Analyzing Flow Cytometry or Targeted Gene Expression Data Influences Clinical Discoveries-Profiling Blood Samples of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma Patients.

Introduction: Monitoring the therapeutic response of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) patients is crucial to determine treatment strategies. Several studies have examined the effectiveness of FOLFIRINOX as a first-line treatment in patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer, but little attention has been paid to the immunologic alterations in peripheral blood caused by this chemotherapy regimen. Furthermore, the influence of the measurement type (e.

Frequency of Peripheral CD8+ T Cells Expressing Chemo-Attractant Receptors CCR1, 4 and 5 Increases in NPC Patients with EBV Clearance upon Radiotherapy.

Radiotherapy (RT) is the standard-of-care for Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), where the post-RT clearance of plasma EBV DNA is prognostic. Currently, it is not known whether the post-RT clearance of plasma EBV DNA is related to the presence of circulating T-cell subsets. Blood samples from NPC patients were used to assess the frequency of T-cell subsets relating to differentiation, co-signaling and chemotaxis.

Serum cytokine levels are associated with tumor progression during FOLFIRINOX chemotherapy and overall survival in pancreatic cancer patients.

Background: Biomarkers predicting treatment response may be used to stratify patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) for available therapies. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association of circulating cytokines with FOLFIRINOX response and with overall survival (OS).

Methods: Serum samples were collected before start and after the first cycle of FOLFIRINOX from patients with PDAC (=83) of all disease stages.

A blood-based immune marker for resistance to pembrolizumab in patients with metastatic urothelial cancer.

PD1 inhibition is effective in patients with metastatic urothelial cancer (mUC), yet a large fraction of patients does not respond. In this study, we aimed to identify a blood-based immune marker associated with non-response to facilitate patient selection for anti-PD1. To this end, we quantified 18 immune cell populations using multiplex flow cytometry in blood samples from 71 patients with mUC (as part of a biomarker discovery trial; NCT03263039, registration date 28-08-2017).

Rintatolimod (Ampligen) Enhances Numbers of Peripheral B Cells and Is Associated with Longer Survival in Patients with Locally Advanced and Metastasized Pancreatic Cancer Pre-Treated with FOLFIRINOX: A Single-Center Named Patient Program.

Background: Treatment with the TLR-3 agonist rintatolimod may improve pancreatic cancer patients’ survival via immunomodulation, but the effect is unproven. Methods: In this single-center named patient program, patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer (LAPC) or metastatic disease were treated with rintatolimod (six weeks total, twice per week, with a maximum of 400 mg per infusion). The primary endpoints were the systemic immune-inflammation index (SIII), the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and the absolute counts of 18 different populations of circulating immune cells as measured by flow cytometry.

Anti-PD-1 Efficacy in Patients with Metastatic Urothelial Cancer Associates with Intratumoral Juxtaposition of T Helper-Type 1 and CD8 T cells.

Purpose: PD-1 inhibition results in durable antitumor responses in a proportion of patients with metastatic urothelial cancer (mUC). The majority of patients, however, do not experience clinical benefit. In this study, we aimed to identify early changes in T-cell subsets that underlie anti-PD-1 efficacy in patients with mUC.

Differential quantities of immune checkpoint-expressing CD8 T cells in soft tissue sarcoma subtypes.

Introduction: Local T-cell immunity is recognized for its contribution to the evolution and therapy response of various carcinomas. Here, we investigated characteristics of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), as well as T-cell evasive mechanisms in different soft tissue sarcoma (STS) subtypes.

Methods: Liposarcoma, gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST), leiomyosarcoma, myxofibrosarcoma and pleomorphic sarcomas were assessed for T-cell numbers and phenotypes using flow cytometry.

CD45RACCR7 CD8 T cells lacking co-stimulatory receptors demonstrate enhanced frequency in peripheral blood of NSCLC patients responding to nivolumab.

Background: Checkpoint inhibitors have become standard care of treatment for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), yet only a limited fraction of patients experiences durable clinical benefit, highlighting the need for markers to stratify patient populations.

Methods: To prospectively identify patients showing response to therapy, we have stained peripheral blood samples of NSCLC patients treated with 2nd line nivolumab (n = 71), as well as healthy controls, with multiplex flow cytometry. By doing so, we enumerated 18 immune cell subsets and assessed expression for 28 T cell markers, which was followed by dimensionality reduction as well as rationale-based analyses.