Combining immunotherapy with an epidrug in squamous cell carcinomas of different locations: rationale and design of the PEVO basket trial

Squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs) are among the most frequent solid tumors in humans. SCCs, related or not to the human papillomavirus, share common molecular features. Immunotherapies, and specifically immune checkpoint inhibitors, have been shown to improve overall survival in multiple cancer types, including SCCs. However, only a minority of patients experience a durable response with immunotherapy. Epigenetic modulation plays a major role in escaping tumor immunosurveillance and confers resistance to immune checkpoint inhibitors. Preclinical evidence suggests that modulating the epigenome might improve the efficacy of immunotherapy. We herein review the preclinical and the clinical rationale for combining immunotherapy with an epidrug, and detail the design of PEVOsq, a basket clinical trial combining pembrolizumab with vorinostat, a histone deacetylase inhibitor, in patients with SCCs of different locations. Sequential blood and tumor sampling will be collected in order to identify predictive and pharmacodynamics biomarkers of efficacy of the combination. We also present how clinical and biological data will be managed with the aim to enable the development of a prospective integrative platform to allow secure and controlled access to the project data as well as further exploitations.

The role of platelets in the pathophysiology of asthma

The incidence of asthma is on the increase worldwide, yet the pathogenesis of this disease is still not fully understood. Many recent drug trials have had disappointing results, thus fuelling the need for more research to be undertaken in this area. Substantial evidence suggests an important role for platelets in various inflammatory diseases, including atherosclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, eczema, allergic rhinitis and asthma. In asthma, platelets have been found to actively participate in most of its main features, including bronchial hyperresponsiveness, bronchoconstriction, airway inflammation and airway remodelling. It has recently become clear that platelet-release products, as well as the expression of adhesion molecules on the platelet surface and the ability to undergo chemotaxis, are all involved in these processes. This review focuses on both experimental and clinical studies available to date that have investigated the role of platelets in the pathophysiology of asthma. Taken together, the evidence points toward platelets being an attractive new target in the area of asthma research; a target with much-needed novel therapeutic potential.