Circulating tumour cell PD-L1 test for head and neck cancers

Arutha Kulasinghe; Liz Kenny; Chamindie Punyadeera

doi:10.1016/j.oraloncology.2017.10.011

Circulating tumour cell PD-L1 test for head and neck cancers

Oral Oncol. 2017 Dec:75:6-7. doi: 10.1016/j.oraloncology.2017.10.011. Epub 2017 Oct 19.

Authors

Arutha Kulasinghe¹, Liz Kenny², Chamindie Punyadeera³

Affiliations

¹ The School of Biomedical Sciences, Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove, QLD, Australia; Translational Research Institute, Brisbane, Australia.
² School of Medicine, University of Queensland, Australia; Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, Brisbane, Australia; Central Integrated Regional Cancer Service, Queensland Health, Queensland, Australia.
³ The School of Biomedical Sciences, Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove, QLD, Australia; Translational Research Institute, Brisbane, Australia. Electronic address: chamindie.punyadeera@qut.edu.au.

PMID: 29224824
DOI: 10.1016/j.oraloncology.2017.10.011

Abstract

Immune checkpoint inhibitors have gained traction over the last few years in the treatment of metastatic/recurrent head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients. Monoclonal antibodies that block the programmed death 1 (PD-1) receptor and its major ligand, PD-L1, have shown durable responses and low toxicity profiles. There are currently no validated predictive biomarkers to select patients likely to respond to anti-PD-1/PD-L1 therapy to avoid unwanted side effects and to reduce healthcare expenditure. A circulating tumour cell (CTC) PD-L1 assay could be developed as a companion diagnostic tool to potentially predict the efficacy of immune checkpoint blockade treatments.

Keywords: Circulating tumour cells; Head and neck cancer; Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma; PD-L1 testing.

MeSH terms

Antibodies, Monoclonal / therapeutic use
B7-H1 Antigen / blood*
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / blood*
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / drug therapy
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / pathology
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / therapy
Head and Neck Neoplasms / blood*
Head and Neck Neoplasms / drug therapy
Head and Neck Neoplasms / pathology
Head and Neck Neoplasms / therapy
Humans
Neoplasm Metastasis
Neoplasm Recurrence, Local
Neoplastic Cells, Circulating*
Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck

Substances

Antibodies, Monoclonal
B7-H1 Antigen
CD274 protein, human