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Green Templeton College, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
Centre for Endocrinology, Barts and the London School of Medicine, London, UK
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Medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) is a rare malignancy comprising 1–2% of all thyroid cancers in the United States. Approximately 20% of cases are familial, secondary to a germline RET mutation, while the remaining 80% are sporadic and also harbour a somatic RET mutation in more than half of all cases. Up to 15–20% of patients will present with distant metastatic disease, and retrospective series report a 10-year survival of 10–40% from time of first metastasis. Historically, systemic therapies for metastatic MTC have been limited, and cytotoxic chemotherapy has demonstrated poor objective response rates. However, in the last decade, targeted therapies, particularly multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs), have demonstrated prolonged progression-free survival in advanced and progressive MTC. Both cabozantinib and vandetanib have been approved as first-line treatment options in many countries; nevertheless, their use is limited by high toxicity rates and dose reductions are often necessary. New generation TKIs, such as selpercatinib or pralsetinib, that exhibit selective activity against RET, have recently been approved as a second-line treatment option, and they exhibit a more favourable side-effect profile. Peptide receptor radionuclide therapy or immune checkpoint inhibitors may also constitute potential therapeutic options in specific clinical settings. In this review, we aim to present all current therapeutic options available for patients with progressive MTC, as well as new or as yet experimental treatments.
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A fascinating class of familial paraganglioma (PGL) neuroendocrine tumors is driven by the loss of the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle enzyme succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) resulting in succinate accumulation as an oncometabolite and other metabolic derangements. Here, we exploit a Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast model of SDH loss where accumulating succinate, and possibly reactive oxygen species, poison a dioxygenase enzyme required for sulfur scavenging. Using this model, we performed a chemical suppression screen for compounds that relieve dioxygenase inhibition. After testing 1280 pharmaceutically active compounds, we identified meclofenoxate HCl and its hydrolysis product, dimethylaminoethanol (DMAE), as suppressors of dioxygenase intoxication in SDH-loss yeast cells. We show that DMAE acts to alter metabolism so as to normalize the succinate:2-ketoglutarate ratio, improving dioxygenase function. This study raises the possibility that oncometabolite effects might be therapeutically suppressed by drugs that rewire metabolism to reduce the flux of carbon into pathological metabolic pathways.
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Thyroid cancer is an excellent model for studying tumor immune microenvironment, as it often shows local signs of an immune response. The tumor immune microenvironment of thyroid cancer is the heterogeneous histological space in which tumor cells coexist with host cells. The final composition of this cellular aggregate is associated with the clinical aggressiveness characteristics of the neoplasm. High-performance multiplex technologies suggest that specific genetic signatures of the tumor immune microenvironment may provide data for the delineation of a robust prognostic model. Several proposals integrate clinic, pathologic and immunological information in an attempt to translate the knowledge gained from molecular science into a more personalized approach for the treatment strategy of patients with thyroid cancer. In addition, the tumor immune microenvironment displays multiple molecular connections between cells, revealing complex crosstalk. This interesting network generates several molecular nodes that can be used as targets for immunotherapy. In this scenario, immunotherapy emerges as a promising weapon, mainly for patients with advanced thyroid cancer, both medullary and follicular cell-derived. In fact, although most patients with thyroid cancer have an excellent prognosis with current therapies, around 30% of cases evolve in an unfavorable way, leading to the urgent need to improve immunotherapy for high-risk patients. Preclinical and early clinical investigations are providing optimistic prospects, but more studies are needed to make immunotherapy a more viable and efficient tool for years to come.
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Department of Clinical Therapeutics, Alexandra Hospital Athens University School of Medicine, Endocrine Unit, Athens, Greece
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During the last decades, the knowledge on follicular cell-derived thyroid cancer molecular biology has led to the evolution of a number of novel therapies for these tumors, mainly tyrosine kinase inhibitors. Lenvantinib, sorafenib and recently cabozantinib have been approved for differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC), while larotrectinib and entrectinib for neurotrophic-tropomyosin receptor kinase-fusion thyroid cancer. For radioiodine (RAI) refractory DTCs ongoing research aims to identify agents that may restore RAI-avidity via redifferentiation protocols (vemurafenib or dabrafenib and trametinib) or combination treatments. These treatments are based on the tumor molecular signature. The treatment with targeted therapies has changed the therapeutic strategies and the disease prognosis, however drug resistance remains the main reason for treatment failure. Thus, the understanding of both molecular pathways implicated in tumorigenesis, and tumoral escape mechanisms, are of paramount significance for the development of new therapies for DTC. The present review focuses on the molecular landscape of DTC, the approved targeted therapies as well as the mechanisms of drug resistance. Furthermore, it points to the ongoing research and the future perspectives for the development of more efficient drugs for DTC.
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Department of Medicine III, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Medical Faculty Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
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Medicover Oldenburg MVZ, Oldenburg, Germany
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Department for Endocrinology, Diabetology and Clinical Nutrition, UniversitätsSpital Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
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Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER), Madrid, Spain
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Klinik für Hals-Nasen-Ohrenheilkunde, Kopf- und Hals-Chirurgie, Plastische Operationen, Städtisches Klinikum Dresden, Akademisches Lehrkrankenhaus der Technischen Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
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Department of Medicine III, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Medical Faculty Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
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Head and neck paragangliomas (HNPGLs) are tumors of parasympathetic origin that occur at variable locations and are often secondary to germline mutations in succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) subunit genes. Occasionally, these tumors produce catecholamines. Here, we assessed whether different locations of HNPGLs relate to the presence of SDHx mutations, catecholamine production and other presentations. In this multicenter study, we collected clinical and biochemical data from 244 patients with HNPGLs and 71 patients without HNPGLs. We clarified that jugulotympanic HNPGLs have distinct features. In particular, 88% of jugulotympanic HNPGLs arose in women, among whom only 24% occurred due to SDHx mutations compared to 55% in men. Jugulotympanic HNPGLs were also rarely bilateral, were of a smaller size and were less often metastatic compared to carotid body and vagal HNPGLs. Furthermore, we showed that plasma concentrations of methoxytyramine (MTY) were higher (P < 0.0001) in patients with HNPGL than without HNPGL, whereas plasma normetanephrine did not differ. Only 3.7% of patients showed strong increases in plasma normetanephrine. Plasma MTY was positively related to tumor size but did not relate to the presence of SDHx mutations or tumor location. Our findings confirm that increases in plasma MTY represent the main catecholamine-related biochemical feature of patients with HNPGLs. We expect that more sensitive analytical methods will make biochemical testing of HNPGLs more practical in the future and enable more than the current 30% of patients to be identified with dopamine-producing HNPGLs. The sex-dependent differences in the development of HNPGLs may have relevance to the diagnosis, management and outcomes of these tumors.
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The active form of vitamin D3, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25(OH)2D3), is primarily known as a key regulator of calcium and phosphate homeostasis. It exerts its biological functions by binding to the vitamin D receptor (VDR), a transcription factor that regulates gene expression in vitamin D-target tissues such as intestine, kidney and bone. Yet, the VDR is expressed in many additional normal and cancerous tissues, where it moderates the antiproliferative, prodifferentiating and immune-modulating effects of 1,25(OH)2D3. Interestingly, several epidemiological studies show that low levels of 25(OH)D, a biological marker for 1,25(OH)2D3 status, are associated with an increased risk of breast cancer (BC) development. Mendelian randomization studies, however, did not find any relationship between single-nucleotide polymorphisms in genes associated with lower serum 25(OH)D and BC risk. Nevertheless, multiple and in vivo preclinical studies illustrate that 1,25(OH)2D3 or its less calcaemic structural analogues influence diverse cellular processes in BC such as proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, autophagy and the epithelial–mesenchymal transition. Recent insights also demonstrate that 1,25(OH)2D3 treatment impacts on cell metabolism and on the cancer stem cell population. The presence of VDR in the majority of BCs, together with the various anti-tumoural effects of 1,25(OH)2D3, has supported the evaluation of the effects of vitamin D3 supplementation on BC development. However, most randomized controlled clinical trials do not demonstrate a clear decrease in BC incidence with vitamin D3 supplementation. However, 1,25(OH)2D3 or its analogues seem biologically more active and may have more potential anticancer activity in BC upon combination with existing cancer therapies.
Dan L. Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
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Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
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Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
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Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
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Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
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Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
Department of Education, Innovation, and Technology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
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Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
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Dan L. Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
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Castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) remains highly lethal and in need of novel, actionable therapeutic targets. The pioneer factor GATA2 is a significant prostate cancer (PC) driver and is linked to poor prognosis. GATA2 directly promotes androgen receptor (AR) gene expression (both full-length and splice-variant) and facilitates AR binding to chromatin, recruitment of coregulators, and target gene transcription. Unfortunately, there is no clinically applicable GATA2 inhibitor available at the moment. Using a bioinformatics algorithm, we screened in silico 2650 clinically relevant drugs for a potential GATA2 inhibitor. Validation studies used cytotoxicity and proliferation assays, global gene expression analysis, RT-qPCR, reporter assay, reverse phase protein array analysis (RPPA), and immunoblotting. We examined target engagement via cellular thermal shift assay (CETSA), ChIP-qPCR, and GATA2 DNA-binding assay. We identified the vasodilator dilazep as a potential GATA2 inhibitor and confirmed on-target activity via CETSA. Dilazep exerted anticancer activity across a broad panel of GATA2-dependent PC cell lines in vitro and in a PDX model in vivo. Dilazep inhibited GATA2 recruitment to chromatin and suppressed the cell-cycle program, transcriptional programs driven by GATA2, AR, and c-MYC, and the expression of several oncogenic drivers, including AR, c-MYC, FOXM1, CENPF, EZH2, UBE2C, and RRM2, as well as of several mediators of metastasis, DNA damage repair, and stemness. In conclusion, we provide, via an extensive compendium of methodologies, proof-of-principle that a small molecule can inhibit GATA2 function and suppress its downstream AR, c-MYC, and other PC-driving effectors. We propose GATA2 as a therapeutic target in CRPC.
Department of Oncology, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway
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Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
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Department of Oncology, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway
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Department of Oncology, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway
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Department of Medical Radiation Physics, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
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Department of Oncology, St.Olavs Hospital, Trondheim, Norway
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Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
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Department of Clinical Science, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
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Department of Oncology, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway
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High-grade (HG) gastroenteropancreatic (GEP) neuroendocrine neoplasms (NEN) are rare but have a very poor prognosis and represent a severely understudied class of tumours. Molecular data for HG GEP-NEN are limited, and treatment strategies for the carcinoma subgroup (HG GEP-NEC) are extrapolated from small-cell lung cancer (SCLC). After pathological re-evaluation, we analysed DNA from tumours and matched blood samples from 181 HG GEP-NEN patients; 152 neuroendocrine carcinomas (NEC) and 29 neuroendocrine tumours (NET G3). Based on the sequencing of 360 cancer-related genes, we assessed mutations and copy number alterations (CNA). For NEC, frequently mutated genes were TP53 (64%), APC (28%), KRAS (22%) and BRAF (20%). RB1 was only mutated in 14%, but CNAs affecting RB1 were seen in 34%. Other frequent copy number losses were ARID1A (35%), ESR1 (25%) and ATM (31%). Frequent amplifications/gains were found in MYC (51%) and KDM5A (45%). While these molecular features had limited similarities with SCLC, we found potentially targetable alterations in 66% of the NEC samples. Mutations and CNA varied according to primary tumour site with BRAF mutations mainly seen in colon (49%), and FBXW7 mutations mainly seen in rectal cancers (25%). Eight out of 152 (5.3%) NEC were microsatellite instable (MSI). NET G3 had frequent mutations in MEN1 (21%), ATRX (17%), DAXX, SETD2 and TP53 (each 14%). We show molecular differences in HG GEP-NEN, related to morphological differentiation and site of origin. Limited similarities to SCLC and a high fraction of targetable alterations indicate a high potential for better-personalized treatments.
Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Crown Princess Mary Cancer Centre, Westmead Hospital, Western Sydney Local Health District, New South Wales, Australia
Blacktown Cancer and Haematology Centre, Blacktown Hospital, Western Sydney Local Health District, New South Wales, Australia
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Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Children’s Medical Research Institute, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
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Crown Princess Mary Cancer Centre, Westmead Hospital, Western Sydney Local Health District, New South Wales, Australia
Blacktown Cancer and Haematology Centre, Blacktown Hospital, Western Sydney Local Health District, New South Wales, Australia
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Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Department of Gynaecological Oncology, Westmead Hospital, Western Sydney Local Health District, New South Wales, Australia
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Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Crown Princess Mary Cancer Centre, Westmead Hospital, Western Sydney Local Health District, New South Wales, Australia
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Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Department of Gynaecological Oncology, Westmead Hospital, Western Sydney Local Health District, New South Wales, Australia
The Daffodil Centre, The University of Sydney, a joint venture with Cancer Council New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
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Low-grade serous ovarian cancer (LGSC) is a morphologically and molecularly distinct subtype of ovarian cancer, accounting for ~10% of serous carcinomas. Women typically present at a younger age and have a protracted clinical course compared with the more common, high-grade serous ovarian cancer. Currently, the primary treatment of LGSC is the same as other epithelial ovarian cancer subtypes, with treatment for most patients comprised of debulking surgery and platinum/taxane chemotherapy. Primary surgical cytoreduction to no visible residual disease remains a key prognostic factor; however, the use of platinum-based chemotherapy in both upfront and relapsed setting is being questioned due to low response rates in LGSC. Most LGSC expresses steroid hormone receptors, and selected patients may benefit from endocrine maintenance therapy following chemotherapy, in particular, those with evidence of residual disease at completion of surgery. In the recurrent setting, while hormonal therapies may offer disease stabilisation with relatively low toxicity, objective response rates remain low. Strategies to increase response rates, including combining with CDK4/6 inhibitors, are being investigated. LGSC has a high prevalence of activating somatic mutations in mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway genes, most commonly in KRAS, BRAF and NRAS. Trametinib, a MEK inhibitor, has shown efficacy over chemotherapy and endocrine therapy. The use of combination targeted therapies, immunotherapy and anti-angiogenic agents, remain active areas of investigation for the treatment of LGSC.
