Injectable and pH-responsive self-assembled peptide hydrogel for promoted tumor cell uptake and enhanced cancer chemotherapy

An injectable, pH-responsive, in situ self-assembled drug-peptide hydrogel (MTX-KKFKFEFEF(DA)) for highly efficient local tumor chemotherapy.

Comparison of local recurrence in transcatheter arterial chemoembolization of hepatocellular carcinoma with or without accumulation of iodized oil beyond corona enhancement area: Short-term results

Background Local tumor recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) often occurs in blood drainage areas. Corona enhancement is determined by computed tomography during hepatic arteriography (CTHA) and is considered to represent the blood drainage area. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between embolization of corona enhancement area and local tumor recurrence of patients with HCC who underwent transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE). Patients and methods The study retrospectively selected 53 patients with 60 HCC nodules that showed corona enhancement area on late-phase CTHA and showed homogenous accumulation of iodized oil throughout the nodule on non-contrast-enhanced CT performed immediately after TACE. We divided the nodules into two groups, according to whether the accumulation of iodized oil covered the entire corona enhancement area (group A) or not (group B). Local tumor recurrence was compared between the two groups. Results The cumulative local tumor recurrence rates for group A (n = 36) were 2.8%, 2.8%, 8.3% at 3, 6, and 12 months, respectively, whereas the recurrence rates for group B (n = 24) were 20.8%, 45.8%, 75% at 3, 6, and 12 months, respectively. The cumulative local tumor recurrence rates for group A were significantly lower than those for group B (hazard ratio, 0.079; 95% confidence interval, 0.026–0.24; p < 0.001). Conclusions The results of the study suggest that the corona enhancement area may be an accurate safety margin in TACE which should be performed until the embolic area covers the entire corona enhancement area.

2450 MHz Microwave Ablation for Liver Metastases Under 3.0T Wide-bore Magnetic Resonance Guidance: a Pilot Study

Purpose: To investigate the feasibility and effectiveness of 3.0T wide-bore magnetic resonance (MR)-guided microwave ablation (MA) for liver metastases (LM).Patients and methods: From October 2018 to May 2020, 39 patients with 63 LM were treated with 3.0T wide-bore MR-guided 2450 MHz MA therapy. The procedure parameters, technical success, complications, biochemical indexes changes, local tumor response, local tumor progression (LTP) and overall survival were recorded and analyzed.Results: The mean tumor maximum diameter and total procedure time were 3.0 cm and 55.2 min, respectively. Technical success was 100% but 5 cases (12.8%) with grade-1 complications. Alanine transaminase, aspartate transaminase and total bilirubin showed slight a transient increase on day 3 (P<0.05) and returned to normal by day 30 (P>0.05). The complete ablation rate for ≦ 2.5 and >2.5 cm lesions were 100 % and 92.5 %, respectively, during the median followup of 12.0 months, LTP rate was 4.8 % (3/63), and the 6-, 12- and 18-month overall survival were 100%, 92.2%, 76.4% , respectively.Conclusion: 3.0T wide-bore MR-guided MA for LM is a safe and effective approach, especially for small LM.

Safety and Efficacy of Hypo Fractionated Stereotactic Radiosurgery in Facial Nerve Schwannoma: a Single Institution Retrospective Case Series

Background: In the current era of modern neurosurgery, the treatment strategies have been shifted to “nerve-preservation approaches” for achieving a higher facial and hearing function preservation rate following facial nerve tumors.Objective: We have conducted this novel report on determining the outcome of patients with facial nerve schwannomas (FNS) treated with hypo fractionated stereotactic radiosurgery (hfSRS).Methods: Retrospective chart review of a prospectively maintained database search was conducted. Patients who underwent hfSRS CyberKnife (Accuray Inc, Sunnyvale, California., USA) for FNS were included. Outcomes consisted of tumor control, facial and hearing nerve function as graded by House-Brackmann (HB) and Gardner-Robertson scale, and adverse radiation effects. SPSS 23 was used to perform statistical analysis.Results: With an institutional board review approval, we retrospectively identified 5 patients with FNS [4 intracranial (80%) and 1 extracranial (20%)] treated with hfSRS (2011-2019). Patients received definitive SRS in 3 patients (60.0%) wile adjuvant to surgical resection in 2 patients (40.0%). A median tumor volume of 7.5 cm3 (range, 1.5-19.6 cm3) received a median prescription dose of 23.2 Gy (range, 21-25 Gy) administered in median of 3 fractions (range, 3-5 session). With a median radiographic follow-up of 31.4 months (range, 13.0-71.0 months) and clinical follow-up of 32.6 months (range, 15.1-72.0 months), the local tumor control was 100.0%. At last clinical follow-up, the facial nerve function improved or remained unchanged HB I-II in 80.0% of the patients, while the hearing nerve function improved or remained stable in 100.0% (Gardner-Robertson I-II) of the patients. Temporary clinical toxicity was seen in 3 patients (60.0%) which resolved. None of the patient developed adverse radiation effect.Conclusion: From our case series, hfSRS in FNS seems to be safe and efficacious in terms of local tumor control, and improved facial and hearing nerve function.

STMO-17 Treatment outcome of photodynamic therapy using talaporfin sodium for recurrent high-grade glioma

Objective: Photodynamic therapy (PDT) using Talaporfin Sodium (TS) is a novel therapeutic strategy to improve local tumor control in high-grade glioma. TS is a photosensitizer that accumulates in tumor cells and produces highly toxic free radicals by intraoperative irradiation of laser with a 664nm wavelength. However, little is known about the treatment outcomes of PDT in recurrent high-grade gliomas (rHGG). In this study, we investigated the treatment outcome of PDT in rHGG and evaluated the correlation between intratumoral TS accumulation and outcomes. Methods: We included 21 patients with rHGG and 22 tumors, who were treated by PDT between June 2016 and March 2021. TS was transvenously administered 22–26 hours before PDT. Intratumoral TS concentrations were measured by liquid chromatography using frozen tissue. Results: The rHGGs included 10 glioblastoma, IDH1/2-wildtype (GBM, IDH1/2-WT: 45.5%), 3 GBM, IDH1/2-mutant (GBM, IDH1/2-Mut: 13.6%), 7 anaplastic oligodendroglioma, IDH1/2-Mut/codel (AO, IDH1/2-Mut/codel: 31.8%), 1 anaplastic astrocytoma, IDH1/2-WT (AA, IDH1/2-WT: 4.5%), 1 high-grade astrocytoma, IDH1/2-WT (4.5%). The median local progression free survival (PFS) time after PDT was 3.6 months and the median survival time from PDT was 19.4 months. The intratumoral TS concentrations of 7 tumors (TS(-): 31.8%) were below the limit of quantification, and the intratumoral TS concentrations of the remaining 15 tumors (TS(+)) were 43.5 ng/mg-protein (14.7–132 ng/mg-protein). The intratumoral TS concentrations were not significantly associated with IDH1/2 mutation status, cellularity, tumor grade, and pattern of enhancement. The median PFS from PDT tended to be longer in TS(+) than in TS(-) (TS(+): 6.3 vs TS(-): 1.4 months, p = 0.054). Conclusions: We found that the intratumoral TS concentrations were heterogeneous and 31.8% were below the limit of quantification. TS(+) tended to have better local tumor control than TS(-), suggesting the intratumoral TS accumulation have an impact of treatment outcomes of PDT.

The Use of High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) Plus 150mg Bicalutamide as First Line Salvage Therapy for Local Recurrent Prostate Cancer

Patients with localized prostate cancer (PCa) are often treated with radical prostatectomy (RP). However, more than 30% of such patients have high risk of recurrence. Salvage radiotherapy (SRT), androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) and combination of radiotherapy and ADT are the standard care for recurrent PCa. Recently, high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) has gradually applied in the treatment of recurrent PCa. Here, we proposed a hypothesis that combined HIFU and bicalutamide 150mg as first line salvage therapy to treat patients with local recurrent PCa with visible lesions due to the following advantages: (1) HIFU is effective in reducing local tumor load, and bicalutamide 150mg is a feasible and safety option to combine with HIFU. (2) Compared with radiotherapy, HIFU plus 150mg bicalutamide is minimal invasiveness with fewer adverse effects and better quality of life(QOL); (3) Radiotherapy can be preserved as the second-line salvage method in the cases who are failure to HIFU and 150mg bicalutamide combination. More clinical trials are warranted to confirm this hypothesis in treatment with recurrent PCa.

Detectability of Target Lesion During CT-Guided Tumor Ablations: Impact on Ablation Outcome

Purpose Small hepatic malignancies scheduled for CT-guided percutaneous ablation may have been identified in the hepatobiliary phase of liver MRI or in a specific phase of multi-phase CT but may be occult on unenhanced CT used to guide the ablation. We investigated whether the detectability of the target lesion would impact the efficacy of CT-guided hepatic tumor ablations. Materials and Methods We included 69 patients with 99 malignant liver lesions (25 primary, 44 metastases) who underwent IRE (n = 35), RFA (n = 41), or MWA (n = 23) between 01/2015 and 06/2018. All procedures were performed under CT guidance. Lesions not detectable on CT (NDL) were targeted through identification of anatomical landmarks on preinterventional contrast-enhanced CT or MRI. Rates of incomplete ablation, size of ablation zone, local tumor recurrence, intrahepatic progression-free survival (ihPFS), and adverse event rates were compared for detectable lesions (DL) vs. NDL. Results 40 lesions were NDL, and 59 lesions were DL on unenhanced CT. The mean follow-up was 16.2 months (14.8 for DL and 18.2 for NDL). The mean diameter of NDL and DL was similar (12.9 mm vs. 14.9 mm). The mean ablation zone size was similar (37.1 mm vs. 38.8 mm). Incomplete ablation did not differ between NDL vs. DL (5.0 % [2/40; 0.6–16.9 %] vs. 3.4 % [2/59; 0.4–11.7 %]), nor did local tumor recurrence (15.4 % [6/39; 5.7 %–30.5 %] vs. 16.9 % [10/59; 8.4–29.0 %]), or median ihPFS (15.5 months vs. 14.3 months). Conclusion Target lesion detectability on interventional CT does not have a significant impact on outcome after percutaneous liver ablation when anatomical landmarks are used to guide needle placement. Key Points: Citation Format

Late Toxicities, Failure Patterns, Local Tumor Control, and Survival of Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma Patients After Chemoradiotherapy With a Simultaneous Integrated Boost: A 5-Year Phase II Study

PurposeWe aimed to evaluate the long-term outcomes of concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) with a simultaneous integrated boost (SIB) of radiotherapy for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).Methods and MaterialsEighty-seven patients with primary ESCC enrolled in this phase II trial. The majority (92.0%) had locoregionally advanced disease. They underwent definitive chemoradiotherapy. The radiotherapy doses were 66 Gy for the gross tumor and 54 Gy for the subclinical disease. Doses were simultaneously administered in 30 fractions over 6 weeks. The patients also underwent concurrent and adjuvant chemotherapy, which comprised cisplatin and fluorouracil. The study end points were acute and late toxicities, first site of failure, locoregional tumor control, and overall survival rates.ResultsThe median follow-up time was 65.7 (range, 2.2-97.5) months for all patients and 81.5 (range, 19.4-97.5) months for those alive. There were 17 cases (19.5%) of severe late toxicities, including four cases (4.6%) of grade 5 and seven (8.0%) of grade 3 esophageal ulceration, four (4.6%) of grade 3 esophageal stricture, and two (2.3%) of grade 3 radiation-induced pneumonia. Twenty-three (26.4%) patients had locoregional disease progression. Most (86.7%) locally progressive lesions were within the dose-escalation region in the initial radiation plan, while majority of the recurrent lymph nodes were found out-of-field (83.3%) and in the supraclavicular region (75.0%). The 1-, 2-, 3-, and 5-year locoregional tumor control and overall survival rates were 79.2%, 72.4%, 72.4%, 70.8%, and 82.8%, 66.6%, 61.9%, 58.4%, respectively. Incomplete tumor response, which was assessed immediately after CCRT was an independent risk predictor of disease progression and death in ESCC patients.ConclusionsCCRT with SIB was well tolerated in ESCC patients during treatment and long-term follow-up. Moreover, patients who underwent CCRT with SIB exhibited improved local tumor control and had better survival outcomes compared to historical data of those who had standard-dose radiotherapy.