Real-world outcomes of third-line immune checkpoint inhibitors versus irinotecan-based chemotherapy in patients with advanced gastric cancer: a Korean, multicenter study (KCSG ST22-06).

Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) or irinotecan-based chemotherapy is frequently used after failure of second-line paclitaxel plus ramucirumab treatment for patients with locally advanced unresectable or metastatic advanced gastric cancer (AGC). This study aimed to compare the efficacy between ICI and irinotecan-based chemotherapy as third-line treatment in patients with AGC.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed patients with AGC, whose third-line treatment started between July 2019 and June 2021 at 17 institutions in Korea.

Long-term outcomes in patients with advanced and/or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer who completed 2 years of immune checkpoint inhibitors or achieved a durable response after discontinuation without disease progression: Multicenter, real-world data (KCSG LU20-11).

Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have shown significant improvements in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). One of the major issues with ICIs is determining the optimal treatment duration.

Methods: This multicenter, retrospective study analyzed clinical outcomes in patients with NSCLC who completed 2 years of ICI therapy or were treated for more than 6 months and then discontinued ICIs without disease progression at 11 medical centers in Korea between August 2017 and December 2020.

Analysis of intrapatient heterogeneity of circulating tumor cells at the single-cell level in the cerebrospinal fluid of a patient with metastatic gastric cancer.

Background: The aims of this study were to detect circulating tumor cells (CTCs) at the single-cell level in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and to identify intrapatient heterogeneity of CTCs in a patient with gastric cancer (GC) with leptomeningeal metastasis (LM) using Di-Electro-Phoretic Array technology.

Materials And Methods: The CSF samples were drawn from a patient who was diagnosed with GC with LM. The CSF samples were centrifuged and stained with antibody cocktail to recognize 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole, cytokeratin, and epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM).

Comparison of the Data of a Next-Generation Sequencing Panel from K-MASTER Project with That of Orthogonal Methods for Detecting Targetable Genetic Alterations.

Purpose: K-MASTER project is a Korean national precision medicine platform that screened actionable mutations by analyzing next-generation sequencing (NGS) of solid tumor patients. We compared gene analyses between NGS panel from the K-MASTER project and orthogonal methods.

Materials And Methods: Colorectal, breast, non-small cell lung, and gastric cancer patients were included.

LiPydomics: A Python Package for Comprehensive Prediction of Lipid Collision Cross Sections and Retention Times and Analysis of Ion Mobility-Mass Spectrometry-Based Lipidomics Data.

Comprehensive profiling of lipid species in a biological sample, or lipidomics, is a valuable approach to elucidating disease pathogenesis and identifying biomarkers. Currently, a typical lipidomics experiment may track hundreds to thousands of individual lipid species. However, drawing biological conclusions requires multiple steps of data processing to enrich significantly altered features and confident identification of these features.

Real-world data on the survival outcome of patients with newly diagnosed Waldenström macroglobulinemia.

Background/aims: Waldenström macroglobulinemia (WM) is a rare lymphoproliferative disorder that usually follows an indolent clinical course. However, some patients show an aggressive clinical course leading to death. We explored the risk factors predicting poor prognosis in WM patients.

Prognostic Value of mRNA Expression in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Immune system dysfunction is associated with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) development and progression and immune checkpoint inhibitors have demonstrated substantial survival benefits in platinum-refractory HNSCC; therefore, we examined the prognostic value of immune-related gene (IRG) expression in HNSCC. We analyzed the expression of 82 IRGs in 71 patients with HNSCC enrolled in a feasibility study for a prospective HNSCC biomarker-driven umbrella trial (Korean Cancer Study Group TRIUMPH study, NCT03292250). was identified as an independent prognostic factor and validated in GEO and TCGA database.

Breaking Down Structural Diversity for Comprehensive Prediction of Ion-Neutral Collision Cross Sections.

Identification of unknowns is a bottleneck for large-scale untargeted analyses like metabolomics or drug metabolite identification. Ion mobility-mass spectrometry (IM-MS) provides rapid two-dimensional separation of ions based on their mobility through a neutral buffer gas. The mobility of an ion is related to its collision cross section (CCS) with the buffer gas, a physical property that is determined by the size and shape of the ion.

PD-1 inhibitors for non-small cell lung cancer patients with special issues: Real-world evidence.

Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have provided new therapeutic options for non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC) patients. However, due to concerning increases in immune-related adverse events, clinical trials usually exclude patients with special issues such as viral hepatitis, tuberculosis (Tbc), interstitial lung disease (ILD) and autoimmune disease.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of NSCLC patients who received ICIs, and analyzed the clinical outcomes of patients with special issues.

Osimertinib for Patients With Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer Harboring Uncommon EGFR Mutations: A Multicenter, Open-Label, Phase II Trial (KCSG-LU15-09).

Purpose: Approximately 10% of patients with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation-positive non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) harbor uncommon mutations. Here, we report the efficacy and safety of osimertinib in patients with NSCLC harboring uncommon EGFR mutations.

Patient And Methods: This was a multicenter, single-arm, open-label, phase II study in Korea.

Detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in cerebrospinal fluid of a patient with HER2-overexpressing gastric cancer and single cell analysis of intra-patient heterogeneity of CTCs.

Background: The purpose of this study was to identify circulating tumor cells (CTCs) through single cell sorting using DEPArray technology in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from an advanced gastric cancer (AGC) patient with leptomeningeal seeding. We also demonstrated intra-patient heterogeneity of CTCs isolated from CSF samples at the single cell level.

Methods: We used the DEPArray system to identify and align single enabled CSF and CTCs based on a multi-parallel fluorescence analysis.

Selective colony area method for heterogeneous patient-derived tumor cell lines in anti-cancer drug screening system.

We aimed to establish a fluorescence intensity-based colony area sweeping method by selecting the area of highest viability among patient-derived cancer cells (PDC) which has high tumor heterogeneity. Five gastric cancer cell lines and PDCs were screened with 24 small molecule compounds using a 3D micropillar/microwell chip. 100 tumor cells per well were immobilized in alginate, treated with the compounds, and then stained and scanned for viable cells.

Impact of EGFR mutation on the clinical efficacy of PD-1 inhibitors in patients with pulmonary adenocarcinoma.

Purpose: We evaluated the predictive role of EGFR mutation on the efficacy of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor therapy in patients with advanced pulmonary adenocarcinoma while considering clinical factors such as PD-L1 expression, gender, and smoking status.

Methods: Patients were required to have available data for EGFR mutation, PD-L1 expression, and efficacy of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors.

Results: Among 178 patients with EGFR-mutant (n = 38) or wild-type (WT) (n = 140) tumors, the EGFR mutation group had a lower objective response rate (ORR) (15.

Does guideline non-adherence result in worse clinical outcomes for hormone receptor-positive and HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer in premenopausal women?: result of an institution database from South Korea.

Background: In this study, we observe the patterns initial palliative treatment for premenopausal patients with HR-positive/HER2-negative MBC and determine if nonadherence to clinical guidelines are associated with worse clinical outcomes in terms of progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in the South Korean population.

Methods: A retrospective review was performed for premenopausal patients diagnosed with HR-positive/HER2-negative MBC between October 1997 and May 2016 who received palliative systemic treatments at a large tertiary medical center. Survival outcomes were analyzed according to the palliative treatment received prior to disease progression.

Continuation of gefitinib beyond progression in patients with EGFR mutation-positive non-small-cell lung cancer: A phase II single-arm trial.

Objectives: Several studies have demonstrated the promise of continuation of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) beyond progression in patients with EGFR-mutant non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The aim of the present study is to clarify the efficacy of continuation of gefitinib in patients with NSCLC beyond progression.

Materials And Methods: A total of 50 patients with EGFR-mutant NSCLC who progressed based on Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) 1.

Discordance of the PAM50 Intrinsic Subtypes Compared with Immunohistochemistry-Based Surrogate in Breast Cancer Patients: Potential Implication of Genomic Alterations of Discordance.

Purpose: We aimed to analyze the discordance between immunohistochemistry (IHC)-based surrogate subtyping and PAM50 intrinsic subtypes and to assess overall survival (OS) according to discordance.

Materials And Methods: A total of 607 patients were analyzed. Hormone receptor (HR) expression was evaluated by IHC, and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) expression was analyzed by IHC and/or fluorescence in situ hybridization.

Clinical Outcomes of EGFR Exon 20 Insertion Mutations in Advanced Non-small Cell Lung Cancer in Korea.

Purpose: Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) exon 20 insertion mutations account for approximately 4% of all EGFR mutations. Given the rarity of this mutation, its clinical outcomes are not fully established.

Materials And Methods: Between 2009 and 2017, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients who showed an exon 20 insertion were retrospectively reviewed for clinical characteristics and outcomes, including responses to chemotherapy (CTx) or targeted therapy.

EGFR Mutation Is Associated with Short Progression-Free Survival in Patients with Stage III Non-squamous Cell Lung Cancer Treated with Concurrent Chemoradiotherapy.

Purpose: This study was conducted to evaluate the relationship between epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation and clinical outcomes in patients with stage III non-squamous cell lung cancer treated with definitive concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT).

Materials And Methods: From January 2008 to December 2013, the medical records of 197 patients with stage III non- squamous non-small cell lung cancer treated with definitive CCRT were analyzed to determine progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) according to EGFR mutation status.

Results: Among 197 eligible patients, 81 patients were EGFR wild type, 36 patients had an EGFR mutation (exon 19 Del, n=18; L858R, n=9, uncommon [G719X, L868, T790M], n=9), and 80 patients had unknown EGFR status.

ERRATUM: Comparison of Surgery Plus Chemotherapy and Palliative Chemotherapy Alone for Advanced Gastric Cancer with Krukenberg Tumor.

[This corrects the article on p. 697 in vol. 47.

Survival analysis based on human epidermal growth factor 2 status in stage II-III gastric cancer.

Aim: To investigate human epidermal growth factor 2 (HER2) overexpression and validate its prognostic effect in stage II-III gastric cancer.

Methods: We reviewed the data of patients who were diagnosed with gastric cancer between March 2008 and October 2013 at the Yonsei University Medical Center. Among these patients, 384 patients who met the inclusion criteria were analyzed retrospectively.