Abstract IA005: PET imaging predictors of response to chemoradiotherapy in cervical cancer

Abstract

Abstract Although HPV transformed tumors are presumed to be radiation sensitive, approximately one third of locally advanced cervical cancer patients fail the current standard of care (concurrent cisplatin and radiation therapy). Work in our laboratory has combined the results of functional imaging with 18F-fluoro-deoxy-glucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) imaging together with bioinformatic analyses of associated translational correlates to define new predictors of resistance to DNA damaging therapies. Results of this work demonstrate that cervical tumors with increased FDG uptake on pretreatment FDG-PET imaging are characterized by myeloid predominant inflammatory infiltrates, including immature monocytes and macrophages. Co-culture of cervical tumor cells with macrophages is associated with increased glucose uptake and pro-survival signaling in tumor cells mediated through macrophage derived IL-6 and signaling through the JAK-STAT pathway. We are currently using a combination of single cell sequencing and spatially resolved approaches to further define PET associated and chemoradiation induced changes in cervix tumor cell metabolism and the immune tumor microenvironment with the goal of defining new targets for personalized therapies. Importantly, cervical cancers retain and transcribe portions of the HPV genome. At the end of the talk, we will review recent work in our lab that highlights the impact of HPV associated gene expression, including splice variants, on the response to DNA damaging agents. Citation Format: Julie K. Schwarz. PET imaging predictors of response to chemoradiotherapy in cervical cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference in Cancer Research: DNA Damage Repair: From Basic Science to Future Clinical Application; 2024 Jan 9-11; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(1 Suppl):Abstract nr IA005.