response to mFFX, and response to Gem-based treatment. The relative proportions of immune cell infiltration were defined using CIBERSORTx and Dirichlet regression. Results 145 samples were included in the analysis; 83 received mFFX, 62 received Gem-based therapy. Metastatic liver samples had both increased macrophage (1.2 times more, p < 0.05) and increased eosinophil infiltration (1.4 times more, p < 0.05) compared to primary lesion samples. Further analysis of the specific macrophage phenotypes revealed an increased M2 macrophage fraction in the liver samples. The pre-treatment CD8 T-cell, dendritic cell, and neutrophil infiltration of metastatic samples were associated with therapy response to mFFX (p < 0.05), while mast cell infiltration was associated with response to Gem-based therapy (p < 0.05). Multiple immunoinhibitory genes such as ADORA2A, CSF1R, KDR/VEGFR2, LAG3, PDCD1LG2, and TGFB1 and immunostimulatory genes including C10orf54, CXCL12, and TNFSF14/LIGHT were significantly associated with worse survival in patients who received mFFX (p = 0.01). There were no immunomodulatory genes associated with survival in the Gem-based cohort. Discussion Our evidence implies that essential differences in the PDAC TiME exist between primary and metastatic tumors and an inflamed pretreatment TiME is associated with mFFX response. Defining components of the PDAC TiME that influence therapy response will provide opportunities for targeted therapeutic strategies that may need to be accounted for in designing personalized therapy to improve outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zachary Gao
- Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Sung Wook Kang
- Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Department of Surgery, Dan L. Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
- Systems Onco-Immunology Laboratory, David J. Sugarbaker Division of Thoracic Surgery, Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Derek Erstad
- Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Department of Surgery, Dan L. Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
- Department of Surgery, Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Joseph Azar
- The Pelotonia Institute for Immuno-Oncology, Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbus, OH, United States
| | - George Van Buren
- Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Department of Surgery, Dan L. Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
| | - William Fisher
- Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Department of Surgery, Dan L. Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Zequn Sun
- Department of Preventative Medicine, Northwestern University Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Mark P. Rubinstein
- The Pelotonia Institute for Immuno-Oncology, Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbus, OH, United States
| | - Hyun-Sung Lee
- Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Department of Surgery, Dan L. Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
- Systems Onco-Immunology Laboratory, David J. Sugarbaker Division of Thoracic Surgery, Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - E. Ramsay Camp
- Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Department of Surgery, Dan L. Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
- Department of Surgery, Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston, TX, United States
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