VEGFR-C mutation serves as a potential negative predictor for immunotherapy in metastatic melanoma.

Authors

null

Zhenguang Du

Ward 3, Medical Oncology Department, The Liaoning Provincial People's Hospital, Shenyang, China

Zhenguang Du , Qianru He , Xiaodan Xing , Qin Zhang , Qianqian Duan , Tingting Sun , Chuang Qi

Organizations

Ward 3, Medical Oncology Department, The Liaoning Provincial People's Hospital, Shenyang, China, The Medical Department, Jiangsu Simcere Diagnostics Co., Ltd; Nanjing Simcere Medical Laboratory Science Co., Ltd; The State Key Lab of Translational Medicine and Innovative Drug Development, Jiangsu Simcere Diagnostics Co., Ltd, Nanjing, China

Research Funding

No funding received

Background: Immune checkpoint blockade has shown significant promise as an anticancer treatment and anti–CTLA-4 treatment prolongs overall survival in patients with melanoma. Vascular endothelial growth factor-C (VEGF-C), a member of the VEGF gene family, has been characterised as a prime mediator of lymphangiogenesis and angiogenic growth factors that promote the growth and metastasis of neoplasms. Previous studies provided evidence that VEGF-C correlated with poorer survival in melanoma. We aimed to determine the association of VEGF-C mutations with melanoma survival to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI). Methods: Data from Allen study (n = 110, anti- CTLA-4 therapy) was obtained and analyzed. Meanwhile, we extracted skin cutaneous melanoma (SKCM) RNA data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). In survival analysis, Kaplan-Meier curves were compared by log-rank test, and the hazard ratio (HR) was determined through a multivariable Cox regression model. Using the Cell-type Identification by Estimating Relative Subsets of RNA Transcripts (CIBERSORT) algorithm, the relative proportions of 22 types of infiltrating immune cells were determined in TCGA cohort. Results: In Allen cohort, the frequency of VEGFR-C mutation was 5.45% (6 in 110). Meanwhile, the frequency of VEGFR-C mutation in TCGA cohort was 7.37% (33 in 448). VEGFR-C-mutant (VEGFR-C-mut) group showed a poorer progression-free survival (PFS) (HR, 2.34; 95%CI, 1.01 to 5.4, p = 0.041) and overall survival (OS) (HR, 2.84, 95%CI, 1.22 to 6.62, p = 0.012) than the VEGFR-C-wild (VEGFR-C-wt) group, based on results of the log-rank test and Kaplan-Meier analysis. Moreover, COX proportional hazards model analysis showed VEGFR-C mutation was associated with poorer PFS (HR, 2.54; 95%CI, 1.04-6.25, p = 0.0042;) and OS (HR, 3.25; 95%CI, 1.30-8.12, p = 0.0117) compared with VEGFR-C-wt. In addition, we identified that the levels of naive B cells and resting CD4+ memory T cells were more abundant in VEGFR-C-mut group according to CIBERSORT algorithm. Conclusions: In our study, the frequency of VEGFR-C mutation in melanoma was investigated in Allen and TCGA cohorts, which might provide useful information to guide precision medicine. VEGFR-C mutation may serve as a potential negative predictor of response to anti-CTL4 treatment in melanoma via higher levels of naive B cells and resting CD4+ memory T cells.

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Abstract Details

Meeting

2022 ASCO Annual Meeting

Session Type

Publication Only

Session Title

Melanoma/Skin Cancers

Track

Melanoma/Skin Cancers

Sub Track

Other Melanoma/Skin Cancers

Citation

J Clin Oncol 40, 2022 (suppl 16; abstr e21593)

DOI

10.1200/JCO.2022.40.16_suppl.e21593

Abstract #

e21593

Abstract Disclosures

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