Determinants of Drug Resistance in B-Cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphomas: The Case of Lymphoplasmacytic Lymphoma/Waldenström Macroglobulinemia

Lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma (LPL) is a rare subtype of B cell-derived non-Hodgkin lymphoma characterized by the abnormal growth of transformed clonal lymphoplasmacytes and plasma cells. This tumor almost always displays the capability of secreting large amounts of monoclonal immunoglobulins (Ig) of the M class (Waldenström Macroglobulinemia, WM). The clinical manifestations of WM/LPL may range from an asymptomatic condition to a lymphoma-type disease or may be dominated by IgM paraprotein-related symptoms. Despite the substantial progresses achieved over the last years in the therapy of LPL/WM, this lymphoma is still almost invariably incurable and exhibits a propensity towards development of refractoriness to therapy. Patients who have progressive disease are often of difficult clinical management and novel effective treatments are eagerly awaited. In this review, we will describe the essential clinical and pathobiological features of LPL/WM. We will also analyze some key aspects about the current knowledge on the mechanisms of drug resistance in this disease, by concisely focusing on conventional drugs, monoclonal antibodies and novel agents, chiefly Bruton’s Tyrosine Kinase (BTK) inhibitors. The implications of molecular lesions as predictors of response or as a warning for the development of therapy resistance will be highlighted.

The Landscape of Immunoglobulin Heavy Chain Gene Repertoire in Lymphoplasmacytic Lymphoma / Waldenström Macroglobulinemia

Introduction Immunoglobulin heavy-chain variable genes (IGHV) is critical for the defining epitope binding affinityand B cell differentiation. Lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma/Waldenström macroglobulinemia (LPL/WM) is a heterogeneous diseasewhose role of IGHV usage remains unknown. Besides, the clinical relevance of IGHV repertoire for LPL/WM remain largely unexplored. The aim of our study is to explore the IGH repertoire of LPL/WM in by far the largest series, and to evaluate the correlation between IGH rearrangements and genetic aberrations and clinical characteristics of LPL/WM patients. Methods A total of 162 patients with a diagnosis of LPL/WM were included in this study. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR)amplification of IGHV-IGHD-IGHJ was performed on genomic DNA or cDNA samples using the IGH Somatic Hypermutation Assay v2.0 (Invivoscribe, Technologies, San Diego, US). Sequences were aligned to IMGT (http://www.imgt.org/IMGT_vquest/vquest) and IGBLAST (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/igblast/) databases. IGH gene repertoires, mutation status, IGHV CDR3 characteristics, genetic aberrations, MYD88 mutation status and clinical characteristics were collected to evaluate the relevance. Results Productive IGHV-D-J rearrangements were obtained in 136 out of 162 patients (84.0%). The IGHV gene repertoire was remarkably biased in LPL/WM. IGHV3-23 (15.4%), IGHV4-34 (10.3%), IGHV3-7 (8.1%), IGHV3-30 (7.4%) and IGHV3-74 (7.4%) were significantly overrepresented in LPL/WM(Figure 1). Among the 134 IGHD data, the most frequent segment was IGHD3-10 (21/134, 15.7%), followed by IGHD6-13 (18/134, 13.4%) (Figure 2). Among the 134 IGHJ data, IGHJ4 segment was selected in more than half of these rearrangements (70/136; 51.5%), followed by IGHJ6 (23/136; 16.9%) and IGHJ5 (21/136; 15.4%) (Figure 3). Most of the cases were mutated (97.0%) using a 98% IGHV germline homology cutoff. IGHV3-30 was associated with long heavy chain CDR3, indicating the specific antigen selection in LPL/WM. Patients with IGHV3-7 were significantly more likely to harbor 6q deletion (p<0.001)(Figure 4) and abnormal karyotype (p=0.004)(Figure 5).The IGHV hypermutation rate in patients with MYD88 L265P mutation was significantly higher than in wild-type patients (7.3% vs5.6%, p=0.009). IGHV3-23 and IGHV3-74 segments were more frequently detected in MYD88 mutated LPL/WM patients (25.7% vs. 4.3%, p=0.025). IGHV3-7 and IGHV4-59 were represented more in MYD88 wildtype patients (30.4% vs. 8.9%，p=0.005). Moreover, Patients with IGHV4 especially IGHV4-34 had higher level of LDH. IGHV4 was a prognostic marker of shorter progression-free-survival (Figure 6). Conclusion LPL/WM appears to be composed ofdifferent subgroups based on the IGHV repertoire. The mutational status and the IGHV CDR3 length indicated the role for antigenselection in LPL/WM development. The presence of IGHV4 genes proved to be a potential risk factor associated with outcome which deserved further study.These results showed for the first time that IGHV repertoire had clinical relevance in LPL/WM. Figure 1 Figure 1. Disclosures Wang: AbbVie: Consultancy; Astellas Pharma, Inc.: Research Funding.

Semi-quantitative measurements of chemokine receptor 4-targeted 68Ga-pentixafor PET/CT in response assessment of Waldenström macroglobulinemia/lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma

Purpose 68Ga-pentixafor PET/CT was reported to have a high sensitivity in detecting tumor involvement of Waldenström macroglobulinemia/lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma (WM/LPL) in our previous study. We aimed to further investigate the semi-quantitative measurements of 68Ga-pentixafor PET/CT in response assessment in WM/LPL. Methods Fifteen patients with WM/LPL were recruited in a prospective cohort study and underwent both 68Ga-pentixafor and 18F-FDG PET/CT at baseline and post-treatment. PET/CT-based responses were analyzed with semi-quantitative assessments of metabolic tumor volume (MTV) and total lesions glycolysis/uptake (TLGFDG and TLUCXCR4), and the correlation between PET/CT-based response and clinical response, monoclonal protein and IgM response was analyzed. Results After chemotherapy, 5 patients had complete response or very good partial response, 8 had partial response or minimal response and 2 had progressive disease. In quantitative analysis, 68Ga-pentixafor PET/CT-based response (measured in ∆TLUCXCR4%, ∆MTVCXCR4%, ∆SUVpeak%) showed a significant direct correlation with clinical response, monoclonal protein and IgM response (p < 0.01). However, 18F-FDG PET/CT-based response was independent from clinical response (p > 0.05). Conclusions The semi-quantitative measurements of 68Ga-pentixafor PET/CT outperformed 18F-FDG PET/CT in response assessment of WM/LPL.