Pyrosequencing versus methylation-specific PCR for assessment of MGMT methylation in tumor and blood samples of glioblastoma patients

Circulating biomarkers in blood may provide an interesting alternative to risky tissue biopsies in the diagnosis and follow-up of glioblastoma patients. We have assessed MGMT methylation status in blood and tissue samples from unresected glioblastoma patients who had been included in the randomized GENOM-009 trial. Paired blood and tissue samples were assessed by methylation-specific PCR (MSP) and pyrosequencing (PYR). After establishing the minimum PYR cut-off that could yield a significant difference in overall survival, we assessed the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value (NPV) of the analyses. Methylation could be detected in cfDNA by both MSP and PYR but with low concordance with results in tissue. Sensitivity was low for both methods (31% and 38%, respectively), while specificity was higher for MSP in blood than for PYR in plasma (96% vs 76%) and NPV was similar (56 vs 57%). Concordance of results in tissue by MSP and PYR was 84.3% (P < 0.001) and correlated with outcome. We conclude that detection of cfDNA in the blood of glioblastoma patients can be an alternative when tumor tissue is not available but methods for the detection of cfDNA in blood must improve before it can replace analysis in tumor tissue

Marizomib for patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma: a randomized phase 3 trial

Background: Standard treatment for patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma includes surgery, radiotherapy (RT) and temozolomide (TMZ) chemotherapy (TMZ/RT→TMZ). The proteasome has long been considered a promising therapeutic target because of its role as a central biological hub in tumor cells. Marizomib is a novel pan-proteasome inhibitor that crosses the blood brain barrier. Methods: EORTC 1709/CCTG CE.8 was a multicenter, randomized, controlled, open label phase 3 superiority trial. Key eligibility criteria included newly diagnosed glioblastoma, age > 18 years and Karnofsky performance status > 70. Patients were randomized in a 1:1 ratio. The primary objective was to compare overall survival (OS) in patients receiving marizomib in addition to TMZ/RT→TMZ with patients receiving only standard treatment in the whole population, and in the subgroup of patients with MGMT promoter-unmethylated tumors. Results: The trial was opened at 82 institutions in Europe, Canada and the US. A total of 749 patients (99.9% of planned 750) were randomized. OS was not different between the standard and the marizomib arm (median 17 vs 16.5 months; HR=1.04; p=0.64). PFS was not statistically different either (median 6.0 vs. 6.3 months; HR=0.97; p=0.67). In patients with MGMT promoter-unmethylated tumors, OS was also not different between standard therapy and marizomib (median 14.5 vs 15.1 months, HR=1.13; p=0.27). More CTCAE grade 3/4 treatment-emergent adverse events were observed in the marizomib arm than in the standard arm. Conclusions: Adding marizomib to standard temozolomide-based radiochemotherapy resulted in more toxicity, but did not improve OS or PFS in patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma

EANO guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of diffuse gliomas of adulthood

In response to major changes in diagnostic algorithms and the publication of mature results from various large clinical trials, the European Association of Neuro-Oncology (EANO) recognized the need to provide updated guidelines for the diagnosis and management of adult patients with diffuse gliomas. Through these evidence-based guidelines, a task force of EANO provides recommendations for the diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of adult patients with diffuse gliomas. The diagnostic component is based on the 2016 update of the WHO Classification of Tumors of the Central Nervous System and the subsequent recommendations of the Consortium to Inform Molecular and Practical Approaches to CNS Tumour Taxonomy — Not Officially WHO (cIMPACT-NOW). With regard to therapy, we formulated recommendations based on the results from the latest practice-changing clinical trials and also provide guidance for neuropathological and neuroradiological assessment. In these guidelines, we define the role of the major treatment modalities of surgery, radiotherapy and systemic pharmacotherapy, covering current advances and cognizant that unnecessary interventions and expenses should be avoided. This document is intended to be a source of reference for professionals involved in the management of adult patients with diffuse gliomas, for patients and caregivers, and for health-care providers

Glioblastoma: Relationship between Metabolism and Immunosuppressive Microenvironment

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most aggressive brain tumor in adults and is characterized by an immunosuppressive microenvironment. Different factors shaping this tumor microenvironment (TME) regulate tumor initiation, progression, and treatment response. Genetic alterations and metabolism pathways are two main elements that influence tumor immune cells and TME. In this manuscript, we review how both factors can contribute to an immunosuppressive state and overview the strategies being tested

RNA-Sequencing and immunohistochemistry reveal ZFN7 as a stronger marker of survival than molecular subtypes in G-CIMP-negative glioblastoma

Data de publicació electrónica: 26-10-2020Purpose: Glioblastoma is the most aggressive brain tumor in adults and has few therapeutic options. The study of molecular subtype classifications may lead to improved prognostic classification and identification of new therapeutic targets. The TCGA subtype classification has mainly been applied in USA clinical trials, while the IGS has mainly been applied in European trials. Experimental design: From paraffin-embedded tumor samples of 432 uniformly treated, newly diagnosed glioblastoma patients, we built tissue microarrays for immunohistochemical analysis and applied RNA-Sequencing to the best samples in order to classify them according to the TCGA and IGS subtypes. Results: We obtained transcriptomic results from 124 patients. There was a lack of agreement among the three TCGA classificatory algorithms employed, which was not solely attributable to intratumoral heterogeneity. There was overlapping of the TCGA mesenchymal subtype with IGS cluster 23 and of the TCGA classical subtype with IGS cluster 18. Molecular subtypes were not associated with prognosis, but levels of expression of 13 novel genes were identified as independent prognostic markers in G-CIMP-negative patients, independently of clinical factors and MGMT methylation. These findings were validated in at least one external database. Three of the 13 genes were selected for immunohistochemical validation. In particular, high ZNF7 RNA expression and low ZNF7 protein expression were strongly associated with longer survival, independently of molecular subtypes. Conclusions: The TCGA and IGS molecular classifications of glioblastoma have no higher prognostic value than individual genes and should be refined before being applied to clinical trials

Glioblastoma TCGA mesenchymal and IGS 23 tumors are identifiable by immunohistochemistry and have an immune-phenotype indicating potential benefit from immunotherapy

Data de publicació electrònica: 30-09-2020Purpose: Molecular subtype classifications in glioblastoma may detect therapy sensitivities. Immunohistochemistry would potentially allow the identification of molecular subtypes in routine clinical practice. Experimental design: Paraffin-embedded tumor samples of 124 uniformly treated, newly diagnosed glioblastoma patients were submitted to RNA-Sequencing, immunohistochemistry, and immune-phenotyping to identify differences in molecular subtypes associated with treatment sensitivities. Results: We detected high molecular and immunohistochemical overlapping of the TCGA mesenchymal subtype with IGS cluster 23 and of the TCGA classical subtype with IGS cluster 18. Immunohistochemical patterns, gene fusion profiles, and immune-phenotypes varied across subtypes. Immunohistochemistry revealed that the TCGA classical subtype was identified by high expression of EGFR and low expression of PTEN, while the mesenchymal subtype was identified by low expression of SOX2 and high expression of two antibodies, SHC1 and TCIRG1, selected based on RNA differential transcriptomic expression. The proneural subtype was identified by frequent positive IDH1 expression and high Olig2 and Ki67 expression. Immune-phenotyping showed that mesenchymal and IGS 23 tumors exhibited a higher positive effector cell score, a higher negative suppressor cell score, and lower levels of immune checkpoint molecules. The cell-type deconvolution analysis revealed that these tumors are highly enriched in M2 macrophages, resting memory CD4+ T cells, and activated dendritic cells, indicating that they may be ideal candidates for immunotherapy, especially with anti-M2 and/or dendritic cell vaccination. Conclusions: There is a subset of tumors, frequently classified as mesenchymal or IGS cluster 23, that may be identified with immunohistochemistry and could well be optimal candidates to immunotherapy