Helena A. Yu

Analysis of Tumor Specimens at the Time of Acquired Resistance to EGFR-TKI Therapy in 155 Patients with EGFR-Mutant Lung Cancers

Purpose: All patients with EGF receptor (EGFR)–mutant lung cancers eventually develop acquired resistance to EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI). Smaller series have identified various mechanisms of resistance, but systematic evaluation of a large number of patients to definitively establish the frequency of various mechanisms has not been conducted. Experimental Design: Patients with lung adenocarcinomas and acquired resistance to erlotinib or gefitinib enrolled onto a prospective biopsy protocol and underwent a rebiopsy after the development of acquired resistance. Histology was reviewed. Samples underwent genotyping for mutations in EGFR, AKT1, BRAF, ERBB2, KRAS, MEK1, NRAS and PIK3CA, and FISH for MET and HER2. Results: Adequate tumor samples for molecular analysis were obtained in 155 patients. Ninety-eight had second-site EGFR T790M mutations [63%; 95% confidence interval (CI), 55%–70%] and four had small cell transformation (3%, 95% CI, 0%–6%). MET amplification was seen in 4 of 75 (5%; 95% CI, 1%–13%). HER2 amplification was seen in 3 of 24 (13%; 95% CI, 3%–32%). We did not detect any acquired mutations in PIK3CA, AKT1, BRAF, ERBB2, KRAS, MEK1, or NRAS (0 of 88, 0%; 95% CI, 0%–4%). Overlap among mechanisms of acquired resistance was seen in 4%. Conclusions: This is the largest series reporting mechanisms of acquired resistance to EGFR-TKI therapy. We identified EGFR T790M as the most common mechanism of acquired resistance, whereas MET amplification, HER2 amplification, and small cell histologic transformation occur less frequently. More comprehensive methods to characterize molecular alterations in this setting are needed to improve our understanding of acquired resistance to EGFR-TKIs. Clin Cancer Res; 19(8); 2240–7. ©2013 AACR.

Detection of T790M, the Acquired Resistance EGFR Mutation, by Tumor Biopsy versus Noninvasive Blood-Based Analyses

Purpose: The T790M gatekeeper mutation in the EGFR is acquired by some EGFR-mutant non–small cell lung cancers (NSCLC) as they become resistant to selective tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI). As third-generation EGFR TKIs that overcome T790M-associated resistance become available, noninvasive approaches to T790M detection will become critical to guide management. Experimental Design: As part of a multi-institutional Stand-Up-To-Cancer collaboration, we performed an exploratory analysis of 40 patients with EGFR-mutant tumors progressing on EGFR TKI therapy. We compared the T790M genotype from tumor biopsies with analysis of simultaneously collected circulating tumor cells (CTC) and circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA). Results: T790M genotypes were successfully obtained in 30 (75%) tumor biopsies, 28 (70%) CTC samples, and 32 (80%) ctDNA samples. The resistance-associated mutation was detected in 47% to 50% of patients using each of the genotyping assays, with concordance among them ranging from 57% to 74%. Although CTC- and ctDNA-based genotyping were each unsuccessful in 20% to 30% of cases, the two assays together enabled genotyping in all patients with an available blood sample, and they identified the T790M mutation in 14 (35%) patients in whom the concurrent biopsy was negative or indeterminate. Conclusions: Discordant genotypes between tumor biopsy and blood-based analyses may result from technological differences, as well as sampling different tumor cell populations. The use of complementary approaches may provide the most complete assessment of each patients cancer, which should be validated in predicting response to T790M-targeted inhibitors. Clin Cancer Res; 22(5); 1103–10. ©2015 AACR.

Erlotinib versus radiation therapy for brain metastases in patients with EGFR-mutant lung adenocarcinoma.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES Radiation therapy (RT) is the principal modality in the treatment of patients with brain metastases (BM). However, given the activity of EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors in the central nervous system, it is uncertain whether upfront brain RT is necessary for patients with EGFR-mutant lung adenocarcinoma with BM. METHODS AND MATERIALS Patients with EGFR-mutant lung adenocarcinoma and newly diagnosed BM were identified. RESULTS 222 patients were identified. Exclusion criteria included prior erlotinib use, presence of a de novo erlotinib resistance mutation, or incomplete data. Of the remaining 110 patients, 63 were treated with erlotinib, 32 with whole brain RT (WBRT), and 15 with stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). The median overall survival (OS) for the whole cohort was 33 months. There was no significant difference in OS between the WBRT and erlotinib groups (median, 35 vs 26 months; P=.62), whereas patients treated with SRS had a longer OS than did those in the erlotinib group (median, 64 months; P=.004). The median time to intracranial progression was 17 months. There was a longer time to intracranial progression in patients who received WBRT than in those who received erlotinib upfront (median, 24 vs 16 months, P=.04). Patients in the erlotinib or SRS group were more likely to experience intracranial failure as a component of first failure, whereas WBRT patients were more likely to experience failure outside the brain (P=.004). CONCLUSIONS The survival of patients with EGFR-mutant adenocarcinoma with BM is notably long, whether they receive upfront erlotinib or brain RT. We observed longer intracranial control with WBRT, even though the WBRT patients had a higher burden of intracranial disease. Despite the equivalent survival between the WBRT and erlotinib group, this study underscores the role of WBRT in producing durable intracranial control in comparison with a targeted biologic agent with known central nervous system activity.

Therapeutic Strategies Utilized in the Setting of Acquired Resistance to EGFR Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors

Patients with EGFR-mutant lung cancer derive significant therapeutic benefit from treatment with EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI). Unfortunately, acquired resistance is an inevitable consequence of this treatment strategy, with a broad variety of resistance mechanisms including acquired EGFR mutations (e.g., T790M) and activation of bypass signaling pathways, such as MET and HER2. Several therapeutic strategies hypothesized to delay or overcome resistance have been tested in clinical trials, including “next-generation” EGFR TKIs and rational combinations of targeted agents. However, to date, there are no FDA-approved therapies for patients with acquired resistance to first-line EGFR TKI therapy. There remains a critical need for more effective and better tailored treatments in this setting to match treatments to the individual patient and specific resistance mechanism at hand. In this review, we discuss known mechanisms of resistance to first-line EGFR TKI therapy and describe previous and ongoing strategies to overcome resistance. Clin Cancer Res; 20(23); 5898–907. ©2014 AACR.

Phase I/II Study of HSP90 Inhibitor AUY922 and Erlotinib for EGFR-Mutant Lung Cancer With Acquired Resistance to Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors

PURPOSE AUY922 is an HSP90 inhibitor that causes degradation of HSP chaperones and their client proteins, including epidermal growth factor receptor. We conducted a phase I/II trial to evaluate AUY922 and erlotinib for patients with EGFR-mutant lung cancer and disease progression during erlotinib treatment. PATIENTS AND METHODS All patients had developed acquired resistance after treatment with erlotinib and underwent repeat tumor biopsies before study entry to assess for EGFR T790M. In phase I, 18 patients were treated with AUY922 intravenously once per week and erlotinib once per day in 28-day cycles using a 3 + 3 dose-escalation design. In phase II, 19 additional patients were treated at the maximum-tolerated dose. The primary end point of the phase II trial was complete plus partial response rate. RESULTS In phase I (n = 18), three patients were treated in each cohort, except the highest-dose cohort (AUY922 70 mg and erlotinib 150 mg), which expanded to six patients because of a dose-limiting toxicity (ie, junctional cardiac rhythm). Common drug-related adverse events were diarrhea, skin rash, hyperglycemia, and night blindness. All patients treated at maximum-tolerated dose (n = 25) were evaluable for response. The partial response rate was 16% (four of 25 patients; 95% CI, 5% to 36%) and was independent of tumor T790M status. CONCLUSION Partial responses were observed, but the duration of treatment with AUY922 and erlotinib was limited by toxicities, especially night blindness. This phase II study of AUY922 and erlotinib did not meet its primary end point.

Prospective Comprehensive Molecular Characterization of Lung Adenocarcinomas for Efficient Patient Matching to Approved and Emerging Therapies

Tumor genetic testing is standard of care for patients with advanced lung adenocarcinoma, but the fraction of patients who derive clinical benefit remains undefined. Here, we report the experience of 860 patients with metastatic lung adenocarcinoma analyzed prospectively for mutations in >300 cancer-associated genes. Potentially actionable genetic events were stratified into one of four levels based upon published clinical or laboratory evidence that the mutation in question confers increased sensitivity to standard or investigational therapies. Overall, 37.1% (319/860) of patients received a matched therapy guided by their tumor molecular profile. Excluding alterations associated with standard-of-care therapy, 14.4% (69/478) received matched therapy, with a clinical benefit of 52%. Use of matched therapy was strongly influenced by the level of preexistent clinical evidence that the mutation identified predicts for drug response. Analysis of genes mutated significantly more often in tumors without known actionable mutations nominated STK11 and KEAP1 as possible targetable mitogenic drivers.Significance: An increasing number of therapies that target molecular alterations required for tumor maintenance and progression have demonstrated clinical activity in patients with lung adenocarcinoma. The data reported here suggest that broader, early testing for molecular alterations that have not yet been recognized as standard-of-care predictive biomarkers of drug response could accelerate the development of targeted agents for rare mutational events and could result in improved clinical outcomes. Cancer Discov; 7(6); 596-609. ©2017 AACR.See related commentary by Liu et al., p. 555This article is highlighted in the In This Issue feature, p. 539.

EGFR: The Paradigm of an Oncogene-Driven Lung Cancer

Somatic, activating mutations in EGFR identify a significant minority of patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Although these mutations are associated with an approximately 70% response rate to some EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (gefitinib, erlotinib, and afatinib), patients develop resistance (i.e., “acquired resistance”) after a median of 9 to 12 months. In patients with clinical acquired resistance, repeat biopsy of tumors has identified a number of relevant mechanisms of resistance, but by far the most frequent event is the acquisition of EGFR T790M, a mutation in the “gatekeeper” residue that confers resistance to gefitinib, erlotinib, and afatinib. This emphasizes the critical dependence upon EGFR signaling for some tumors, a property that has been exploited therapeutically. Dual EGFR blockade using afatinib and cetuximab led to a 29% radiographic response rate. More recently, drugs that target EGFR T790M (e.g., rociletinib, AZD9291, and others) have entered clinical trials, with impressive results observed in phase I clinical trials. The development of these newer drugs, with efficacy after resistance to first-line EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor, has led to exploration of these strategies in multiple disease settings: at resistance, in the first line, and in adjuvant treatment of those with completely resected early-stage disease who would otherwise die of recurrent/metastatic disease. This example of translational research that identifies mechanisms of resistance to first-generation drugs, and then targets those mechanisms yielding clinical benefit, is a paradigm for how targeted therapies can be developed. Clin Cancer Res; 21(10); 2221–6. ©2015 AACR. See all articles in this CCR Focus section, “Progress in Lung Cancer.”

Prognostic Impact of KRAS Mutation Subtypes in 677 Patients with Metastatic Lung Adenocarcinomas

Background: We previously demonstrated that patients with metastatic KRAS mutant lung cancers have a shorter survival compared with patients with KRAS wild-type cancers. Recent reports have suggested different clinical outcomes and distinct activated signaling pathways depending on KRAS mutation subtype. To better understand the impact of KRAS mutation subtype, we analyzed data from 677 patients with KRAS mutant metastatic lung cancer. Methods: We reviewed all patients with metastatic or recurrent lung cancers found to have KRAS mutations over a 6-year time period. We evaluated the associations among KRAS mutation type, clinical factors, and overall survival in univariate and multivariate analyses. Any significant findings were validated in an external multi-institution patient dataset. Results: Among 677 patients with KRAS mutant lung cancers (53 at codon 13, 624 at codon 12), there was no difference in overall survival for patients when comparing KRAS transition versus transversion mutations (p = 0.99), smoking status (p = 0.33), or when comparing specific amino acid substitutions (p = 0.20). In our dataset, patients with KRAS codon 13 mutant tumors (n = 53) had shorter overall survival compared with patients with codon 12 mutant tumors (n = 624) (1.1 versus 1.3 years, respectively; p = 0.009), and the findings were confirmed in a multivariate Cox model controlling for age, sex, and smoking status (hazard ratio: 1.52, 95% confidence interval: 1.11–2.08; p = 0.008). In an independent validation set of tumors from 682 patients with stage IV KRAS mutant lung cancers, there was no difference in survival between patients with KRAS codon 13 versus codon 12 mutations (1.0 versus 1.1 years, respectively; p = 0.41). Conclusions: Among individuals with KRAS mutant metastatic lung cancers treated with conventional therapy, there are no apparent differences in outcome based on KRAS mutation subtype.

Targeted therapies: Afatinib--new therapy option for EGFR-mutant lung cancer.

On 15 July 2013, the FDA approved afatinib as a first-line treatment for patients with metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer whose tumours harbour exon 19 deletions or exon 21 (L858R) EGFR substitution mutations. We discuss three recent studies investigating afatinib in this molecular subset of patients.

A Phase 1/2 Trial of Ruxolitinib and Erlotinib in Patients with EGFR-Mutant Lung Adenocarcinomas with Acquired Resistance to Erlotinib

Introduction: Resistance to EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors develops in patients with EGFR‐mutant lung cancers. New treatments are needed to address resistance not mediated by EGFR T790M; preclinical evidence suggests that the Janus kinase/signal transducers and activators of transcription signaling pathway is important in acquired resistance to EGFR‐directed therapy. Methods: We evaluated the toxicity and efficacy of erlotinib and ruxolitinib in patients with EGFR‐mutant lung cancers with acquired resistance to erlotinib. Exosomes were analyzed to assess changes in relevant protein expression during treatment. Results: We enrolled 22 patients: 12 patients in the phase 1 portion of the study and 10 patients in the phase 2 portion. We did not observe any dose‐limiting toxicities. The maximum tolerated dose of erlotinib was 150 mg daily and that of ruxolitinib was 20 mg twice daily. The most frequent toxicities (any grade) were anemia, diarrhea, and elevation of liver function test results. One partial response was observed (5% [95% confidence interval: 0–13]). The median progression‐free survival was 2.2 months (95% confidence interval: 1.4–4.1). Conclusion: This is the first study assessing the combination of EGFR and Janus kinase inhibition in patients with EGFR‐mutant lung cancers. The combination was well tolerated but ineffective. Exosomal EGFR levels may reflect changes in tumor EGFR expression in response to therapy.