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On 10 October, the Department of Oncology celebrated World Mental Health Day by hosting a range of relaxing activities to promote better awareness of mental health and wellness.
T cell engagers: expanding horizons in oncology and beyond.
BACKGROUND/INTRODUCTION: T cell engagers (TCEs) are engineered immunotherapeutic molecules designed to direct the body's immune system against tumour or infected cells by bridging T cells and their targets, triggering potent cytotoxic responses. Over the past decade, TCE-based therapies have gained momentum in oncology, resulting in several FDA approvals for haematologic malignancies and showing growing promise in solid tumours. OBJECTIVE: This review elaborates on TCE mechanisms of action, emphasising their ability to activate T cells, target tumour antigens, and modulate the tumour microenvironment. METHODS/RESULTS: We also delve into the clinical outcomes demonstrating TCE efficacy, alongside challenges such as cytokine release syndrome, antigen heterogeneity, and short half-lives. Recent advances in TCE design have incorporated multispecific constructs and conditional activation strategies and expansion in target molecules has enabled broadening applications to non-oncology indications like autoimmune and infectious diseases. Moreover, the use of artificial intelligence (AI) has also accelerated TCE discovery by identifying favourable epitope interactions, reducing immunogenicity risks, and enhancing overall design efficiency. CONCLUSIONS: Looking further, these advances open up a new era to redefine success for TCEs in both cancer and beyond, offering hope for more effective, safer immunotherapies.
Circulating tumour DNA to augment PET-CT in determining clinical outcome after head and neck cancer treatment
Aim: PET-CT and MRI are used to assess disease response after head and neck cancer treatment. Equivocal findings can delay the potential for salvage curative treatment or result in over- treatment with further surgery. The aims of this study were to establish if liquid biopsy (LB) of circulating tumour DNA, could be used to aid decision-making after treatment. Method: Patients (n = 41) undergoing chemoradiotherapy (CRT) and surgical treatment had serial blood testing; pre-treatment and 10–12 weeks post-treatment, alongside imaging. PET-CT/MRIs were categorised as Cancer, Equivocal or Complete Response and true disease status was determined retrospectively. A bespoke 17-gene panel and probes targeting 5 HPV subtypes were used for next-generation sequencing in the ctDNA assay. Results: PET-CT was equivocal in 13/27 CRT patients; sensitivity and specificity for determining true disease status was 67 % and 42 % respectively. LB performed better at determining true disease status than PET-CT post-treatment in CRT patients; sensitivity and specificity of 83 % and 95 % respectively. A combined LB/PET/MRI test performed better than imaging alone; sensitivity and specificity of 100 % and 90 % respectively. The improved specificity was statistically significant (Fisher's exact test OR=7.1; 95 % CI:1.6–45.8, p = 0.0005), as was the balanced accuracy (Welch's t-test, p < 0.0001). Conclusion: LB outperformed PET-CT at determining true disease status after CRT and could complement post-treatment imaging in CRT and surgical patients, playing a potential role in decision-making after treatment.
Multiple highly methylated CpG sites as potential epigenetic markers for the diagnosis of prostate cancer.
BACKGROUND: Prostate cancer (PCa) remains the leading cause of cancer deaths in men. The prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test is widely used for PCa screening, but it lacks specificity and can lead to over-diagnosis and over-treatment. New, effective and affordable markers are therefore needed. RESULTS: Using enzymatic methyl sequencing (EM-Seq), methylation-specific PCR (MS-PCR), and transcriptomics including a spatial approach, we analyzed tumor and non-tumor samples from radical prostatectomy specimens. Comprehensive methylome was performed in 15 paired samples of prostate cancer and their adjacent non-tumor tissue by EM-Seq. From over 4-million differentially methylated CpG sites, we identified 66 CpGs sites representing eight genes: CLDN5, GSTP1, NBEAL2, PRICKLE2, SALL3, TAMALIN/GRASP, TJP2, and TMEM106A which were hypermethylated in PCa tissues (p-value
UPR-induced intracellular C5aR1 promotes adaptation to the hypoxic tumour microenvironment
Abstract Dysregulation of the C5a-C5a receptor 1 (C5aR1) signalling axis underlies inflammation and immune-driven pathology. C5aR1 was traditionally thought to be primarily expressed on the cell membrane, although recent reports indicate the importance of intracellular C5aR1 expression for the inflammatory effector functions of various cell types. However, the mechanisms regulating C5aR1 expression and localisation remain unclear. In tumours with an immunosuppressive microenvironment, we recently found C5aR1 expression on malignant epithelial cells, highlighting potential tumour cell–specific functions. Here, we show that physical conditions of the tumour microenvironment leading to immunosuppression, induce C5aR1 expression and control its intracellular localisation. Mechanistically, we find that low oxygen (hypoxia) induces C5aR1 expression in an unfolded protein response (UPR)-dependent manner via enhanced endoplasmic reticulum stress. Furthermore, hypoxia drives endocytosis, relocating C5aR1 from the cell membrane to the intracellular compartment. By genetically and pharmacologically targeting the C5a/C5aR1 axis, we show that C5aR1 mediates cellular adaptation to hypoxia by regulating processes associated with cell fate, including autophagy and apoptosis. In line with hypoxia-induced intracellular C5aR1 pools, the most significant pharmacological effects on cell survival are observed with selective small molecule inhibitors of C5aR1 associated with high cell permeability. These results suggest that the dysregulated C5a/C5aR1 axis and the hypoxia-induced shift in C5aR1 localisation support tumour cell survival in the hypoxic tumour microenvironment and provide new insights into therapeutic strategies for targeting the C5a/C5aR1 axis in cancer.
Analysis of IDH1 and IDH2 mutations as causes of the hypermethylator phenotype in colorectal cancer.
The CpG island methylator phenotype (CIMP) occurs in many colorectal cancers (CRCs). CIMP is closely associated with global hypermethylation and tends to occur in proximal tumours with microsatellite instability (MSI), but its origins have been obscure. A few CRCs carry oncogenic (gain-of-function) mutations in isocitrate dehydrogenase IDH1. Whilst IDH1 is an established CRC driver gene, the low frequency of IDH1-mutant CRCs (about 0.5%) has meant that the effects and molecular covariates of those mutations have not been established. We first showed computationally that IDH2 is also a CRC driver. Using multiple public and in-house CRC datasets, we then identified IDH mutations at the hotspots (IDH1 codons 132 and IDH2 codons 140 and 172) frequently mutated in other tumour types. Somatic IDH mutations were associated with BRAF mutations and expression of mucinous/goblet cell markers, but not with KRAS mutations or MSI. All IDH-mutant CRCs were CIMP-positive, mostly at a high level. Cell and mouse models showed that IDH mutation was plausibly causal for DNA hypermethylation. Whilst the aetiology of hypermethylation generally remains unexplained, IDH-mutant tumours did not form a discrete methylation subcluster, suggesting that different underlying mechanisms can converge on similar final methylation phenotypes. Although further analysis is required, IDH mutations may be the first cause of hypermethylation to be identified in a common cancer type, providing evidence that CIMP and DNA methylation represent more than aging-related epiphenomena. Cautious exploration of mutant IDH inhibitors and DNA demethylating agents is suggested in managing IDH-mutant CRCs. © 2025 The Author(s). The Journal of Pathology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland.
FGFR2b protein overexpression: An emerging biomarker in gastric and gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma.
Gastric and gastroesophageal junction cancer (G/GEJC) is a heterogeneous and complex disease characterized by histologic and molecular subtypes. Although a growing number of treatments have improved survival outcomes in the advanced setting, the greatest therapeutic benefits are observed among patient populations eligible for biomarker-directed therapies. Fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 isoform IIIb (FGFR2b) is an emerging biomarker under phase 3 clinical investigation for G/GEJC with the novel monoclonal antibody bemarituzumab. FGFR2b protein overexpression in gastric cancer, together with its function in various oncogenic signaling pathways, makes it an attractive target for precision medicine and thereby has gained clinical interest for its potential prognostic role in G/GEJC. Thus, to explore the potential role of FGFR2b, this narrative review summarizes the role and mechanism of FGFR2b in advanced G/GEJC, describes appropriate detection methodology for FGFR2b protein overexpression, and discusses future considerations for precision treatment in advanced G/GEJC with respect to FGFR2b protein overexpression and the emergence of other biomarkers.
Pervasive chromosomal instability and karyotype order in tumour evolution.
Chromosomal instability in cancer consists of dynamic changes to the number and structure of chromosomes1,2. The resulting diversity in somatic copy number alterations (SCNAs) may provide the variation necessary for tumour evolution1,3,4. Here we use multi-sample phasing and SCNA analysis of 1,421 samples from 394 tumours across 22 tumour types to show that continuous chromosomal instability results in pervasive SCNA heterogeneity. Parallel evolutionary events, which cause disruption in the same genes (such as BCL9, MCL1, ARNT (also known as HIF1B), TERT and MYC) within separate subclones, were present in 37% of tumours. Most recurrent losses probably occurred before whole-genome doubling, that was found as a clonal event in 49% of tumours. However, loss of heterozygosity at the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) locus and loss of chromosome 8p to a single haploid copy recurred at substantial subclonal frequencies, even in tumours with whole-genome doubling, indicating ongoing karyotype remodelling. Focal amplifications that affected chromosomes 1q21 (which encompasses BCL9, MCL1 and ARNT), 5p15.33 (TERT), 11q13.3 (CCND1), 19q12 (CCNE1) and 8q24.1 (MYC) were frequently subclonal yet appeared to be clonal within single samples. Analysis of an independent series of 1,024 metastatic samples revealed that 13 focal SCNAs were enriched in metastatic samples, including gains in chromosome 8q24.1 (encompassing MYC) in clear cell renal cell carcinoma and chromosome 11q13.3 (encompassing CCND1) in HER2+ breast cancer. Chromosomal instability may enable the continuous selection of SCNAs, which are established as ordered events that often occur in parallel, throughout tumour evolution.
Subclonal immune evasion in non-small cell lung cancer.
Cancers rarely respond completely to immunotherapy. While tumors consist of multiple genetically distinct clones, whether this affects the potential for immune escape remains unclear due to an inability to isolate and propagate individual subclones from human cancers. Here, we leverage the multi-region TRACERx lung cancer evolution study to generate a patient-derived organoid - T cell co-culture platform that allows the functional analysis of subclonal immune escape at single clone resolution. We establish organoid lines from 11 separate tumor regions from three patients, followed by isolation of 81 individual clonal sublines. Co-culture with tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) or natural killer (NK) cells reveals cancer-intrinsic and subclonal immune escape in all 3 patients. Immune evading subclones represent genetically distinct lineages with a unique evolutionary history. This indicates that immune evading and non-evading subclones can be isolated from the same tumor, suggesting that subclonal tumor evolution directly affects immune escape.
ImmuneLENS characterizes systemic immune dysregulation in aging and cancer.
Recognition and elimination of pathogens and cancer cells depend on the adaptive immune system. Thus, accurate quantification of immune subsets is vital for precision medicine. We present immune lymphocyte estimation from nucleotide sequencing (ImmuneLENS), which estimates T cell and B cell fractions, class switching and clonotype diversity from whole-genome sequencing data at depths as low as 5× coverage. By applying ImmuneLENS to the 100,000 Genomes Project, we identify genes enriched with somatic mutations in T cell-rich tumors, significant sex-based differences in circulating T cell fraction and demonstrated that the circulating T cell fraction in patients with cancer is significantly lower than in healthy individuals. Low circulating B cell fraction was linked to increased cancer incidence. Finally, circulating T cell abundance was more prognostic of 5-year cancer survival than infiltrating T cells.
Prospective validation of ORACLE, a clonal expression biomarker associated with survival of patients with lung adenocarcinoma.
Human tumors are diverse in their natural history and response to treatment, which in part results from genetic and transcriptomic heterogeneity. In clinical practice, single-site needle biopsies are used to sample this diversity, but cancer biomarkers may be confounded by spatiogenomic heterogeneity within individual tumors. Here we investigate clonally expressed genes as a solution to the sampling bias problem by analyzing multiregion whole-exome and RNA sequencing data for 450 tumor regions from 184 patients with lung adenocarcinoma in the TRACERx study. We prospectively validate the survival association of a clonal expression biomarker, Outcome Risk Associated Clonal Lung Expression (ORACLE), in combination with clinicopathological risk factors, and in stage I disease. We expand our mechanistic understanding, discovering that clonal transcriptional signals are detectable before tissue invasion, act as a molecular fingerprint for lethal metastatic clones and predict chemotherapy sensitivity. Lastly, we find that ORACLE summarizes the prognostic information encoded by genetic evolutionary measures, including chromosomal instability, as a concise 23-transcript assay.
TRACERx analysis identifies a role for FAT1 in regulating chromosomal instability and whole-genome doubling via Hippo signalling.
Chromosomal instability (CIN) is common in solid tumours and fuels evolutionary adaptation and poor prognosis by increasing intratumour heterogeneity. Systematic characterization of driver events in the TRACERx non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cohort identified that genetic alterations in six genes, including FAT1, result in homologous recombination (HR) repair deficiencies and CIN. Using orthogonal genetic and experimental approaches, we demonstrate that FAT1 alterations are positively selected before genome doubling and associated with HR deficiency. FAT1 ablation causes persistent replication stress, an elevated mitotic failure rate, nuclear deformation and elevated structural CIN, including chromosome translocations and radial chromosomes. FAT1 loss contributes to whole-genome doubling (a form of numerical CIN) through the dysregulation of YAP1. Co-depletion of YAP1 partially rescues numerical CIN caused by FAT1 loss but does not relieve HR deficiencies, nor structural CIN. Importantly, overexpression of constitutively active YAP15SA is sufficient to induce numerical CIN. Taken together, we show that FAT1 loss in NSCLC attenuates HR and exacerbates CIN through two distinct downstream mechanisms, leading to increased tumour heterogeneity.
Ultrasensitive ctDNA detection for preoperative disease stratification in early-stage lung adenocarcinoma.
Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) detection can predict clinical risk in early-stage tumors. However, clinical applications are constrained by the sensitivity of clinically validated ctDNA detection approaches. NeXT Personal is a whole-genome-based, tumor-informed platform that has been analytically validated for ultrasensitive ctDNA detection at 1-3 ppm of ctDNA with 99.9% specificity. Through an analysis of 171 patients with early-stage lung cancer from the TRACERx study, we detected ctDNA pre-operatively within 81% of patients with lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), including 53% of those with pathological TNM (pTNM) stage I disease. ctDNA predicted worse clinical outcome, and patients with LUAD with <80 ppm preoperative ctDNA levels (the 95% limit of detection of a ctDNA detection approach previously published in TRACERx) experienced reduced overall survival compared with ctDNA-negative patients with LUAD. Although prospective studies are needed to confirm the clinical utility of the assay, these data show that our approach has the potential to improve disease stratification in early-stage LUADs.
Replication timing alterations are associated with mutation acquisition during breast and lung cancer evolution
During each cell cycle, the process of DNA replication timing is tightly regulated to ensure the accurate duplication of the genome. The extent and significance of alterations in this process during malignant transformation have not been extensively explored. Here, we assess the impact of altered replication timing (ART) on cancer evolution by analysing replication-timing sequencing of cancer and normal cell lines and 952 whole-genome sequenced lung and breast tumours. We find that 6%–18% of the cancer genome exhibits ART, with regions with a change from early to late replication displaying an increased mutation rate and distinct mutational signatures. Whereas regions changing from late to early replication contain genes with increased expression and present a preponderance of APOBEC3-mediated mutation clusters and associated driver mutations. We demonstrate that ART occurs relatively early during cancer evolution and that ART may have a stronger correlation with mutation acquisition than alterations in chromatin structure.
Origins and impact of extrachromosomal DNA
Extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA) is a major contributor to treatment resistance and poor outcome for patients with cancer1,2. Here we examine the diversity of ecDNA elements across cancer, revealing the associated tissue, genetic and mutational contexts. By analysing data from 14,778 patients with 39 tumour types from the 100,000 Genomes Project, we demonstrate that 17.1% of tumour samples contain ecDNA. We reveal a pattern highly indicative of tissue-context-based selection for ecDNAs, linking their genomic content to their tissue of origin. We show that not only is ecDNA a mechanism for amplification of driver oncogenes, but it also a mechanism that frequently amplifies immunomodulatory and inflammatory genes, such as those that modulate lymphocyte-mediated immunity and immune effector processes. Moreover, ecDNAs carrying immunomodulatory genes are associated with reduced tumour T cell infiltration. We identify ecDNAs bearing only enhancers, promoters and lncRNA elements, suggesting the combinatorial power of interactions between ecDNAs in trans. We also identify intrinsic and environmental mutational processes linked to ecDNA, including those linked to its formation, such as tobacco exposure, and progression, such as homologous recombination repair deficiency. Clinically, ecDNA detection was associated with tumour stage, more prevalent after targeted therapy and cytotoxic treatments, and associated with metastases and shorter overall survival. These results shed light on why ecDNA is a substantial clinical problem that can cooperatively drive tumour growth signals, alter transcriptional landscapes and suppress the immune system.
MHC Hammer reveals genetic and non-genetic HLA disruption in cancer evolution.
Disruption of the class I human leukocyte antigen (HLA) molecules has important implications for immune evasion and tumor evolution. We developed major histocompatibility complex loss of heterozygosity (LOH), allele-specific mutation and measurement of expression and repression (MHC Hammer). We identified extensive variability in HLA allelic expression and pervasive HLA alternative splicing in normal lung and breast tissue. In lung TRACERx and lung and breast TCGA cohorts, 61% of lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), 76% of lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC) and 35% of estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) cancers harbored class I HLA transcriptional repression, while HLA tumor-enriched alternative splicing occurred in 31%, 11% and 15% of LUAD, LUSC and ER+ cancers. Consistent with the importance of HLA dysfunction in tumor evolution, in LUADs, HLA LOH was associated with metastasis and LUAD primary tumor regions seeding a metastasis had a lower effective neoantigen burden than non-seeding regions. These data highlight the extent and importance of HLA transcriptomic disruption, including repression and alternative splicing in cancer evolution.
Mixed responses to targeted therapy driven by chromosomal instability through p53 dysfunction and genome doubling.
The phenomenon of mixed/heterogenous treatment responses to cancer therapies within an individual patient presents a challenging clinical scenario. Furthermore, the molecular basis of mixed intra-patient tumor responses remains unclear. Here, we show that patients with metastatic lung adenocarcinoma harbouring co-mutations of EGFR and TP53, are more likely to have mixed intra-patient tumor responses to EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibition (TKI), compared to those with an EGFR mutation alone. The combined presence of whole genome doubling (WGD) and TP53 co-mutations leads to increased genome instability and genomic copy number aberrations in genes implicated in EGFR TKI resistance. Using mouse models and an in vitro isogenic p53-mutant model system, we provide evidence that WGD provides diverse routes to drug resistance by increasing the probability of acquiring copy-number gains or losses relative to non-WGD cells. These data provide a molecular basis for mixed tumor responses to targeted therapy, within an individual patient, with implications for therapeutic strategies.