Lower Risk Of Relapse Research Articles

Age-corrected neurofilament light chain ratio decreases but does not predict relapse in highly active multiple sclerosis patients initiating natalizumab treatment

BackgroundNeurofilament light chain (NFL) is a biomarker for monitoring disease activity and treatment response in multiple sclerosis (MS). However, while most agree that NFL levels predict disease activity and worsening, the predictive value of NFL on future relapse risk remains uncertain. ObjectiveThe primary aim was to evaluate the predictive value of age-corrected serum NFL (sNFL) ratio on relapse risk in highly active relapsing-remitting MS patients (RRMS) treated with natalizumab. A secondary aim was to investigate the predictive value of sNFL ratios for MRI activity. MethodsFrom January 1, 2006, to December 31, 2010, 355 patients initiated natalizumab treatment at the Danish Multiple Sclerosis Center. 305 patients were anti-natalizumab antibodies negative and had at least one blood sample available for sNFL analysis using single molecule array analysis at baseline, three, six, or 12 months. The patients were either treatment-naïve (n = 8), switching from interferon-β or glatiramer acetate (n = 253), or switching from mitoxantrone (n = 44). An age-corrected ratio was calculated for sNFL.Time to first relapse was calculated from baseline and after re-baseline at 90 days. Data were collected from baseline until the two-year follow-up or end of treatment and included disease duration, expanded disability status scale, previous treatments, relapses 12 months prior to natalizumab initiation, smoking intensity, body mass index, and body weight. In addition, the patients underwent annual MRI of the brain. ResultsThe sNFL ratio was increased in 173 of 287 samples (60.3 %) at baseline, in 119 of 246 samples (48.8 %) at month three, in 109 of 287 samples (38.0 %) at month six, and in 82 of 270 samples (30.4 %) at month 12. The sNFL ratio continuously declined over 12 months with significant decreases for every measuring timepoint: baseline vs. three months p = 3.0 × 10−6; three months vs. six months p = 3.2 × 10−5; six months vs. 12 months p = 0.002.Univariate Cox regression analysis showed that time to first relapse from 1) natalizumab initiation and from 2) re-baseline was associated with the number of relapses in the previous 12 months (hazard ratio 1.31 per relapse, 95 % CI = 1.2–1.5, p = 2.0 × 10−6; and 1.21 per relapse, 95 % CI = 1.1–1.4, p = 0.002, respectively). sNFL ratio at re-baseline was negatively associated with relapse risk (hazard ratio 0.82 per unit; 95 % CI = 0.7–1.0; p = 0.049).A multivariable Cox regression analysis of relapse risk from re-baseline showed that the number of relapses in the 12 months prior to natalizumab treatment (hazard ratio 1.29; 95 % CI = 1.1–1.5; p = 6.0 × 10−4) and smoking (hazard ratio 1.51 per 20 cigarettes per day; 95 % CI = 1.0–2.2; p = 0.030) were associated with increased risk of relapse; sNFL ratio was associated with a lower risk of relapse (hazard ratio = 0.736 per unit; 95 % CI = 0.6–0.9 p = 0.007).In univariate logistic regression analyses, the sNFL ratio at 12 months and values above the 75th and the 90th percentile predicted MRI activity in the following year (odds ratio [OR] = 2.0, 95 % CI = 1.2–3.6, p = 0.012; OR = 2.2, 95 % CI = 1.2–4.1, p = 0.014; and OR = 2.8, 95 % CI = 1.1–6.7, p = 0.026). ConclusionIn this highly active RRMS cohort, high sNFL ratios reflected previous relapse activity and decreased after initiation of treatment but were not associated with increased relapse risk in the following two years. Pre-treatment relapses and smoking on treatment were predictors of relapse risk after re-baselining at 90 days. MRI activity in year two was predicted by sNFL ratios at month 12.

ЛАПАРОСКОПИЧЕСКАЯ ПАНКРЕАТОЦИСТОЕЮНОСТОМИЯ

Background. Pancreatic pseudocyst formation is known to be one of the most common complications of chronic pancreatitis. Despite the widespread use of the laparoscopy, it is still relatively rarely employed in pancreatic surgery. Objective. To analyze the outcomes of laparoscopic Roux-en-Y pancreatocytojejunostomy as well as to present a brief literature review. Material and methods. Data from diagnostic examinations, laboratory tests, as well as the outcomes of surgical treatment of a female patient for a pancreatic cyst are presented. It is worth noting that a laparoscopic Roux-en-Y pancreatocystojejunostomy was used for pancreatic cyst treatment in this case. Results. Successfully performed laparoscopic surgery enabled to preserve as much of the pancreas as possible and to avoid postoperative complications. Conclusions. The described case, along with the reviewed publications, indicate that laparoscopic internal drainage may be regarded as a feasible method for the treatment of encapsulated cysts of the body and tail of the pancreas in chronic pancreatitis. This is due to the fact that this surgical option doesn’t involve pancreatic parenchyma volume reduction and has a lower risk of relapse as compared with external drainage methods. Based on the above mentioned, the choice of this method is associated with relatively minimal surgical trauma, fewer complications and a short-term postoperative period. To perform such operations successfully, special tools and skills are required. The presence of domestically produced endoscopic staplers contributes to the further implementation of this type of intervention into practice.

When to stop immunotherapy for advanced melanoma: Emulation of target trials.

9521 Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) have demonstrated their effectiveness with a 7.5-year overall survival (OS) close to 50% for advanced stages. The design of clinical trials allowed treatment until progression or toxicity, or for a maximum duration of two years. Prolonged follow-up of responders after cessation shows sustained response and a low risk of relapse in the months following cessation. As of yet, the optimal duration of anti-PD-1 therapy for metastatic melanoma remains unestablished. The objective of this work was to evaluate the optimal duration of ICI. Methods: We conducted emulated trials using the cloning, weighting and censoring approach. Each emulated trial aimed at comparing the causal effect of stopping versus continuing ICI at a specific timepoint, in patients still under treatment and with disease control at that time. Results: The study comprised 1017 participants to the MELBASE cohort. Results of the 6-month discontinuation emulated trial showed a significantly lower OS if treatment was discontinued, compared to continuing treatment for at least three months. The 48-month survival difference was 37.8% (95% confidence interval [CI] 19.8 to 60.5), and the corresponding restricted mean survival time difference 8.3 months (95% CI: 4.1 to 12.7). The 12-month and 18-month discontinuation emulated trials both showed no evidence of benefit of either discontinuing or continuing ICI at any of those timepoints. The 24-month discontinuation emulated trial results were more in favor of stopping compared to continuing treatment at that decision point, with an absolute 48-month survival 10.5% higher (95% CI 4.4 to 18.1). Conclusions: These results suggest that a one-year course of immunotherapy is both necessary and sufficient for patients with advanced melanoma. Prolonged treatment beyond 2 years does not appear to be beneficial in terms of survival and could even be detrimental.[Table: see text]

#1484 Development of a relapse risk score in patients with ANCA-associated vasculitis treated with cyclophosphamide induction

Abstract Background and Aims Cyclophosphamide (CYC), together with rituximab, is the mainstay for induction therapy in ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) [1]. The risk factors influencing the likelihood of relapse in individuals undergoing CYC induction are still unclear. This study aims to score the more robust predictors of relapse in these patients, thereby building a clinically useful tool. Method Patients' characteristics were pooled from three cohorts from Italy, Ireland, and Spain. Eligibility criteria were a diagnosis of GPA, MPA, or EGPA, age >18 years, induction treatment with CYC [either as intravenous therapy (IV) and/or oral], and at least 12 months of follow-up. Baseline assessment included clinical data, laboratory testing, and assessment of manifestations of GPA, MPA, and EGPA in each organ system according to the Birmingham Vasculitis Activity Score (BVAS). Relapse was defined as the presence of ≥1 new vasculitis manifestation after a remission lasting at least 3 months; remission was defined as no disease activity (BVAS=0) irrespective of the glucocorticoid use. Time-to-remission and relapse-free survival probabilities were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. A multivariate Cox analysis, including the statistically significant factors at a previous univariate analysis, was employed to develop a practical prognostic score, defined as “Relapse Evaluation And Cyclophosphamide Treatment (REACT) score”, in which each independent predictor was assigned a number of weighted points proportional to its β regression coefficient. Results The score development cohort comprised 505 patients. 223 patients (44.2%) had MPA, 217 (43.0%) GPA, and 65 (12.9%) EGPA. 183 patients (36.2%) experienced a relapse, with a median time to relapse of 33 months (IQR: 13-61). A multivariate Cox regression analysis proved that PR3-ANCA (HR: 1, 30, 95% CI 1, 01-1, 87), IV CYC (HR: 1.78, 95% CI 1.31-2.41), cardiovascular involvement (HR: 1.82, 95% CI 1.01-3.25), arthralgias/arthritis (HR: 1.46 95% CI 1.08-1.98) and the absence of rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis (HR: 1.37, 95% CI 1.02-1.85) were all independent risk factors of relapse. These variables were used to build the REACT score, with each item receiving 1 point except for CV involvement and IV CYC, each receiving 2 points. We then identified three risk categories according to the score of each patient (Fig. 1A). We identified 138 (27%) patients with low risk of relapse (score 0-1), 252 (49%) with an intermediate risk (score 2-3), and 115 patients (22%) with a high risk (score 4-7). These three groups showed different relapse probabilities on Kaplan-Meier analysis (pairwise comparisons between the groups were all statistically significant) (Fig. 1B). Conclusion The REACT score can be employed at diagnosis to predict the risk of relapse in patients with AAV treated with cyclophosphamide induction. Its value needs to be confirmed in external cohorts.

Development and validation of a novel criterion of histologic healing in ulcerative colitis defined by inflammatory cell enumeration in lamina propria mucosa: A multicenter retrospective cohort in China.

Histological healing is closely associated with improved long-term clinical outcomes and lowered relapses in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). Here, we developed a novel diagnostic criterion for assessing histological healing in UC patients. We conducted a retrospective cohort study in UC patients, whose treatment was iteratively optimized to achieve mucosal healing at Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital of Tongji University from January 2017 to May 2022. We identified an inflammatory cell enumeration index (ICEI) for assessing histological healing based on the proportions of eosinophils, CD177 + neutrophils, and CD40L + T cells in the colonic lamina propria under high power field (HPF), and the outcomes (risks of symptomatic relapses) of achieving histological remission vs . persistent histological inflammation using Kaplan-Meier curves. Intrareader reliability and inter-reader reliability were evaluated by each reader. The relationships to the changes in the Nancy index and the Geboes score were also assessed for responsiveness. The ICEI was further validated in a new cohort of UC patients from other nine university hospitals. We developed an ICEI for clinical diagnosis of histological healing, i.e., Y=1.701X 1 + 0.758X 2 + 1.347X 3 - 7.745 (X 1 , X 2 , and X 3 represent the proportions of CD177 + neutrophils, eosinophils, and CD40L + T cells, respectively, in the colonic lamina propria under HPF). The receiver operating characteristics curve (ROC) analysis revealed that Y <-0.391 was the cutoff value for the diagnosis of histological healing and that an area under the curve (AUC) was 0.942 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.905-0.979) with a sensitivity of 92.5% and a specificity of 83.6% ( P <0.001). The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) for the intrareader reliability was 0.855 (95% CI: 0.781-0.909), and ICEI had good inter-reader reliability of 0.832 (95% CI: 0.748-0.894). During an 18-month follow-up, patients with histological healing had a substantially better outcome compared with those with unachieved histological healing ( P <0.001) using ICEI. During a 12-month follow-up from other nine hospitals, patients with histological healing also had a lower risk of relapse than patients with unachieved histological healing. ICEI can be used to predict histological healing and identify patients with a risk of relapse 12 months and 18 months after clinical therapy. Therefore, ICEI provides a promising, simplified approach to monitor histological healing and to predict the prognosis of UC. Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, No. ChiCTR2300077792.

Long-term clinical outcomes in patients with CIS treated with interferon beta-1b: results from the 15-year follow up of the BENEFIT trial

Multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment intervention with immunomodulating therapy at early disease stage improves short term clinical outcomes. The objective of this study is to describe the long-term outcomes and healthcare utilization of patients with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) included in the Betaferon®/Betaseron® in Newly Emerging MS for Initial Treatment (BENEFIT) randomized, parallel group trial. In BENEFIT patients were assigned to “early” IFNB-1b treatment or placebo (“delayed” treatment). After 2 years or conversion to clinically definite multiple sclerosis (CDMS), all patients were offered IFNB-1b and were reassessed 15 years later. Of 468 patients, 261 (55.8%) were enrolled into BENEFIT 15 (161 [55.1%] from the early, 100 [56.8%] from the delayed treatment arm). In the full BENEFIT analysis set, risk of conversion to CDMS remained lower in the early treatment group ( – 30.5%; hazard ratio 0.695 [95% CI, 0.547–0.883]; p = 0.0029) with a 15.7% lower risk of relapse than in the delayed treatment group (p = 0.1008). Overall, 25 patients (9.6%; 9.9% early, 9.0% delayed) converted to secondary progressive multiple sclerosis. Disability remained low and stable with no significant difference between groups in Expanded Disability Status Scale score or MRI metrics. Paced Auditory Serial Addition Task-3 scores were better in the early treatment group (p = 0.0036 for treatment effect over 15 years). 66.3% of patients were still employed at Year 15 versus 74.7% at baseline. In conclusion, results 15 years from initial randomization support long-term benefits of early treatment with IFNB-1b.

A Concurrent Analysis of Drug Relapse Risk, Drug Avoidance Self-Efficacy, and Aftercare Experiences among Aftercare Program Clients

The cases of drug use and abuse have predominantly increased globally. This issue has become the most significant challenge among mental health professionals, the national government, and the general population. With the absence of substantial research about drug relapse and avoidance in the Philippines, this mixed-method research seeks to find out the relationship between drug relapse risk and drug avoidance self-efficacy among substance users who participated in the aftercare program. This study employed a concurrent mixed method design, combining both quantitative and qualitative approaches. In the quantitative phase, the Advance Warning of Relapse (AWARE) Questionnaire and Drug Avoidance Self-Efficacy Scale (DASES) were administered to 66 participants from the Aftercare Program (ACP) at the Department of Health Treatment and Rehabilitation Center in Eastern Visayas. The aim was to establish a correlation between the risk of drug relapse and drug avoidance self-efficacy. In the qualitative phase, interviews were conducted with five participants who met the study's inclusion criteria. Purposive sampling was used to select these participants. Quantitative findings revealed that ACP clients had low drug relapse risk and high drug avoidance self-efficacy. Moreover, Pearson product-moment correlation shows an inverse relationship between lower drug relapse risk and high drug avoidance self-efficacy, and vice-versa. However, the correlation between these variables is weak, indicating that drug avoidance self-efficacy is not a strong predictor of relapse risk in aftercare program clients. Similarly, qualitative results exposed the client’s experiences in the After Care Program. Six themes emerge from their experiences, such as their various reasons for taking the drugs, the effects of substance use, their effective coping mechanisms, the treatment of their communities, their accomplishment of recovery goals, and overcoming challenges in their recovery. The study suggests that individuals who participate in the aftercare programs are trying their best to recover and increase their self-efficacy to avoid using drugs. This strong self-efficacy, in combination with various factors such as family support, the acceptance of the community, and continued reminders of the consequences of substance abuse, decreased their vulnerability to use drugs in high-risk situations. The findings will increase the awareness of Filipinos in the prevention and treatment of substance use among their loved ones, relatives, and friends. Likewise, the findings recommend improving the aftercare program to increase its effectiveness and efficiency in preventing relapse among individuals in recovery.

Abstract PO5-17-10: PERFORMANCE AND OUTCOMES OF THE 70-GENES SIGNATURE (MAMMAPRINT™) IN A POPULATION WITH MIDDLE INCOME – REAL WORLD STUDY (AGEMA-BRA)

Abstract INTRODUCTION – Breast cancer remains the most frequent tumor in the female population and the fourth in mortality in the world population (GLOBOCAN 2020). With the aim of reducing mortality and at the same time de-escalating treatment, avoiding overtreatment, individualized therapy is increasingly being applied. The genomic signature of 70-genes, when stratifying patients into high and low risk of relapse, makes it possible to withdraw part of the cases of high clinical risk from chemotherapy treatment. However, the MINDACT study, which validated this signature, was carried out only in the European population, with no data on performance and outcomes in other populations with greater miscegenation. OBJECTIVE – To study the performance and outcomes of the 70-gene genomic signature (MammaPrint™) in a Brazilian population with a high ethnic miscegenation. METHODOLOGY – A retrospective cohort study was conducted in 953 women with breast cancer at high clinical risk, who underwent genomic analysis with the 70-gene platform (MammaPrint™), from January 2016 to December 2020. For the statistical evaluation, a descriptive analysis of the data with absolute and relative frequencies of the variables was performed. To verify the association between qualitative variables, the chi-square test was used. All analyzes were performed in the R 4.1.0 environment (R Core Team, 2021). Study approved by the Research Ethics Committee of the State University of Ponta Grossa (PR) - (CAAE: 12194219.4.0000.0105). RESULTS – The analysis of 955 cases from the AGEMABRA cohort (all at high clinical risk) showed 546 cases (57.2%) with low genomic risk and 409 cases (42.8%) with high genomic risk to MammaPrint™ (MP); when compared with data from the MINDACT study (46.2% low risk and 53.8% high risk) a significant difference was observed in the distribution for high and low risk in the two populations (p.&amp;lt; 0.001). After excluding patients with missing data, 409 cases of low- and high-risk MP were studied. The variables regarding age group, tumor diameter, number of affected lymph nodes, hormone receptors and HER2 overexpression showed no significant difference; within this same analysis, the tumor grade showed a higher incidence of grade 1 in the population with low genomic risk (6.6%) compared to high risk (2.9%) and grade 3 in high risk (13%) compared to low risk (5%) with p.&amp;lt; 0.001 (table 1). With an average follow-up of 40 months, the DMFS (disease metastatic free survival) found was 97.2%, being 97.8% for low risk and 96.2% for high risk (p.0.54). All patients with high-risk MP who progressed had used adjuvant chemotherapy, and all patients with low-risk MP who relapsed received only endocrine therapy. When compared to the MINDACT population, the AGEMA-BRA has more elderly patients, and smaller tumors with a lower histological grade (p.=&amp;lt; 0.001). CONCLUSION – The analysis of the Brazilian population submitted to the 70-gene genomic signature showed a greater proportional number of tumors with low genomic risk than in the test approval study, favoring its application with the aim of de-escalating systemic treatment in this population. Despite the low rate of disease progression in the AGEMA-BRA study, probably determined by the population with the best prognosis disease and the short follow-up, recurrence was similar in the high and low genomic risk groups, demonstrating the adequate selection of systemic therapy following the results of the MP. An increase in the sample size and longer follow-up are necessary to confirm the results found. Table 1. Characteristics of patients and tumor according to risk (AGEMA-BRA) Citation Format: Fabio Mansani, Ruffo Freitas-Junior. PERFORMANCE AND OUTCOMES OF THE 70-GENES SIGNATURE (MAMMAPRINT™) IN A POPULATION WITH MIDDLE INCOME – REAL WORLD STUDY (AGEMA-BRA) [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2023 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2023 Dec 5-9; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(9 Suppl):Abstract nr PO5-17-10.

Abstract GS02-08: Five-year outcomes of the IDEA trial of endocrine therapy without radiotherapy after breast-conserving surgery for postmenopausal patients age 50-69 with genomically-selected favorable Stage I breast cancer

Abstract Background: Multiple studies have shown a low risk of ipsilateral breast events (IBE) or other recurrences for selected patients age 65-70 or older with Stage I breast cancers treated with breast conserving surgery (BCS) and endocrine therapy (ET) without adjuvant radiotherapy (RT). We designed a prospective single-arm trial, IDEA (Individualized Decisions for Endocrine therapy Alone), to see if younger postmenopausal patients could also be successfully treated without RT, adding a genomic assay to classic selection factors. Methods: Postmenopausal patients aged 50-69 with pT1N0 unifocal invasive breast cancer with margins 2 mm or wider after BCS whose tumors were ER+, PR+, and Her2- with Oncotype DX 21-gene recurrence score (RS) 18 or lower were eligible to avoid RT if they consented to take at least 5 years of ET and surveillance on study. The primary endpoint was the rate of breast cancer recurrence at 5 years of follow-up after BCS. A valid 5–year assessment was defined as a clinical assessment within 4 months prior to the 5-year anniversary or later. Follow-up time was calculated from the date of BCS until first recurrence [ipsilateral breast events (IBE) or regional or distant failures] or to last clinical follow-up. The time-to-event endpoint was calculated using the product-limit method of Kaplan and Meier measured from the date of BCS. Results: 200 eligible patients were enrolled from 13 US institutions between June 2015 and October 2018. Median age was 63 years (IQR 58-66); mean RS was 11.2 (SD 4.8). Tumors were grade 1 in 85 patients, grade 2 in 109, and grade 3 in 6. Mean tumor size was 10 mm (SD 4.6). Lymphovascular invasion was present in 16 tumors and an extensive intraductal component in 11. Median follow-up time was 5.21 years (IQR 5.01-5.97); 8 of 14 patients with less than 56 months of follow-up were lost to follow-up. Overall and breast cancer-specific survival rates at 5 years were both 100%; 2 deaths occurred later than 5 years. The 5-year freedom from recurrence was 99% (95% CI, 96%-100%). One of the two events occurring by 5 years was an isolated axillary recurrence at 21 months treated with axillary dissection and breast and regional nodal irradiation. The other was an IBE at 49 months, treated with repeat BCS. Both these patients had been compliant with ET. Six additional patients recurred later than 5 years after BCS (5 IBEs, 1 IBE plus regional recurrence). Crude rates of IBE for the entire follow-up period for patients aged 50-59 and 60-69 were 3.3% (2/60) and 3.6% (5/140), respectively; crude rates of overall relapse were 5.0% (3/60) and 3.6% (5/140). Conclusions: This multicenter trial of ET without RT following BCS achieved a very low risk of relapse for postmenopausal patients with Stage I cancers using a genomic assay in combination with classic clinical and biologic features for treatment selection, including for patients younger than age 60. IDEA demonstrates a 5-year probability of recurrence consistent with or lower than the 4% risk estimated a priori, and the patients accrued were younger when compared to prior prospective trials (e.g., PRIME II, minimum age 65; CALGB 9343, minimum age 70; LUMINA, median age 67). The results of ongoing NRG BR007 trial, which randomly allocates women meeting these eligibility criteria to receive RT or not, and similar randomized and single-arm studies will help determine whether the option of avoiding initial RT can be offered to a broader group of women than current guidelines recommend. Long-term follow-up beyond the 5-year required period of ET will be important to determine if the risk of recurrence increases, particularly after discontinuation of ET. Citation Format: Reshma Jagsi, Kent Griffith, Eleanor Harris, Jean Wright, Abram Recht, Alphonse Taghian, Lucille Lee, Meena Moran, William Small, Candice Johnstone, Asal Rahimi, Gary Freedman, Mahvish Muzaffar, Bruce Haffty, Kathleen Horst, Simon Powell, Jody Sharp, Michael Sabel, Anne Schott, Mahmoud El-Tamer. Five-year outcomes of the IDEA trial of endocrine therapy without radiotherapy after breast-conserving surgery for postmenopausal patients age 50-69 with genomically-selected favorable Stage I breast cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2023 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2023 Dec 5-9; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(9 Suppl):Abstract nr GS02-08.

Comparative Effectiveness of Natalizumab, Fingolimod, and Injectable Therapies in Pediatric-Onset Multiple Sclerosis: A Registry-Based Study.

Patients with pediatric-onset multiple sclerosis (POMS) typically experience higher levels of inflammation with more frequent relapses, and though patients with POMS usually recover from relapses better than adults, patients with POMS reach irreversible disability at a younger age than adult-onset patients. There have been few randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials of multiple sclerosis (MS) disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) in patients with POMS, and most available data are based on observational studies of off-label use of DMTs approved for adults. We assessed the effectiveness of natalizumab compared with fingolimod using injectable platform therapies as a reference in pediatric patients in the global MSBase registry. This retrospective study included patients with POMS who initiated treatment with an injectable DMT, natalizumab, or fingolimod between January 1, 2006, and May 3, 2021. Patients were matched using inverse probability treatment weighting. The primary outcome was time to first relapse from index therapy initiation. Secondary study outcomes included annualized relapse rate; proportions of relapse-free patients at 1, 2, and 5 years; time to treatment discontinuation; and times to 24-week confirmed disability worsening and confirmed disability improvement. A total of 1,218 patients with POMS were included in this analysis. Patients treated with fingolimod had a significantly lower risk of relapse than patients treated with injectable DMTs (hazard ratio [HR], 0.49; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.29-0.83; p = 0.008). After adjustment for prior DMT experience in the unmatched sample, patients treated with natalizumab had a significantly lower risk of relapse than patients treated either with injectable DMTs (HR, 0.15; 95% CI 0.07-0.31; p < 0.001) or fingolimod (HR, 0.37; 95% CI 0.14-1.00; p = 0.049). The adjusted secondary study outcomes were generally consistent with the primary outcome or with previous observations. The findings in the inverse probability treatment weighting-adjusted patient populations were confirmed in multiple sensitivity analyses. Our analyses of relapse risk suggest that natalizumab is more effective than fingolimod in the control of relapses in this population with high rates of new inflammatory activity, consistent with previous studies of natalizumab and fingolimod in adult-onset patients and POMS. In addition, both fingolimod and natalizumab were more effective than first-line injectable therapies. This study provides Class II evidence that patients with POMS treated with natalizumab had a lower risk of relapse than those with fingolimod.

Risk of Relapse of Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic Antibody-Associated Vasculitis in a Randomized Controlled Trial of Plasma Exchange and Glucocorticoids.

Relapses of antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis are important events that can cause organ dysfunction and reduce quality of life. Understanding the effects of the initial treatments for ANCA-associated vasculitis on the subsequent risk of relapse may help guide monitoring and treatment. We performed a post hoc analysis of participants with severe ANCA-associated vasculitis enrolled in an international two-by-two factorial randomized controlled trial comparing the effects of plasma exchange (PLEX) to no PLEX and a regimen of reduced glucocorticoid exposure to a standard regimen. We estimated the effects of treatments on relapses of any severity using three competing risk time-to-event models adjusted for patient and disease characteristics and other treatments. Each model was adjusted for disease manifestations in different ways. Of 704 participants, 649 (92.2%) achieved remission and 147 (22.7%) experienced 204 relapses. The relapse rate was 10.3 (95% confidence interval [CI] 8.4-12.1) relapses per 100 patient-years. Neither the use of PLEX (subhazard ratio 0.91-0.94; 95% CIs range from 0.66 to 1.31) nor a glucocorticoid regimen (subhazard ratio 0.93-0.94; 95% CIs range from 0.67 to 1.35) appreciably changed the risk of relapse. Proteinase 3-ANCA and the presence of nonhemorrhagic respiratory manifestations of the disease at trial entry were associated with increased risks of relapse. Receiving dialysis at baseline and administration of oral cyclophosphamide as induction therapy were associated with lower risks of relapse. In patients with severe ANCA-associated vasculitis, relapses remain common; neither the use of PLEX nor an initial glucocorticoid tapering regimen impacted relapse risk.

Treatment discontinuation in older people with multiple sclerosis.

The aim of this review was to examine the evidence for disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) discontinuation in older people with multiple sclerosis (MS). We first summarized aging-associated biological changes that influence MS progression and DMT effectiveness, and then summarized recent evidence in evaluating clinical outcomes of discontinuing DMTs in older people with MS. Recent findings provide mixed evidence regarding the outcomes of DMT discontinuation in older people with MS. Retrospective observational studies suggested older age and longer stable duration on DMT before DMT discontinuation were associated with lower risk of relapse in people with MS. However, one randomized clinical trial did not demonstrate the noninferiority of DMT discontinuation. The available clinical evidence examining DMT discontinuation in older people with MS remains inconclusive. More robust evidence from clinical trials and real-world data will be necessary to guide clinical decisions regarding DMT discontinuation in older people with MS.

Antipsychotic Use and Psychiatric Hospitalization in First-Episode Non-affective Psychosis and Cannabis Use Disorder: A Swedish Nationwide Cohort Study.

There is a paucity of research on treatment outcomes of patients with psychosis and cannabis use disorder (CUD). We aimed to compare the effectiveness of antipsychotics in reducing the risk of hospitalization in patients with first-episode psychosis (FEP) and co-occurring CUD. We utilized a nationwide Swedish cohort of patients with longitudinal register data from the year 2006 to 2021. Participants were patients with FEP and co-occurring CUD (n = 1820, 84.73% men, mean age 26.80 years, SD 8.25 years). The main outcome was hospitalization due to psychotic relapse. Hospitalization due to any psychiatric disorder or substance use disorder (SUD) were examined as secondary outcomes. Within-individual Cox regression models were used to study these associations. Use of any antipsychotic was associated with a 33% risk reduction of psychotic relapse (aHR = 0.67; 95% CI 0.60-0.75). Clozapine (0.43; 0.29-0.64), long-acting injectable (LAI) formulations of risperidone (0.40; 0.22-0.71), aripiprazole (0.42; 0.27-0.65), and paliperidone (0.46; 0.30-0.69) were associated with the lowest risk of relapse. The association between the LAI formulation of olanzapine and hospitalization due to psychosis was statistically non-significant (0.61; 0.35-1.05). Clozapine was associated with an 86% risk reduction of hospitalization due to SUD (0.14; 0.05-0.44). Of oral non-clozapine antipsychotics, aripiprazole was associated with the lowest risk of hospitalization due to psychotic relapse (0.61; 0.45-0.83). These findings support the use of clozapine, LAI formulations of second-generation antipsychotics other than olanzapine, or oral aripiprazole to prevent hospitalization in FEP and co-occurring CUD.

Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia, cardiac implantable electronic device, extraction, and the risk of recurrent infection; a retrospective population-based cohort study

Background Patients with cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) and Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia (SAB) are at risk of having CIED infection, pocket infection or endocarditis. To avoid treatment failures, guidelines recommend that the CIED should be extracted in all cases of SAB butrecent studies indicate low extraction rates and low risk of relapse. The aim of the study was to describe a Swedish population-based cohort of patients with CIED and SAB, the rate of extraction, and treatment failure measured as recurrent SAB. Methods Patients identified to have SAB in the Karolinska Laboratory database, serving a population of 1.9 million, from January 2015 through December 2019 were matched to the Swedish ICD and Pacemaker Registry. Patients with CIED and SAB were included. Clinical data were collected from medical records. Results A cohort of 274 patients was identified and 38 patients (14%)had the CIED extracted. Factors associated with extraction were lower age, lower Charlson comorbidity index, shorter time since CIED implantation, and non-nosocomial acquisition, but not mortality. No patient was put on lifelong antibiotic treatment. Sixteen patients (6%) had a recurrent SAB within one year, two in patients subjected to extraction (5%) and 14 in patients not subjected to CIED-extraction (6%). Three of the 14 patients were found to have definite endocarditis during the recurrent episode. Conclusions Despite a low extraction rate, there were few recurrences. We suggest that extraction of the CIED might be omitted if pocket infection, changes on the CIED, or definite endocarditis are not detected.

Abstract 6176: Identifying poor prognosis stage I lung adenocarcinoma patients through novel morphological biomarker based on computational pathology

Abstract Current practice for evaluating prognosis of resectable lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients relies on the Tumor, Node, Metastasis staging system. Despite low relapse risk, post-recurrence survival in a stage I population is poor with a median post relapse survival of around 25 months. There is a need for a biomarker that can enrich for stage I patients with relapse risk to identify a population likely to benefit from adjuvant therapy. In this study, we aim to identify a predictive biomarker of relapse in early-stage lung cancer following surgical resection using AI-based computational pathology. The retrospective patient cohort analyzed in this study consisted of a total of 166 patients that underwent surgical resection for a clinical stage I LUAD. Out of these, 54 patients experienced disease recurrence within 5 years, and 112 patients had a confirmed disease-free period of at least 5 years post-surgery. For each patient, at least one digitized slide (average = 2.46) stained with haematoxylin and eosin (H&amp;E) was available for analysis. The project was accepted by the IUCPQ ethics committee (2022-3751, 22138). Manual annotations delineating the tumor core (TC) were drawn by pathologists. We then applied several proprietary image analysis models capable of distinguishing epithelium, stroma, and necrosis within the tumor tissue as well as detecting tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and cell nuclei. In this project, we additionally introduce a novel approach rooted in mathematical graph theory to encoding topological aspects of the tissue morphology. A cell-graph constructed from the positions of cell nuclei was used to calculate cell-level graph-theoretic measures which were then aggregated to the slide-level by computing the median. In total, 23 data readouts were obtained of which 14 were based on the standard image analysis pipeline alone, and a further 9 originated from our newly developed graph-based approach. We identified promising biomarkers using the Wilcoxon rank-sum test and the area under the ROC curve (AUROC); robustness of this evaluation was investigating using resampling methods, using 100 bootstrap samples and 100 repeats of 3-fold cross-validation, respectively. This allowed us to evaluate the prognostic value of the biomarkers with respect to 5-year relapse or death. We were able to identify the best prognostic biomarker for relapse to be the median weighted clustering coefficient (CC) across all cells in the TC area, which is derived from the graph-based analyses. The median CC was able to achieve a whole-cohort AUROC of 0.695 (average cross-validated AUROC = 0.675, 95% interval 61.7%-70.4%) as well as a relapse vs relapse-free Wilcoxon test p-value of 4.65x10-5 (bootstrapped average = 0.0002). In addition, we were also able to demonstrate that the biomarker shows some relation to the architecture patterns. Citation Format: Florian J. Song, Alma Andoni, Manal Kordahi, Sara Batelli, Armin Meier, Markus Schick, Emilie Mahieu, Günter Schmidt, Claire E. Myers, Michael Abadier, Abjihit Dasgupta, Christopher Abbosh, Darren Hodgson, Michèle Orain, Fabien C. Lamaze, Yohan Bossé, Philippe Joubert. Identifying poor prognosis stage I lung adenocarcinoma patients through novel morphological biomarker based on computational pathology [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2024; Part 1 (Regular Abstracts); 2024 Apr 5-10; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(6_Suppl):Abstract nr 6176.

The impact of fluphenazine withdrawal: a mirror-image study.

Fluphenazine decanoate licenced as a long-acting injectable (LAI) first-generation antipsychotic (FGA) was withdrawn from sale in 2018. This study evaluates if its withdrawal resulted in increased relapse rates of psychosis in an Irish patient cohort and examines which prescribed alternative antipsychotic medications were associated with more optimal outcomes. Fifteen participants diagnosed with a psychotic disorder were included. A mirror-image study over 24-months' pre-and post-withdrawal of fluphenazine was conducted. Kaplan-Meier survival and proportional hazards analyses were conducted. The impact of alternate antipsychotic agents (LAI flupenthixol compared to other antipsychotic medications) was evaluated. Semi-structured interviews with participants examined subjective opinions regarding the change in their treatment. Seven participants (46.7%) relapsed in the 24-month period subsequent to fluphenazine discontinuation compared to one individual (6.7%) in the previous identical time-period (p = 0.035). Flupenthixol treatment was associated with reduced relapse rates compared to other antipsychotics (χ2 = 5.402, p = 0.02). Thematic analysis revealed that participants believed that the discontinuation of fluphenazine deleteriously impacted the stability of their mental disorder. The withdrawal of fluphenazine was associated with increased relapse rate in individuals previously demonstrating stability of their psychotic disorder. While acknowledging the limitation of small sample size, preliminary evidence from this study suggests that treatment with the first-generation antipsychotic (FGA) flupenthixol was associated with a lower risk of relapse compared to SGAs. Reasons for this lower risk of relapse are not fully clear but could be related to dopamine hypersensitivity with this treatment change.

Olfactory threshold as a biomarker of long-term relapse activity in multiple sclerosis

BackgroundOlfactory threshold (OT) is a marker of short-term inflammatory activity in multiple sclerosis (MS). ObjectiveTo investigate whether OT predicts long-term MS clinical disease course. MethodsThis was a 6-year prospective longitudinal study on MS patients at the MS clinic Innsbruck. Clinical visits assessing the occurrence of relapses, Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) scores, and disease-modifying treatment (DMT), were conducted biannually. OT testing was performed at baseline (BL), year 1 (Y1), year 2 (Y2) and year 6 (Y6), using the threshold subscore of the “Sniffin’ Sticks” test. Cognitive function was assessed by the Symbol Digit Modalities Test. ResultsOf 139 MS patients, 92 were eligible for Y6 follow-up. 68% experienced relapses, 53% EDSS worsening, 29% progression independent of relapse activity (PIRA) and 41% cognitive deterioration. OT scores were lower at BL, Y1 and Y2 in patients requiring DMT escalation. In multivariable analysis, higher OT scores at BL, Y1, Y2 and Y6 were associated with lower risk of relapse (hazard ratio, HR: 0.65–0.92) and EDSS worsening (HR: 0.86–0.89), while no associations were found for PIRA and cognitive deterioration. ConclusionsOT is a potential surrogate marker for long-term inflammatory disease activity and DMT failure in MS.

Whole blood RNA signatures in tuberculosis patients receiving H56:IC31 vaccine as adjunctive therapy.

Therapeutic vaccination in tuberculosis (TB) represents a Host Directed Therapy strategy which enhances immune responses in order to improve clinical outcomes and shorten TB treatment. Previously, we have shown that the subunit H56:IC31 vaccine induced both humoral and cellular immune responses when administered to TB patients adjunctive to standard TB treatment (TBCOX2 study, NCT02503839). Here we present the longitudinal whole blood gene expression patterns in H56:IC31 vaccinated TB patients compared to controls receiving standard TB treatment only. The H56:IC31 group (N=11) and Control group (N=7) underwent first-line TB treatment for 182 days. The H56:IC31 group received 5 micrograms of the H56:IC31 vaccine (Statens Serum Institut; SSI, Valneva Austria GmbH) intramuscularly at day 84 and day 140. Total RNA was extracted from whole blood samples collected in PAXgene tubes on days 0, 84, 98, 140, 154, 182 and 238. The expression level of 183 immune-related genes was measured by high-throughput microfluidic qPCR (Biomark HD system, Standard BioTools). The targeted gene expression profiling unveiled the upregulation of modules such as interferon (IFN) signalling genes, pattern recognition receptors and small nucleotide guanosine triphosphate (GTP)-ases in the vaccinated group compared to controls two weeks after administration of the first H56:IC31 vaccine. Additionally, the longitudinal analysis of the Adolescent Cohort Study-Correlation of Risk (ACS-COR) signature showed a progressive downregulation in both study arms towards the end of TB treatment, in congruence with reported treatment responses and clinical improvements. Still, two months after the end of TB treatment, vaccinated patients, and especially those developing both cellular and humoral vaccine responses, showed a lower expression of the ACS-COR genes compared to controls. Our data report gene expression patterns following H56:IC31 vaccination which might be interpreted as a lower risk of relapse in therapeutically vaccinated patients. Further studies are needed to conclude if these gene expression patterns could be used as prognostic biosignatures for therapeutic TB vaccine responses.

Enhanced Risk Stratification for Children and Young Adults with B-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: A Children’s Oncology Group Report

Current strategies to treat pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia rely on risk stratification algorithms using categorical data. We investigated whether using continuous variables assigned different weights would improve risk stratification. We developed and validated a multivariable Cox model for relapse-free survival (RFS) using information from 21199 patients. We constructed risk groups by identifying cutoffs of the COG Prognostic Index (PICOG) that maximized discrimination of the predictive model. Patients with higher PICOG have higher predicted relapse risk. The PICOG reliably discriminates patients with low vs. high relapse risk. For those with moderate relapse risk using current COG risk classification, the PICOG identifies subgroups with varying 5-year RFS. Among current COG standard-risk average patients, PICOG identifies low and intermediate risk groups with 96% and 90% RFS, respectively. Similarly, amongst current COG high-risk patients, PICOG identifies four groups ranging from 96% to 66% RFS, providing additional discrimination for future treatment stratification. When coupled with traditional algorithms, the novel PICOG can more accurately risk stratify patients, identifying groups with better outcomes who may benefit from less intensive therapy, and those who have high relapse risk needing innovative approaches for cure.

Identification of a novel prognostic gene signature in a clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) population using an integrated multi-study single-cell RNAseq dataset.

465 Background: Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) is a highly heterogeneous disease with varying prognoses and treatment responses. Understanding the underlying molecular determinants of this diversity is key to tailoring effective treatment strategies for each patient (pt). Here, we leveraged single–cell RNA sequencing (scRNA–seq) data to assess intra–tumoral diversity and its impact on pt prognosis. Methods: scRNA–seq raw data from five published studies were processed with Seurat’s standard workflow and integrated to remove biases using Harmony. We then re–analyzed the malignant cell cluster, defined by CA9, NDUFA4L2, and IGFBP3 expression, at a higher resolution. The resulting tumor cell sub–clusters were subjected to differentially expressed gene (DEG) and gene ontology (GO) enrichment analyses. A signature based on all DEGs with a fold change &gt; 1.25 was applied on TCGA–KIRC cohort using single–sample gene set enrichment analysis and then correlated with relapse–free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) by Kaplan–Meier and multivariate Cox analyses. Results: We integrated scRNA–seq data from 50 samples from 44 pt’s (40% T3–4, mean age 75, 10% females). A total of 288K cells were classified into 19 clusters. The tumor cluster was re–analyzed and three biologically distinct tumor cell sub–clusters (labeled MC1, MC2, and MC3) were identified, each with unique molecular markers. GO analysis showed enrichment in genes associated with iron sequestration, oxidative phosphorylation, and apoptotic signaling, respectively. In the KIRC cohort, a 23–DEG signature from MC2 strongly correlated with RFS (HR 0.49; 95% CI 0.35−0.67 p &lt; 0.001; 5-RFS: 74% vs. 54%) and OS (HR 0.44; 95% CI 0.33−0.60 p &lt; 0.001; 5-OS: 75% vs. 51%) and was independent of other clinical variables in the multivariate analysis (Table 1). Moreover, this signature identified a subset of T1–T2 tumors (47.8%) with low risk of relapse (HR 0.38; 95% CI 0.19−0.78, p = 0.008; 5-RFS: 92% vs. 80%) and longer OS (HR 0.35; 95% CI 0.20−0.62 p &lt; 0.001; 5-RFS: 90% vs. 68%). Conclusions: We have identified three distinct tumor cell sub–populations in an integrated scRNA–seq database, each characterized by unique transcriptomic profiles. A gene expression signature based on the MC2 sub–cluster was prognostic in the TCGA dataset and may help in identifying patients with a higher risk of relapse and candidates to adjuvant therapy.[Table: see text]