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- Evaluation of Current Antiemetic Therapy Response in Patients Undergoing MEC or HEC Regimens in PortugalPublication . A, Araujo; Tavares, Nuno; Faria, Ana Luísa; Gomes, Rosa; Mendonça, Joana Carvalho; Parente, Bárbara; Capela, Andreia; Barata, Fernando; Macedo, AnaChemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) negatively impact cancer patients' quality of life and treatment outcomes. This study evaluated the achievement of complete response to CINV prophylaxis during the first five days after chemotherapy in adult outpatient cancer clinics with solid malignant tumours receiving Moderate or Highly Emetogenic Chemotherapy (MEC or HEC) in Portugal. During the study, patients completed three evaluations, and nausea severity and CINV impact on patients' daily life was assessed. A complete response (no emetic episodes, no use of rescue antiemetic medication, and no more than mild nausea) was observed in 72% of the cycles (N = 161) throughout the five days after chemotherapy. Amongst the patient population, 25% classified their CINV episodes as severe. Though more than half of the patients achieved a complete response, suggesting that a therapeutic effort is being made to minimise this side effect, the overall scenario is barely optimistic. Significantly, new CINV-control measures in MEC/HEC patients should be adopted, specifically avoiding the single use of dexamethasone and 5-HT3 and raising awareness of using NK1-RAs. Thus, it is critical to improve CINV prophylactic treatment and implement practical international antiemetic guidelines in Portuguese clinical practice, envisaging the improvement of supportive care for cancer patients.
- Real-world data from the Portuguese Nivolumab Expanded Access Program (EAP) in previously treated Non Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC)Publication . Figueiredo, A.; Almeida, M.A.; Almodovar, M.T.; Alves, P.; A, Araujo; Araújo, D.; Barata, F.; Barradas, L.; Barroso, A.; Brito, U.; Camacho, E.; Canário, D.; Cardoso, T.; Chaves, A.; Costa, L.; Cunha, J.; Duarte, J.; Estevinho, F.; Felizardo, M.; Fernandes, J.P.; Ferreira, L.; Ferreira, L.; Fidalgo, Paula; Freitas, C.; Garrido, P.; Gil, N.; Hasmucrai, D.; Jesus, E.; Lopes, J.A.; de Macedo, J.E.; Meleiro, A.; Neveda, R.; Nogueira, F.; Pantorotto, M.; Parente, B.; Pego, A.; Rocha, M.; Roque, J.; Santos, C.; Saraiva, J.; Silva, E.; Silva, S.; Simões, S.; Soares, M.; Teixeira, E.; Timóteo, T.; Hespanhol, V.Objective: The main aim of the study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety profile of Nivolumab, an immune-checkpoint-inhibitor antibody, in advanced, previously treated, Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) patients, in a real world setting. Methods: We performed a retrospective, multicentre data analysis of patients who were included in the Portuguese Nivolumab Expanded Access Program (EAP). Eligibility criteria included histologically or citologically confirmed NSCLC, stage IIIB and IV, evaluable disease, sufficient organ function and at least one prior line of chemotherapy. The endpoints included Overall Response Rate (ORR), Disease Control Rate (DCR), Progression Free Survival (PFS) and Overall Survival (OS). Safety analysis was performed with the National Cancer Institute Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE), version 4.0, and immune-related Adverse Events (irAEs) were treated according to protocol treatment guidelines. Tumour response was assessed using the Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumours (RECIST) version 1.1. Data was analysed using SPSS, version 21.0 (IBM Statistics). Results: From June 2015 to December 2016, a total of 229 patients with advanced NSCLC were enrolled at 30 Portuguese centres. Clinical data were collected up to the end of July 2018. The baseline median age was 64 years (range 37-83) and the majority of patients were males (70.3%) and former/current smokers (69.4%). Patients with non-squamous histology predominated (88.1%), and 67.6% of the patients had received 2 or more prior lines of chemotherapy. Out of 229 patients, data was available for 219 patients (3 patients did not start treatment, while data was unavailable in 7 patients); of the 219 patients, 15.5% were not evaluated for radiological tumour assessment, 1.4% had complete response (CR), 21% partial response (PR), 31% stable disease (SD) and 31.1% progressive disease (PD). Thus, the ORR was 22.4% and DCR was 53.4% in this population. At the time of survival analysis the median PFS was 4.91 months (95% CI, 3.89-6.11) and median OS was 13.21 months (95% CI, 9.89-16.53). The safety profile was in line with clinical trial data. Conclusions: Efficacy and safety results observed in this retrospective analysis were consistent with observations reported in clinical trials and from other centres.
- Management of Gastrointestinal Toxicity from Immune Checkpoint InhibitorPublication . Rocha, Marta; Correia de Sousa, João; Salgado, Marta; Araujo, A.; Pedroto, I.Immune checkpoint inhibitors have shown anti-tumour activity in cancers such as melanoma, renal cell carcinoma, non-small-cell lung cancer, urothelial carcinoma, colorectal cancer, and Hodgkin's lymphoma. Though immune checkpoint inhibitors have revolutionized the treatment and prognosis of some advanced malignancies, they are also associated with a significant risk of immune-related adverse events. These adverse events can occur in any organ system, but gastrointestinal side effects are among the most commonly reported, with manifestations ranging from mild diarrhoea to severe colitis, sharing some features with inflammatory bowel disease. Anticipating a greater use of these drugs in the future, gastroenterologists should expect to be increasingly faced with gastrointestinal immune-related adverse events. Knowledge of these toxicities, as well as effective management algorithms, is essential to enable early diagnosis and treatment, decreasing morbidity and mortality. We reviewed the currently available literature on gastrointestinal toxicity induced by immune checkpoint inhibitors, namely the clinical features, diagnosis, and management.
- Real-World Experience in Treatment of Patients with Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer with BRAF or cMET Exon 14 Skipping MutationsPublication . Janzic, Urska; Shalata, Walid; Szymczak, Katarzyna; Dziadziuszko, Rafał; Jakopovic, Marko; Mountzios, Giannis; Płużański, Adam; A, Araujo; Charpidou, Andriani; Agbarya, AbedBRAF and cMET exon 14 skipping are rare mutations of NSCLC. The treatment sequence in these cases for the first and second line is not clear. An international registry was created for patients with advanced NSCLC harboring BRAF or cMET exon 14 skipping mutations, diagnosed from January 2017 to June 2022. Clinicopathological and molecular data and treatment patterns were recorded. Data on 58 patients, from eight centers across five countries, were included in the final analysis. We found that 40 patients had the cMET exon 14 skipping mutation and 18 had the BRAF V600E mutation. In total, 53 and 28 patients received first- and second-line treatments, respectively, among which 52.8% received targeted therapy (TT) in the first line and 53.5% in the second line. The overall response rate (ORR) and disease control rate (DCR) for first-line treatment with TT vs. other treatment such as immune checkpoint inhibitors ± chemotherapy (IO ± CT) were 55.6% vs. 21.7% (p = 0.0084) and 66.7% vs. 39.1% (p = 0.04), respectively. The type of treatment in first-line TT vs. other affected time to treatment discontinuation (TTD) was 11.6 m vs. 4.6 m (p= 0.006). The overall survival for the whole group was 15.4 m and was not statistically affected by the type of treatment (19.2 m vs. 13.5 m; p = 0.83).
- T790M-EGFR mutation frequency in advanced NSCLC patients on progression from a previous TKI therapy: results from a Portuguese studyPublication . Teixeira, Encarnação; A, Araujo; Hespanhol, Venceslau; Parente, Bárbara; Barata, Fernando