Pre-operative PET-CT and CA19-9 response correlate with histopathologic tumor regression. Patients with complete pathologic response have superior outcomes, suggesting a rationale for intensification and personalization of neoadjuvant therapy in BRPC and LAPC.

In our cohort of patients, sarcopenia was associated with a significant increase in acute grade ≥3 toxicity with chemoradiation, suggesting a potential role for neoadjuvant patient selection strategies. There was no difference in pathologic response or overall survival.

Background: Total psoas area (TPA), a marker of sarcopenia, has been used as an independent predictor of clinical outcomes in gastrointestinal (GI) cancers as a proxy for frailty and nutritional status. Our study aimed to evaluate whether TPA, in contrast to traditional measurements of nutrition like body mass index (BMI) and body surface area (BSA), was predictive of outcomes in borderline resectable pancreatic cancer (BRPC) and locally advanced pancreatic cancer (LAPC) patients receiving stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT). Methods: Retrospective analysis of an institutional review board approved database of 222 BRPC and LAPC treated with SBRT from 2009-2016 yielded 183 patients that met our selection criteria of pre-SBRT computed tomography (CT) imaging with an identifiable L4 vertebra. Once the L4 vertebral level was identified, the bilateral psoas muscles were manually contoured. This area was normalized by patient height, with units described in mm 2 /m 2 . Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were generated for TPA, BMI, and BSA to elicit clinically relevant cutoffs. Regression and Kaplan-Meier analyses were used to correlate toxicity with survival functions.Results: Low TPA (OR =1.903, P=0.036) was predictive of acute toxicities, and only TPA was predictive of Grade 3 or higher acute toxicities (OR =10.24, P=0.007). Both findings were independent of tumor resectability. Pain (P=0.003), fatigue (P=0.040), and nausea (P=0.039) were significantly associated with low TPA. No association was identified between any measurement of nutritional status and the development of late toxicities, overall survival, local progression or local recurrence. However, BRPC patients survived longer (median =21.98 months) than their LAPC (median =16.2 months) counterparts (P=0.002), independent of nutritional status. Conclusions: TPA measurement is readily available and more specific than BMI or BSA as a predictor of acute radiotoxic complications following SBRT in BRPC/LAPC patients. A TPA of <500 mm 2 /m 2 is a clinically relevant cutoff that can direct physicians to address expected complications of pain, fatigue, and nausea. However, tumor resectability remains as the only predictor of overall survival in this cohort.

Although aggressive tumor biology plays a significant role in LRR, optimizing neoadjuvant treatments to obtain a complete pathologic response may lead to improved locoregional control.

Background: The Child-Pugh (CP) class is a commonly used scoring system to measure liver function in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We correlate the Albumin-Bilirubin (ALBI) grading system and CP to overall survival in our HCC patients receiving radioembolization. Methods: We retrospectively evaluated patients who received radioembolization for HCC between the years 2009-2014. We evaluated the albumin and bilirubin levels in our patients prior to receiving their first (n=124) radioembolization. The ALBI grades were calculated from these data with the formula (log 10 bilirubin ×0.66) + (albumin × −0.085) and correlated to outcomes using Mantel-Cox Log analysis. These statistical comparisons were duplicated with CP classes. Results: Median survival differences between CP class A and B and between ALBI grade 1 and 2 were 4.7 and 9.9 months, respectively. A subset of ALBI grades 1 and 2 were identified within our CP class A patients with a median survival difference of 9.9 months. Conclusions: ALBI is a more sensitive marker of liver function than CP in the setting of mild dysfunction. Using ALBI, we identified a subset of patients that have significantly better outcomes from Y-90 radioembolization than previously identified with CP.

Background Pseudoprogression (psPD) represents false radiologic evidence of tumor progression and is observed in some glioblastoma (GBM) patients after postoperative chemoradiation (CRT) with temozolomide (TMZ). The ambiguity of the psPD diagnosis confounds identification of true progression and may lead to unnecessary interventions. The association between psPD and isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) mutational (mut) status is understudied, and its incidence may alter clinical decision making. Methods We retrospectively evaluated 120 patients with IDH1-mut (n = 60) and IDH1–wild-type (IDH-WT; [n = 60]) GBMs who received postoperative CRT with TMZ at 4 academic institutions. Response Assessment in Neuro-Oncology criteria were used to identify psPD rates in routine brain MRIs performed up to 90 days after CRT completion. Results Within 90 days of completing CRT, 9 GBM patients (1 [1.7%] IDH1-mut and 8 [13.3%] IDH1-WTs) demonstrated true progression, whereas 17 patients (3 [5%] IDH1-muts and 14 [23.3%] IDH1-WTs) demonstrated psPD (P  =  .004). IDH1-mut GBMs had a lower probability of psPD (hazard ratio: 0.173, 95% CI, 0.047-0.638, P = .008). Among the patients with radiologic signs suggestive of progression (n = 26), psPD was found to be the cause in 3 of 4 (75.0%) of the IDH1-mut GBMs and 14 of 22 (63.6%) of the IDH1-WT GBMs (P = .496). Median overall survival for IDH1-mut and IDH1-WT GBM patients was 40.3 and 23.0 months, respectively (P  < .001). Conclusions IDH1-mut GBM patients demonstrate lower absolute rates of psPD expression. Irrespective of GBM subtype, psPD expression was more likely than true progression within 90 days of completing CRT. Continuing adjuvant treatment for IDH1-mut GBMs is suggested if radiologic progression is suspected during this time interval.

No abstract

and cardiac-specific mortality in a population-based cohort of elderly patients with nonmetastatic esophageal cancer. Materials/Methods: We identified 5,693 Medicare beneficiaries with esophageal cancer diagnosed between 2000 through 2011, including those receiving radiation (2,541), and those not receiving radiation (3,152). Medicare claims were used to identify radiation therapy and cardiac procedures as a surrogate for significant cardiac toxicity. Identified procedures included percutaneous coronary interventions, coronary artery bypass grafts, heart valve procedures, cardiac catheterizations, and pacemaker/ defibrillator procedures. Cause of death was used to determine cardiac specific mortality. Patients with a cardiac diagnosis or procedure in the year prior to their cancer diagnosis were considered high risk. Competing risk analyses, including cumulative incidence functions and multivariable Fine-Gray regression models, were used to evaluate the impact of radiation on these cardiac outcomes to account for the competing risk of death. Multivariable models controlled for patient, tumor, and treatment related variables. Results: Esophageal cancer patients receiving radiation had a substantial increase in both their risk of receiving a cardiac procedure and death due to cardiac causes compared to those not receiving radiation. The 5-year cumulative incidence of undergoing a cardiac procedure for patients treated with radiation versus those who were not was 9.1% (95% CI Z 7.9, 10.4) versus 5.2% (95% CI Z 4.4, 6.1). On multivariable analysis, patients treated with radiation had a 59% increased risk of receiving a cardiac procedure (subdistribution hazard ratio [SDHR] 1.59, 95% CI Z 1.23, 2.06, P < 0.001). Patients treated with radiation had a 50% increased risk of cardiac-specific mortality (SDHR Z 1.50, 95% CI Z 1.15, 1.96, P Z 0.003), and a decreased risk of cancer-specific mortality (SDHR Z 0.69, 95% CI Z 0.63, 0.74, P < 0.001). Conclusion: Radiation therapy, although effective in decreasing cancerspecific mortality, increases the risk of cardiac procedures and cardiacspecific mortality. This study can help radiation oncologists better understand and explain the risks and benefits of radiation to patients with esophageal cancer.