QUEEN MARY UNIVERSITY OF LONDON

Researchers from Queen Mary University of London presented findings at the ESMO Congress 2024, showing that chemotherapy-immunotherapy combinations improve survival in triple-negative breast cancer and muscle-invasive bladder cancer, becoming the new standard of care.

Dr. Bernadett E. Szabados discussed circulating vs. tissue-based biomarkers for urothelial and renal cell carcinomas at the 2024 ESMO meeting, highlighting established (FGFR3, PD-L1, ctDNA, HER2) and experimental biomarkers. FGFR3 expression varies by tumor stage, with erdafitinib targeting FGFR-positive metastatic urothelial carcinoma. PD-L1 testing shows mixed outcomes, while ctDNA correlates with disease burden and prognosis. For renal cell carcinoma, experimental biomarkers like PD-L1 and RNA-based molecular subtypes are under evaluation. Circulating biomarkers, particularly KIM-1, show promise in RCC.

The Duffy-null phenotype causes lower blood neutrophil levels due to their presence in other tissues. Clinical trials often exclude Duffy-null patients, even with normal neutrophil counts, leading to potential health inequity. Researchers recommend testing for the phenotype and adjusting trial criteria to include these patients.

Clinical trials of new cancer drugs may unfairly exclude people with Duffy-null phenotype, predominantly found in African/Middle Eastern descent, due to lower blood neutrophil levels. This exclusion could lead to less effective doses for these individuals, highlighting a need to re-evaluate neutrophil count criteria in trials.

Clinical trials of new cancer drugs may unfairly exclude people with Duffy-null phenotype, predominantly found in African and Middle Eastern descent, due to lower blood neutrophil levels. This exclusion could lead to less effective drug doses for these individuals. Researchers recommend testing for Duffy-null phenotype in trial screenings and adjusting dose modifications accordingly.

A study led by UCL researchers found that vutrisiran, a gene silencer drug, reduced hospitalisation and death risk by 28% over 3.5 years in ATTR cardiac amyloidosis patients, with a 33% reduction in non-tafamidis users. Vutrisiran, one of four promising treatments, binds to mRNA to reduce TTR protein production, potentially becoming the new standard of care.

The CLEAR study showed lenvatinib plus pembrolizumab significantly improved efficacy over sunitinib for advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC) patients, regardless of baseline metastases, prior nephrectomy, or sarcomatoid features. This supports its use as a first-line treatment for advanced RCC.

The article lists contributors and their affiliations, including Stuart L Rulten, Richard P Grose, Susanne A Gatz, J Louise Jones, and Angus J M Cameron, from various UK institutions. It also mentions the editor, Luís Lima, and the article's open access status under the CC BY license.