Journal of Pathology and Translational Medicine

Review

Interpretation of PD-L1 expression in gastric cancer: summary of a consensus meeting of Korean gastrointestinal pathologists: Soomin Ahn, Yoonjin Kwak, Gui Young Kwon, Kyoung-Mee Kim, Moonsik Kim, Hyunki Kim, Young Soo Park, Hyeon Jeong Oh, Kyoungyul Lee, Sung Hak Lee, Hye Seung Lee; Received February 22, 2024 Accepted March 14, 2024 Published online April 25, 2024; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4132/jptm.2024.03.15 [Epub ahead of print]

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Abstract PDF: Nivolumab plus chemotherapy in the first-line setting has demonstrated clinical efficacy in patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2–negative advanced or metastatic gastric cancer, and is currently indicated as a standard treatment. Programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression is an important biomarker for predicting response to anti–programmed death 1/PD-L1 agents in several solid tumors, including gastric cancer. In the CheckMate-649 trial, significant clinical improvements were observed in patients with PD-L1 combined positive score (CPS) ≥ 5, determined using the 28-8 pharmDx assay. Accordingly, an accurate interpretation of PD-L1 CPS, especially at a cutoff of 5, is important. The CPS method evaluates both immune and tumor cells and provides a comprehensive assessment of PD-L1 expression in the tumor microenvironment of gastric cancer. However, CPS evaluation has several limitations, one of which is poor interobserver concordance among pathologists. Despite these limitations, clinical indications relying on PD-L1 CPS are increasing. In response, Korean gastrointestinal pathologists held a consensus meeting for the interpretation of PD-L1 CPS in gastric cancer. Eleven pathologists reviewed 20 PD-L1 slides with a CPS cutoff close to 5, stained with the 28-8 pharmDx assay, and determined the consensus scores. The issues observed in discrepant cases were discussed. In this review, we present cases of gastric cancer with consensus PD-L1 CPS. In addition, we briefly touch upon current practices and clinical issues associated with assays used for the assessment of PD-L1 expression in gastric cancer.

Original Articles

Fatty acid synthetase expression in triple-negative breast cancer: Jin Hee Park, Hye Seung Han, So Dug Lim, Wook Youn Kim, Kyoung Sik Park, Young Bum Yoo, Seung Eun Lee, Wan-Seop Kim; J Pathol Transl Med. 2022;56(2):73-80. Published online January 21, 2022; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4132/jptm.2021.10.27

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Background
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) has a relatively poor prognosis. Research has identified potential metabolic targets, including fatty acid metabolism, in TNBC. The absence of effective target therapies for TNBC led to exploration of the role of fatty acid synthetase (FASN) as a potential target for TNBC therapy. Here, we analyzed the expression of FASN, a representative lipid metabolism–related protein, and investigated the association between FASN expression and Ki-67 and the programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) biomarkers in TNBC.
Methods
Immunohistochemical expression of FASN was analyzed in 166 patients with TNBC. For analytical purposes, patients with 0–1+ FASN staining were grouped as low-grade FASN and patients with 2–3+ FASN staining as high-grade FASN.
Results
FASN expression was observed in 47.1% of TNBC patients. Low and high expression of FASN was identified in 75.9% and 24.1%, respectively, and no statistically significant difference was found in T category, N category, American Joint Committee on Cancer stage, or recurrence rate between the low and high-FASN expression groups. Ki-67 proliferation level was significantly different between the low and high-FASN expression groups. FASN expression was significantly related to Ki-67 as the level increased. There was no significant difference in PD-L1 positivity between the low- and high-FASN expression groups.
Conclusions
We identified FASN expression in 166 TNBC patients. The Ki-67 proliferation index was positively correlated with FASN level, indicating higher proliferation activity as FASN increases. However, there was no statistical association with PD-L1 SP142, the currently FDA-approved assay, or FASN expression level.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

NFYA promotes malignant behavior of triple-negative breast cancer in mice through the regulation of lipid metabolism
Nobuhiro Okada, Chihiro Ueki, Masahiro Shimazaki, Goki Tsujimoto, Susumu Kohno, Hayato Muranaka, Kiyotsugu Yoshikawa, Chiaki Takahashi
Communications Biology.2023;[Epub] CrossRef
Role of EGFR and FASN in breast cancer progression
Suchi Chaturvedi, Mainak Biswas, Sushabhan Sadhukhan, Avinash Sonawane
Journal of Cell Communication and Signaling.2023; 17(4): 1249. CrossRef
Bioinformatics Method Was Used to Analyze the Highly Expressed Gene FAM83A of Breast Cancer in Young Women
Yongzhe Tang, Hao Wang, Qi He, Yuanyuan Chen, Jie Wang, Fahd Abd Algalil
Applied Bionics and Biomechanics.2022; 2022: 1. CrossRef
NCAPH promotes proliferation as well as motility of breast cancer cells by activating the PI3K/AKT pathway
Ting Zhang, Peng Li, Wanying Guo, Qipeng Liu, Weiqiang Qiao, Miao Deng
Physiology International.2022;[Epub] CrossRef

Clinicopathologic implication of PD-L1 gene alteration in primary adrenal diffuse large B cell lymphoma: Ki Rim Lee, Jiwon Koh, Yoon Kyung Jeon, Hyun Jung Kwon, Jeong-Ok Lee, Jin Ho Paik; J Pathol Transl Med. 2022;56(1):32-39. Published online November 16, 2021; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4132/jptm.2021.10.05

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Abstract PDF: Background
Primary adrenal (PA) diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) was previously reported as an aggressive subset of DLBCL, but its genetic features were not sufficiently characterized. From our previous study of DLBCL with programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) gene alterations, we focused on PD-L1 gene alterations in PA-DLBCL with clinicopathologic implications.
Methods
We performed fluorescence in situ hybridization for PD-L1 gene translocation and amplification in PA-DLBCL (n = 18) and comparatively analyzed clinicopathologic characteristics with systemic non-adrenal (NA)-DLBCL (n = 90).
Results
PA-DLBCL harbored distinctive features (vs. NADLBCL), including high international prognostic index score (3–5) (72% [13/18] vs. 38% [34/90], p = .007), poor Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance score (≥ 2) (47% [7/15] vs. 11% [10/90], p = .003), elevated serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) (78% [14/18] vs. 51% [44/87], p = .035) and MUM1 expression (87% [13/15] vs. 60% [54/90], p = .047). Moreover, PA-DLBCL showed frequent PD-L1 gene alterations (vs. NA-DLBCL) (39% [7/18] vs. 6% [5/86], p = .001), including translocation (22% [4/18] vs. 3% [3/87], p = .016) and amplification (17% [3/18] vs. 2% [2/87], p = .034). Within the PA-DLBCL group, PD-L1 gene–altered cases (vs. non-altered cases) tended to have B symptoms (p = .145) and elevated LDH (p = .119) but less frequent bulky disease (≥ 10 cm) (p = .119). In the survival analysis, PA-DLBCL had a poor prognosis for overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) (vs. NA-DLBCL; p = .014 and p = .004). Within the PA-DLBCL group, PD-L1 translocation was associated with shorter OS and PFS (p < .001 and p = .012).
Conclusions
PA-DLBCL is a clinically aggressive and distinct subset of DLBCL with frequent PD-L1 gene alterations. PD-L1 gene translocation was associated with poor prognosis in PA-DLBCL.

Programmed death-ligand 1 expression and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes in non-small cell lung cancer: association with clinicopathologic parameters: Gaurav Garg, Kuruswamy Thurai Prasad, Navneet Singh, Parul Gupta, Valliappan Muthu, Ashim Das, Amanjit Bal; J Pathol Transl Med. 2021;55(6):398-405. Published online October 6, 2021; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4132/jptm.2021.08.08

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Abstract PDF Supplementary Material

Background
Data on the prevalence of programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) in non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and their clinical significance in Indian patients are limited.
Methods
Newly diagnosed NSCLC cases (adenocarcinoma or squamous cell carcinoma [SqCC] histology) were included in the present study. The TILs were evaluated based on morphology on hematoxylin and eosin–stained slides. PD-L1 expression in tumors was assessed using immunohistochemistry with rabbit monoclonal antibody (SP263) on the Ventana automated immunostainer. Tumors with PD-L1 expression > 50% on tumor cells were considered PD-L1–positive. Tumors in which TILs occupy > 25% of stroma were considered to have high TILs. The association of PD-L1 expression and TILs with various clinical parameters including overall survival (OS) was investigated.
Results
The present study included 128 cases of NSCLC (67 adenocarcinoma, 61 SqCC). PD-L1 positivity was observed in 17.2% of the patients with NSCLC. Baseline characteristics of PD-L1–positive subjects were similar to PD-L1–negative subjects except for a higher prevalence of liver metastasis (18.2% vs. 2.8%; p = .018) and a higher probability of diagnosis from extrapulmonary biopsies. High TILs were observed in 26.6% of the subjects. However, PD-L1 expression and high TIL did not affect OS.
Conclusions
PD-L1 positivity and high TILs were observed in 20% and 25% of the patients with NSCLC, respectively, however, neither were predictors of survival in SqCC.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

Real-world prevalence of PD-L1 expression in non-small cell lung cancer: an Australia-wide multi-centre retrospective observational study
Prudence A. Russell, Alexandra L. Farrall, Sarita Prabhakaran, Khashayar Asadi, Wade Barrett, Caroline Cooper, Wendy Cooper, Samuel Cotton, Edwina Duhig, Matthew Egan, Stephen Fox, David Godbolt, Shilpa Gupta, Aniza Hassan, Connull Leslie, Trishe Leong, D
Pathology.2023; 55(7): 922. CrossRef

The Major Role of NF-κB in the Depth of Invasion on Acral Melanoma by Decreasing CD8⁺ T Cells: Hermin Aminah Usman, Bethy S. Hernowo, Maringan Diapari Lumban Tobing, Reti Hindritiani; J Pathol Transl Med. 2018;52(3):164-170. Published online April 20, 2018; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4132/jptm.2018.04.04

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Abstract PDF

Background
The tumor microenvironment including immune surveillance affects malignant melanoma (MM) behavior. Nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) stimulates the transcription of various genes in the nucleus and plays a role in the inflammatory process and in tumorigenesis. CD8+ T cells have cytotoxic properties important in the elimination of tumors. However, inhibitory receptors on the cell surface will bind to programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1), causing CD8+ T cells to lose their ability to initiate an immune response. This study analyzed the association of NF-κB and PD-L1 expression levels and CD8+ T-cell counts with depth of invasion of acral MM, which may be a predictor of aggressiveness related to an increased risk of metastasis.
Methods
A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Anatomical Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Padjadjaran/Hasan Sadikin Hospital using 96 cases of acral melanoma. Immunohistochemical staining was performed on paraffin blocks using anti–NF-κB, –PD-L1, and -CD8 antibodies and invasion depth was measured using dotSlide-imaging software.
Results
The study showed significant associations between the individual expression of NF-κB and PD-L1 and CD8+ T-cell number, with MM invasion depth. NF-κB was found to be a confounding variable of CD8+ T-cell number (p < .05), but not for PD-L1 expression (p = .154). Through multivariate analysis it was found that NF-κB had the greatest association with the depth of invasion (p < .001), whereas PD-L1 was unrelated to the depth of invasion because it depends on the number of CD8+ T cells (p = .870).
Conclusions
NF-κB plays a major role in acral MM invasion, by decreasing the number of CD8+ T cells in acral MM.

Citations

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Possible Mechanisms of Oxidative Stress-Induced Skin Cellular Senescence, Inflammation, and Cancer and the Therapeutic Potential of Plant Polyphenols
Hui-Min Liu, Ming-Yan Cheng, Meng-Han Xun, Zhi-Wei Zhao, Yun Zhang, Wei Tang, Jun Cheng, Jia Ni, Wei Wang
International Journal of Molecular Sciences.2023; 24(4): 3755. CrossRef
Clinical features, molecular pathology, and immune microenvironmental characteristics of acral melanoma
Jianping Gui, Zhen Guo, Di Wu
Journal of Translational Medicine.2022;[Epub] CrossRef
High Expression of COX-2 Associated with the Depth of Invasion on Acral Melanoma by Increasing TGF-β1
Nastassa Gipsyianti, Afiati Aziz, Bethy S Hernowo, Hermin A Usman
Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology.2021; Volume 14: 209. CrossRef
More than just acral melanoma: the controversies of defining the disease
Sara S Bernardes, Ingrid Ferreira, David E Elder, Aretha B Nobre, Héctor Martínez‐Said, David J Adams, Carla Daniela Robles‐Espinoza, Patricia A Possik
The Journal of Pathology: Clinical Research.2021; 7(6): 531. CrossRef
CD103+ T Lymphocyte Count Linked to the Thickness of Invasion on Acral Melanoma without E-Cadherin Involvement
Fauzan Ali Zainal Abidin, Hermin Aminah Usman, Sri Suryanti, Bethy S Hernowo
Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology.2021; Volume 14: 1783. CrossRef
Translational pathology, genomics and the development of systemic therapies for acral melanoma
Yian Ann Chen, Jamie K. Teer, Zeynep Eroglu, Jheng-Yu Wu, John M. Koomen, Florian A. Karreth, Jane L. Messina, Keiran S.M. Smalley
Seminars in Cancer Biology.2020; 61: 149. CrossRef

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