Background: We performed a phase II trial of pembrolizumab in patients with NSCLC or melanoma with untreated brain metastases to determine the activity of PD-1 blockade in the CNS. Interim results were previously published, and we now report an updated analysis of the full NSCLC cohort. Methods: This was an open-label, single-institution, phase 2 study. Eligible patients were ≥ 18 years of age with advanced NSCLC with ≥1 brain metastasis 5-20mm not previously treated or progressing after prior radiation, no neurologic symptoms or corticosteroid requirement, and performance status <2. Patients were treated with pembrolizumab 10 mg/kg IV every 2 weeks. Cohort 1 was for patients with PD-L1 ≥1% and cohort 2 PD-L1 <1% or unevaluable. The primary endpoint was the proportion of patients achieving a brain metastasis response. All treated patients were analyzed for response and safety endpoints. This study is closed to accrual and is registered with Clinicaltrials.gov, number NCT02085070. Here we report the updated results of the NSCLC cohort. Findings: Between March 31, 2014 and May 21, 2018, 42 patients were treated. Median followup was 8.3 months (IQR 4.5 to 26.2 months). Eleven of 37 patients in cohort 1 had a brain metastasis response (29.7% [95% CI, 15•9-47•0%]). There were no responses in cohort 2. Grade 3-4 AEs related to treatment included 2 patients with pneumonitis, and 1 each with constitutional symptoms, colitis, adrenal insufficiency, hyperglycemia, and hypokalemia. Treatment-related serious adverse events occurred in 6 (14%) patients and included pneumonitis acute kidney injury, colitis, hypokalemia, and adrenal insufficiency. There were no treatment-related deaths. Interpretation: Pembrolizumab has activity in brain metastases from NSCLC with PD-L1 expression ≥1% and is safe in select patients with untreated brain metastases. Further investigation of immunotherapy in patients with CNS disease from NSCLC is warranted.
Despite unique genetic alterations within brain metastases (BrMs) and an immunologically distinct surrounding microenvironment, the composition and functional properties of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes within BrM remain largely unexplored. In particular, the expression of coinhibitory receptors, such as programmed cell death 1 (PD-1), T cell immunoglobulin mucin receptor 3 (TIM-3), and lymphocyte activation gene 3 (LAG-3), within BrMs is unknown. Using multiplexed quantitative immunofluorescence (QIF), this study evaluates the localized expression of PD-L1, level and functional profile of major T cell subsets, and coinhibitory receptors within lung cancer-associated BrMs and primary lung tumors. Clinicopathologically annotated samples from 95 patients with lung cancer between 2002 and 2015 were represented in a tissue microarray format. Spatially resolved and multiplexed QIF was used to evaluate PD-L1 protein, phenotype markers for major T cell subsets (CD3, CD4, CD8, and FOXP3), cell-localized activation and proliferation markers (granzyme B and Ki67), and coinhibitory receptors (PD-1, LAG-3, and TIM-3). The signal for each marker was measured in marker-selected tissue compartments, and associations between marker levels, tumor location, and major clinicopathological variables were studied. In total, 41 primary lung tumors and 65 BrMs were analyzed, including paired samples from 11 patients. Levels of tumor PD-L1 expression were comparable between BrMs and primary lung tumors. BrMs had significantly lower levels of all T cell subsets relative to primary lung tumors, and T cells in BrMs displayed lower levels of granzyme B than primary lesions. PD-1, TIM-3, and LAG-3 levels in CD3+ T-cells were also significantly lower in BrMs. Marker expression in patients with paired samples from BrMs and primary lung tumors showed comparable results. High CD3+ T-cells, as well as high levels of TIM-3 and LAG-3 in CD3+ T-cells, were associated with longer overall survival in BrMs but not primary lung tumors. Lung cancer-associated BrMs display lower T cell infiltration, markers of cytolytic function, and immune regulatory signals than primary lung tumors. Despite these differences, high TIM-3 and high LAG-3 expressions in CD3+ T-cells were associated with longer survival. These features are accompanied by comparable levels of PD-L1 protein expression compared with primary lung tumors. These results highlight unique aspects of the tumor immune microenvironment within the brain and provide further support for intracranially focused therapies.
Here, we present the case of a 54-year-old female presenting for outpatient ankle hardware removal who experienced severe total body pruritus along with a maculopapular rash persisting four days after the procedure. Patch testing demonstrated a sensitivity to benzyl alcohol, a preservative in propofol and several other anesthetics. The patient returned for left ankle arthroscopy a year later, and during that procedure, the anesthetic team avoided medications containing benzyl alcohol. This resulted in no pruritus or rash. Hypersensitivity reactions, ranging from contact dermatitis to anaphylaxis, are critical events in the perioperative period. Induction of general anesthesia has been implicated as the inciting event for perioperative hypersensitivity reactions. Benzyl alcohol is among a few excipients found in common anesthetic agents known to cause hypersensitivity reactions in susceptible patients. While reports of adult death are rare, infantile death due to benzyl alcohol has been described.
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