Clinico-Immunological Effects of a Single-Agent CDK4/6 Inhibitor in Advanced HR+/HER2− Breast Cancer Based on a Window of Opportunity Study

Alberto D'Angelo, Fabiola Giudici, Robert Chapman, Jacob Darlow, Albus Kilili, Navid Sobhani, Cinelli Mattia, Carla Strina, Maria Rosa Cappelletti, Manuela Milani, Daniele Generali

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Citation (SciVal)

Abstract

Background: Cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6 inhibitors (CDK4/6 i), abemaciclib, palbociclib, and ribociclib, have been FDA-approved for the treatment of hormone receptor-positive (HR+), HER2−negative (HER2−) advanced breast cancer (aBC). This targeted therapy has revived hope in those aBC patients who did not respond to standard therapies. Interestingly, when administered as a single agent, CDK4/6 modulated several peripheral blood cells after a short-course treatment of 28 days. However, the impact of these immune effects has yet to be thoroughly investigated. Methods: We administered abemaciclib, palbociclib, and ribociclib monotherapy to 23 patients with HR+/HER2− metastatic breast cancer. The aim is to investigate the impact of on-treatment modifications on peripheral blood cells and their composite scores in patients after a 28-day course of CDK4/6 i alone. Results: In the current study, we observed a significant decrease in neutrophils (p-value < 0.001) for patients treated with abemaciclib, palbociclib, and ribociclib. An overall decrease of Tregs was observed and potentially linked to palbociclib treatment. The neutrophile to lymphocyte (N/L) ratio was also decreased overall and potentially linked to abemaciclib and palbociclib treatment. Platelets were decreased in patients administered with abemaciclib. Notably, the radiometabolic response was available only for those patients treated with ribociclib and abemaciclib, and only those lesions treated with ribociclib reached statistical relevance. Conclusions: Our study strongly supports the notion that CDK4/6 inhibitors induce tumour immune modulation. N/L ratio and platelet levels decreased due to treatment. Future studies should test whether patients would benefit from immunomodulators in association with CDK4/6 agents in a larger clinical trial. Moreover, the CDK4/6-induced immune modulation could also be considered a potential predictive clinical factor in HR+/HER2− advanced breast cancer.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)4255-4267
Number of pages13
JournalCurrent Issues in Molecular Biology
Volume44
Issue number9
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 15 Sept 2022

Bibliographical note

The study was funded by MEDnoTE Srl, a spin-off of the University of Trieste (the MOzART Programme).

Funding

The study was funded by MEDnoTE Srl, a spin-off of the University of Trieste (the MOzART Programme).

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Cancer Research

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Clinico-Immunological Effects of a Single-Agent CDK4/6 Inhibitor in Advanced HR+/HER2− Breast Cancer Based on a Window of Opportunity Study'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this