scholarly journals Further Findings Concerning Endothelial Damage in COVID-19 Patients

Biomolecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 1368
Author(s):  
Monica Gelzo ◽  
Sara Cacciapuoti ◽  
Biagio Pinchera ◽  
Annunziata De Rosa ◽  
Gustavo Cernera ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Disease Progression ◽  
Targeted Therapies ◽  
Predictive Biomarkers ◽  
Typical Feature ◽  
Endothelial Damage ◽  
Hospitalized Patients ◽  
Active Protein ◽  
Asymptomatic Patients ◽  
Chemotactic Protein ◽  
Inactive Form

Systemic vascular damage with micro/macro-thrombosis is a typical feature of severe COVID-19. However, the pathogenesis of this damage and its predictive biomarkers remain poorly defined. For this reason, in this study, serum monocyte chemotactic protein (MCP)-2 and P- and E-selectin levels were analyzed in 204 patients with COVID-19. Serum MCP-2 and P-selectin were significantly higher in hospitalized patients compared with asymptomatic patients. Furthermore, MCP-2 increased with the WHO stage in hospitalized patients. After 1 week of hospitalization, MCP-2 levels were significantly reduced, while P-selectin increased in patients in WHO stage 3 and decreased in patients in WHO stages 5–7. Serum E-selectin was not significantly different between asymptomatic and hospitalized patients. The lower MCP-2 levels after 1 week suggest that endothelial damage triggered by monocytes occurs early in COVID-19 disease progression. MCP-2 may also predict COVID-19 severity. The increase in P-selectin levels, which further increased in mild patients and reduced in severe patients after 1 week of hospitalization, suggests that the inactive form of the protein produced by the cleavage of the active protein from the platelet membrane is present. This may be used to identify a subset of patients that would benefit from targeted therapies. The unchanged levels of E-selectin in these patients suggest that endothelial damage is less relevant.

scholarly journals Comparison of saliva with healthcare workers- and patient-collected swabs in the diagnosis of COVID-19 in a large cohort

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mitnala Sasikala ◽  
Yelamanchili Sadhana ◽  
Ketavarapu Vijayasarathy ◽  
Anand Gupta ◽  
Sarala Kumari Daram ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Hospitalized Patients ◽  
Detection Sensitivity ◽  
Nasopharyngeal Swab ◽  
Predictive Values ◽  
Qrt Pcr ◽  
Asymptomatic Patients ◽  
Sensitivity Specificity

Abstract Background A considerable amount of evidence demonstrates the potential of saliva in the diagnosis of COVID-19. Our aim was to determine the sensitivity of saliva versus swabs collected by healthcare workers (HCWs) and patients themselves to assess whether saliva detection can be offered as a cost-effective, risk-free method of SARS-CoV-2 detection. Methods This study was conducted in a hospital involving outpatients and hospitalized patients. A total of 3018 outpatients were tested. Of these, 200 qRT-PCR-confirmed SARS-CoV-2-positive patients were recruited for further study. In addition, 101 SARS-CoV-2-positive hospitalized patients with symptoms were also enrolled in the study. From outpatients, HCWs collected nasopharyngeal swabs (NPS), saliva were obtained. From inpatients, HCWs collected swabs, patient-collected swabs, and saliva were obtained. qRT-PCR was performed to detect SARS-CoV-2 by TAQPATH assay to determine the sensitivity of saliva detection. Sensitivity, specificity and positive/negative predictive values (PPV, NPV) of detecting SARS-CoV-2 were calculated using MedCalc. Results Of 3018 outpatients (asymptomatic: 2683, symptomatic: 335) tested by qRT-PCR, 200 were positive (males: 140, females: 60; aged 37.9 ± 12.8 years; (81 asymptomatic, 119 symptomatic). Of these, saliva was positive in 128 (64%); 39 of 81 asymptomatic (47%),89 of 119 symptomatic patients (74.8%). Sensitivity of detection was 60.9% (55.4–66.3%, CI 95%), with a negative predictive value of 36%(32.9–39.2%, CI 95%).Among 101 hospitalized patients (males:65, females: 36; aged 53.48 ± 15.6 years), with HCW collected NPS as comparator, sensitivity of saliva was 56.1% (47.5–64.5, CI 95%), specificity 63.5%(50.4–75.3, CI95%) with PPV of 77.2% and NPV of 39.6% and that of self-swab was 52.3%(44–60.5%, CI95%), specificity 56.6% (42.3–70.2%, CI95%) with PPV 77.2% and NPV29.7%. Comparison of positivity with the onset of symptoms revealed highest detection in saliva on day 3 after onset of symptoms. Additionally, only saliva was positive in 13 (12.8%) hospitalized patients. Conclusion Saliva which is easier to collect than nasopharyngeal swab is a viable alternate to detect SARS-COV-2 in symptomatic patients in the early stage of onset of symptoms. Although saliva is currently not recommended for screening asymptomatic patients, optimization of collection and uniform timing of sampling might improve the sensitivity enabling its use as a screening tool at community level.

Denosumab and pembrolizumab in clear cell renal carcinoma (KEYPAD): A phase II trial (ANZUP1601).

2021 ◽  
Vol 39 (6_suppl) ◽  
pp. TPS367-TPS367
Author(s):  
Craig Gedye ◽  
Abhishek Jagdish Joshi ◽  
Alison Yan Zhang ◽  
Andrew James Martin ◽  
Anthony M. Joshua ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Disease Progression ◽  
Phase Ii ◽  
Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
Clear Cell ◽  
Phase Ii Trial ◽  
Case Reports ◽  
Cell Cancer ◽  
Tumour Response ◽  
Predictive Biomarkers ◽  
Progression Free Survival

TPS367 Background: Inhibitors of the programmed death-1 pathway (PD-1) are effective in clear cell renal cell cancer (ccRCC). Preclinical data and case reports suggest that denosumab, an inhibitor of Receptor Activator of Nuclear Factor κ-B Ligand (RANKL) signaling, could potentiate the anti-tumour effects of anti-PD1 inhibitors without overlapping toxicities. We aim to determine the activity and safety of combining denosumab and pembrolizumab in advanced ccRCC. Methods: This single arm, multi-center, phase II trial will recruit 70 participants with metastatic or unresectable ccRCC, progressing during or after treatment with vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitors, and with no prior treatment with immunotherapy or denosumab. Participants will receive pembrolizumab 200mg IV every 3 weeks plus denosumab 120mg SC on days 1, 8 and 22 and then every 3 weeks until disease progression, prohibitive toxicity or maximum treatment of 24 months. Response will be assessed at weeks 12, 18, 24, then every 12 weeks until disease progression. Bloods for translational studies are collected at baseline, week 6 and on disease progression. The primary endpoint is objective tumour response rate (OTRR) per RECIST 1.1. Secondary endpoints include OTRR per iRECIST, progression free survival (PFS), time to OTRR, time to first skeletal related event, adverse events, and frequency of treatment delays/discontinuations. Correlative studies will include identification of prognostic and/or predictive biomarkers relating to immune and RANKL signaling. A sample size of 70 provides 90% power with a 1-sided type 1 error rate of 10% to distinguish the observed OTRR (and PFS at 6 months) from an OTRR of 40% (worthy of pursuit) versus 25% (not worthy of pursuit). 15 sites are open across Australia. As of September 23, 2020, 40 patients have been recruited. Clinical trial information: NCT03280667 .

scholarly journals New drug developments in metastatic gastric cancer

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. 175628481880807 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aaron C. Tan ◽  
David L. Chan ◽  
Wasek Faisal ◽  
Nick Pavlakis
Keyword(s):  
Gastric Cancer ◽  
Clinical Trials ◽  
Targeted Therapies ◽  
Immune Checkpoint ◽  
Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors ◽  
Checkpoint Inhibitors ◽  
Treatment Options ◽  
Predictive Biomarkers ◽  
Metastatic Gastric Cancer ◽  
New Era

Metastatic gastric cancer is associated with a poor prognosis and novel treatment options are desperately needed. The development of targeted therapies heralded a new era for the management of metastatic gastric cancer, however results from clinical trials of numerous targeted agents have been mixed. The advent of immune checkpoint inhibitors has yielded similar promise and results from early trials are encouraging. This review provides an overview of the systemic treatment options evaluated in metastatic gastric cancer, with a focus on recent evidence from clinical trials for targeted therapies and immune checkpoint inhibitors. The failure to identify appropriate predictive biomarkers has hampered the success of many targeted therapies in gastric cancer, and a deeper understanding of specific molecular subtypes and genomic alterations may allow for more precision in the application of novel therapies. Identifying appropriate biomarkers for patient selection is essential for future clinical trials, for the most effective use of novel agents and in combination approaches to account for growing complexity of treatment options.

Therapeutic Strategies in Diseases of the Digestive Tract - 2015 and Beyond Targeted Therapies in Colon Cancer Today and Tomorrow

2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (5) ◽  
pp. 574-579 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Pohl ◽  
Wolff Schmiegel
Keyword(s):  
Targeted Therapies ◽  
Immune Checkpoint ◽  
Predictive Biomarkers ◽  
Therapeutic Strategies ◽  
New Drugs ◽  
Diagnostic Tools ◽  
Molecular Heterogeneity ◽  
Cancer Type ◽  
Significant Progress ◽  
Ras Genes

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer type in Western countries. Significant progress has been made in the last decade in the therapy of metastatic CRC (mCRC) with a median overall survival (OS) of patients exceeding 30 months. The integration of biologic targeted therapies and anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) monoclonal antibodies (MABs) in the treatment of patients with genomically selected all-RAS wild-type mCRC leads to a significant progress in advanced incurable disease state. After the introduction of the anti-VEGF MAB bevacizumab, the FDA approved with ramucirumab the second antiangiogenic MAB for the mCRC treatment. Further new drugs are on the horizon and new diagnostic tools will be introduced soon. Key Messages: Molecular heterogeneity of mCRC has been recognized as pivotal in the evolution of clonal populations during anti-EGFR therapies. Mutations in RAS genes predict a lack of response to anti-EGFR MABs. Mutations in the mitogen-activated protein kinase-phosphoinositide 3-kinase pathways like BRAF or PIK3CA mutations or HER2/ERBB2 or MET amplifications bypass EGFR signaling and also may confer resistance to anti-EGFR MABs. HER2/ERBB2 amplification is a further driver of resistance to anti-EGFR MABs in mCRC. The phase II study of HER2 Amplification for Colo-Rectal Cancer Enhanced Stratification (HERACLES) discovers that a dual HER2-targeted therapy may be an option for HER2-amplified mCRC. The mismatch repair deficiency predicts responsiveness to an immune checkpoint blockade with the anti-PD-1 immune checkpoint inhibitor pembrolizumab. Conclusions: The understanding of primary (de novo) and secondary (acquired) resistance to anti-EGFR therapies, new targeted therapies, immuno-oncology and about predictive biomarkers in mCRC is guiding the development of rational therapeutic strategies. Combinations of targeted therapies are necessary to effectively treat drug-resistant cancers. Liquid biopsy is an upcoming new tool in the primary diagnosis and follow-up analysis of mutations in circulating tumor DNA.

Abstract 16916: Asymptomatic Patients With Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Have Elevated Troponin

Circulation ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 142 (Suppl_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aryaz Sheybani ◽  
Kim CRUM ◽  
Frank J Raucci ◽  
Larry W Markham ◽  
Jonathan H Soslow
Keyword(s):  
Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy ◽  
Muscular Dystrophy ◽  
Disease Progression ◽  
Troponin I ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Myocardial Inflammation ◽  
Gadolinium Enhancement ◽  
Normal Ranges ◽  
Asymptomatic Patients ◽  
Future Drug

Introduction: Cardiomyopathy is the leading cause of death in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), but traditional heart failure biomarkers have limited utility. Cardiac Troponin I (cTnI) has been used in DMD research studies as a marker of toxicity, but little is known about cTnI levels in asymptomatic patients. The goal of this study was to longitudinally evaluate cTnI, NTproBNP, and BNP in an asymptomatic DMD cohort. We hypothesized the biomarkers would not correlate with cardiac function, but some asymptomatic patients would exhibit a cTnI leak, reflecting ongoing myocardial inflammation related to disease progression. Methods: Asymptomatic DMD patients (N=69) and controls with normal cardiac evaluations (N=18) were enrolled. In DMD subjects, biomarker levels were obtained at time of cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR), which included assessment of atrial and ventricular volumes, function, and late gadolinium enhancement (LGE). Normal ranges for biomarkers were created based on control values. Spearman correlation was used for analysis. Results: There was no consistent correlation between biomarkers and disease progression by CMR (Table 1). Several DMD subjects had transiently elevated cTnI (Fig 1). Those with elevated cTnI trended towards being more likely to have LGE on baseline CMR, though this did not reach statistical significance (p= 0.08). Conclusions: CTnI, BNP, and NTproBNP do not correlate with CMR assessment of cardiomyopathy progression. There is a subset of the DMD cohort with asymptomatic cTnI leak. While this cTnI leak is of uncertain clinical significance, it is important to recognize if cTnI is used to assess for cardiac toxicity in future drug trials.

scholarly journals Treating COVID-19 With Hydroxychloroquine (TEACH): A Multicenter, Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Trial in Hospitalized Patients

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert J Ulrich ◽  
Andrea B Troxel ◽  
Ellie Carmody ◽  
Jaishvi Eapen ◽  
Martin Bäcker ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Randomized Controlled Trials ◽  
Disease Progression ◽  
Severe Disease ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Hospitalized Patients ◽  
Controlled Trials ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
End Point ◽  
Clinical Scores

Abstract Background Effective therapies to combat coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) are urgently needed. Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) has in vitro antiviral activity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), but the clinical benefit of HCQ in treating COVID-19 is unclear. Randomized controlled trials are needed to determine the safety and efficacy of HCQ for the treatment of hospitalized patients with COVID-19. Methods We conducted a multicenter, double-blind randomized clinical trial of HCQ among patients hospitalized with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19. Subjects were randomized in a 1:1 ratio to HCQ or placebo for 5 days and followed for 30 days. The primary efficacy outcome was a severe disease progression composite end point (death, intensive care unit admission, mechanical ventilation, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and/or vasopressor use) at day 14. Results A total of 128 patients were included in the intention-to-treat analysis. Baseline demographic, clinical, and laboratory characteristics were similar between the HCQ (n = 67) and placebo (n = 61) arms. At day 14, 11 (16.4%) subjects assigned to HCQ and 6 (9.8%) subjects assigned to placebo met the severe disease progression end point, but this did not achieve statistical significance (P = .350). There were no significant differences in COVID-19 clinical scores, number of oxygen-free days, SARS-CoV-2 clearance, or adverse events between HCQ and placebo. HCQ was associated with a slight increase in mean corrected QT interval, an increased D-dimer, and a trend toward an increased length of stay. Conclusions In hospitalized patients with COVID-19, our data suggest that HCQ does not prevent severe outcomes or improve clinical scores. However, our conclusions are limited by a relatively small sample size, and larger randomized controlled trials or pooled analyses are needed.

Expectancy or primary chemotherapy in patients with advanced asymptomatic colorectal cancer: a randomized trial.

1992 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 904-911 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Colorectal Cancer ◽  
Randomized Trial ◽  
Disease Progression ◽  
Advanced Colorectal Cancer ◽  
Poor Performance ◽  
Treatment Allocation ◽  
Asymptomatic Patients ◽  
Leucovorin Rescue ◽  
Study Population ◽  
To Receive

PURPOSE The advantage of chemotherapy in asymptomatic patients with advanced colorectal cancer is debatable. Whether early chemotherapy improves survival and the length of the symptom-free period versus no therapy until symptoms appear was studied in a randomized trial. PATIENTS AND METHODS A total of 183 patients with advanced, but asymptomatic colorectal cancer were randomly allocated to receive either initial treatment with sequential methotrexate 250 mg/m2 during the first 2 hours, and fluorouracil (5-FU) 500 mg/m2 at hours 3 and 23 followed by leucovorin rescue initiated at hour 24 (MFL) for 12 courses or to primary expectancy with chemotherapy not considered until symptoms appeared. One patient was ineligible and excluded from analysis. Nine patients did not fulfill the inclusion criteria and five patients refused treatment allocation; these patients were not excluded from the study population so as not to introduce bias. So far, 51 of 90 (60%) patients in the expectancy group have received chemotherapy. RESULTS Overall survival was better in the MFL group than in the expectancy group (Breslow-Gehan, P less than .02; log-rank, P = .13) with a difference in median survival of approximately 5 months. Also the symptom-free period and the time to disease progression were longer in the MFL group (P less than .001), with median differences of 8 and 4 months, respectively. Toxicity to MFL treatment was low; however, three patients died because of toxicity--none of them should have received therapy because of poor performance or S-creatinine elevation. The patients maintained an excellent performance throughout the MFL treatment unless the disease was progressive. CONCLUSION We concluded that early treatment with MFL in asymptomatic patients with advanced colorectal cancer prolongs survival, the asymptomatic period, and the time to disease progression by approximately 6 months over primary expectancy.

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