Excision Repair Cross Complementation Group 1 Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms and Nivolumab in Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

We hypothesized that non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with a tumor positive for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the Excision Repair Cross Complementation Group 1 (ERCC-1) gene could be more genetically instable and consequently more responsive to a programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) blockade. We evaluated the and SNPs by pyrosequencing assay, on tumor specimens from two independent cohorts of patients who relapsed after one or more prior systemic treatments for advanced NSCLC and who received nivolumab (3 mg/kg intravenously every 2 weeks) as part of the Italian Expanded Access Program. We aimed to assess the outcome of enrolled subjects according to the SNPs , to evaluate the role of these polymorphisms as putative biomarkers associated with a response/clinical benefit to anti-PD-1 therapies.

Predictive and prognostic value of early response assessment using 18FDG-PET in advanced non-small cell lung cancer patients treated with erlotinib.

Background: [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-PET is being evaluated as a tool for the early detection of response to various targeted agents in solid tumors. The aim of this study was to evaluate the predictive value of PET response after 2 days of erlotinib in unselected pretreated patients with stage IV NSCLC.

Patients And Methods: FDG-PET/CT scans were conducted at baseline and after 2 days of erlotinib, with a CT evaluation performed at baseline and after 45-60 days of therapy.

Short schedule of cisplatin and vinorelbine: a dose-finding study in non-small-cell lung cancer.

Objectives: A dose-finding study of a new cisplatin/vinorelbine schedule was done to increase activity of the combination, and improve compliance of non-small-cell lung cancer PATIENTS.

Methods: Beginning with cisplatin 40 mg/m(2) on days 1, 2 and vinorelbine 20 mg/m(2) on days 1, 3, increasing dose levels up to the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) were tested in a series of 6-patient cohorts. If 3 of 6 patients experienced dose-limiting toxicity in the first 3 cycles, the previous dose was considered the recommended dose (RD).

Cisplatin plus gemcitabine on days 1 and 4 every 21 days for solid tumors: result of a dose-intensity study.

Background: Three and 4-week cisplatin-gemcitabine schedules have shown similar dose-intensity (DI) and activity in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The 3-week schedule is generally preferred because it enables better treatment compliance. To improve DI and compliance further, we delivered gemcitabine plus cisplatin over 4 days every 21 days.

[Stromal tumors of the small intestine. Retrospective analysis of 9 cases surgically treated].

The authors report on their experience with 9 patients with small bowel stromal tumours who underwent surgical treatment over the period 1974-2001. Seven were males and 2 females, with an average age of 63.1 years (range: 49-72 years).