The International Duration Evaluation of Adjuvant Chemotherapy (IDEA) collaboration was established to prospectively combine and analyze data from several randomized trials conducted around the world to answer whether a three-month course of oxaliplatin-based adjuvant therapy (FOLFOX4/modified FOLFOX6 or XELOX) is non-inferior to the current standard six-month treatment for patients with stage III colon cancer, with a primary endpoint of three years disease-free survival. The IDEA steering committee comprises two members from each group coordinating an individual trial and two members from a secretariat who coordinate combining of the data and management of the joint analysis. Members of the IDEA agreed to combine the data from their individual trials to enable definitive analysis consisting of at least 10,500 patients. With accrual of 8,797 patients at the end of February 2013, the IDEA is on track to achieve its accrual objective of at least 10,500 patients by the end of 2013.

TAS-102, a novel oral antitumor agent, consists of trifluridine and tipiracil hydrochloride (molar ratio, 1:0.5). We investigated the effects of food on trifluridine and tipiracil hydrochloride. The efficacy and safety of TAS-102 were evaluated in patients with advanced solid tumors. We analyzed drug pharmacokinetics using a randomized, single-dose, two-treatment (fed versus fasting), two-period, two-sequence cross-over design, followed by repeated administration. Patients were given single doses of TAS-102 (35 mg/m(2) ) in the pharmacokinetic phase and received twice-daily doses of TAS-102 in 28-day cycles in the repeated administration phase for evaluating efficacy and safety. Food showed no effect on the area under the curve from 0 to 12 h or 0 h-infinity values of trifluridine following administration of TAS-102 under fasting and fed conditions, whereas those of tipiracil hydrochloride decreased by approximately 40%. Maximum concentrations of both drugs decreased by approximately 40%, indicating that food influenced the absorption and bioavailability of trifluridine and tipiracil hydrochloride, respectively. During the repeated administration, stable disease was observed in nine patients with rectal, small-cell lung, breast, thymic, duodenal, and prostate cancers. Major adverse events were neutropenia, leukopenia, anemia, and nausea. Postprandial administration was optimal for TAS-102 because trifluridine's area under the curve was not changed by food, indicating that its clinical efficacy would not be affected. Additionally, postprandial administration was reasonable because the maximum concentration of trifluridine decreased in neutrophils, which correlated with previous studies. These results suggest that TAS-102 would be an effective treatment for small-cell lung, thymic, and colorectal cancers. This trial is registered with the Japan Pharmaceutical Information Center (no. JapicCTI-111482).

The prognosis of patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) after the failure of standard therapies is poor with supportive care alone. Guidelines recommend clinical trials, and patients with good performance status following standard therapies are often eligible for phase I clinical trials of investigational agents; however, there are no detailed reports on the clinical outcomes of GIST patients enrolled in these trials.

TAS-102 (trifluridine and tipiracil hydrochloride; a novel combination oral nucleoside anti-tumor agent) has recently received regulatory approval for patients with refractory metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). Internal review of data at a single-institution showed a trend towards better overall survival (OS) for patients who experienced chemotherapy-induced neutropenia at 1-month (CIN-1-month). To explore this finding further, a cohort study was designed based on outcome data from three centers in United States and one from Japan.

In the era of genome-guided personalized cancer treatment, we must understand chemotherapy-induced genomic changes in tumors. This study evaluated whether adjuvant FOLFOX chemotherapy modifies the mutational profile of recurrent colorectal cancer (CRC).

The applicability of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) genotyping to inform enrollment of patients with cancer in clinical trials has not been established. We conducted a phase 2 trial to evaluate the efficacy of pertuzumab plus trastuzumab for metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC), with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) amplification prospectively confirmed by tumor tissue or ctDNA analysis ( UMIN000027887 ). HER2 amplification was confirmed in tissue and/or ctDNA in 30 patients with mCRC. The study met the primary endpoint with a confirmed objective response rate of 30% in 27 tissue-positive patients and 28% in 25 ctDNA-positive patients, as compared to an objective response rate of 0% in a matched real-world reference population treated with standard-of-care salvage therapy. Post hoc exploratory analyses revealed that baseline ctDNA genotyping of HER2 copy number and concurrent oncogenic alterations adjusted for tumor fraction stratified patients according to efficacy with similar accuracy to tissue genotyping. Decreased ctDNA fraction 3 weeks after treatment initiation associated with therapeutic response. Pertuzumab plus trastuzumab showed similar efficacy in patients with mCRC with HER2 amplification in tissue or ctDNA, showing that ctDNA genotyping can identify patients who benefit from dual-HER2 blockade as well as monitor treatment response. These findings warrant further use of ctDNA genotyping in clinical trials for HER2-amplified mCRC, which might especially benefit patients in first-line treatment.

Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) genotyping may guide targeted therapy for patients with advanced GI cancers. However, no studies have validated ctDNA genotyping for microsatellite instability (MSI) assessment in comparison with a tissue-based standard.

A systematic literature review was conducted to estimate the global prevalence of Kirsten rat sarcoma virus gene (KRAS) mutations, with an emphasis on the clinically significant KRAS G12C mutation, and to estimate the prognostic significance of these mutations in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC).

Mesenchymal-epithelial transition factor (MET) is expressed in gastric cancer and associated with poor clinical outcomes. We assessed activity, safety, and pharmacokinetics of emibetuzumab, a bivalent monoclonal anti-MET antibody that blocks ligand-dependent and ligand-independent MET signaling.

A hallmark of clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) is the presence of intracellular lipid droplets (LD) and it is assumed that phosphatidic acid (PA) produced by phospholipase D (PLD) plays some role in the LD formation. However, little is known about the significance of PLD in ccRCC. In this study, we examined the expression levels of PLD in ccRCC. The classical mammalian isoforms of PLD are PLD1 and PLD2, and the levels of both mRNA were higher at the primary tumor sites than in normal kidney tissues. Similarly, both PLD were significantly abundant in tumor cells as determined by analysis using immunohistochemical staining. Importantly, a higher level of PLD was significantly associated with a higher tumor stage and grade. Because PLD2 knockdown effectively suppressed the cell proliferation and invasion of ccRCC as compared with PLD1 in vitro, we examined the effect of PLD2 in vivo. Notably, shRNA-mediated knockdown of PLD2 suppressed the growth and invasion of tumors in nude mouse xenograft models. Moreover, the higher expression of PLD2 was significantly associated with poorer prognosis in 67 patients. As for genes relating to the tumor invasion of PLD2, we found that angiogenin (ANG) was positively regulated by PLD2. In fact, the expression levels of ANG were elevated in tumor tissues as compared with normal kidney and the inhibition of ANG activity with a neutralizing antibody significantly suppressed tumor invasion. Overall, we revealed for the first time that PLD2-produced PA promoted cell invasion through the expression of ANG in ccRCC cells.

The efficacy and safety of nivolumab versus chemotherapy was evaluated in the Japanese subpopulation from the overall intent-to-treat (ITT) population of the ATTRACTION-3 trial conducted in patients with advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) as second-line treatment.

To promote precision oncology in clinical practice, the Japanese Society of Medical Oncology, the Japanese Society of Clinical Oncology, and the Japanese Cancer Association, jointly published "Clinical practice guidance for next-generation sequencing in cancer diagnosis and treatment" in 2017. Since new information on cancer genomic medicine has emerged since the 1st edition of the guidance was released, including reimbursement for NGS-based multiplex gene panel tests in 2019, the guidance revision was made.

Transcriptomic profiling was performed for microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H)/mismatch repair-deficient (dMMR) gastrointestinal tumors to determine the predictors of response to PD-1 blockade.

The development of novel antitumor agents and accompanying biomarkers has improved survival across several tumor types. Previously, we published provisional clinical opinion for the diagnosis and use of immunotherapy in patients with deficient DNA mismatch repair tumors. Recently, efficacy of tropomyosin receptor kinase inhibitors against neurotrophic receptor tyrosine kinase (NTRK) fusion gene-positive advanced solid tumors have been established as the second tumor-agnostic treatment, making it necessary to develop the guideline prioritized for these patients.

Despite standard-of-care treatment, more than 30% of patients with resectable colorectal cancer (CRC) relapse. Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) analysis may enable postsurgical risk stratification and adjuvant chemotherapy (ACT) treatment decision-making. We report results from GALAXY, which is an observational arm of the ongoing CIRCULATE-Japan study (UMIN000039205) that analyzed presurgical and postsurgical ctDNA in patients with stage II-IV resectable CRC (n = 1,039). In this cohort, with a median follow-up of 16.74 months (range 0.49-24.83 months), postsurgical ctDNA positivity (at 4 weeks after surgery) was associated with higher recurrence risk (hazard ratio (HR) 10.0, P < 0.0001) and was the most significant prognostic factor associated with recurrence risk in patients with stage II or III CRC (HR 10.82, P < 0.001). Furthermore, postsurgical ctDNA positivity identified patients with stage II or III CRC who derived benefit from ACT (HR 6.59, P < 0.0001). The results of our study, a large and comprehensive prospective analysis of ctDNA in resectable CRC, support the use of ctDNA testing to identify patients who are at increased risk of recurrence and are likely to benefit from ACT.

Clinical trials have reported the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors in the treatment of mismatch repair-deficient (dMMR) advanced solid tumors. The accumulated evidence of tumor agnostic agent has been made since PD-1 inhibitor was approved and used in clinical practice. Therefore, we have revised the guideline "Japan Society of Clinical Oncology provisional clinical opinion for the diagnosis and use of immunotherapy in patients with deficient DNA mismatch repair tumors, cooperated by Japanese Society of Medical Oncology, First Edition".

DESTINY-CRC01 (NCT03384940) was a multicenter, open-label, phase 2 trial assessing the efficacy and safety of trastuzumab deruxtecan (T-DXd) in patients with HER2-expressing metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) that progressed after ≥2 prior regimens; results of the primary analysis are published. Patients received T-DXd 6.4 mg/kg every 3 weeks and were assigned to either: cohort A (HER2-positive, immunohistochemistry [IHC] 3+ or IHC 2+/in situ hybridization [ISH]+), cohort B (IHC 2+/ISH-), or cohort C (IHC 1+). Primary endpoint was objective response rate (ORR) by independent central review in cohort A. Secondary endpoints included ORR (cohorts B and C), duration of response, disease control rate, progression-free survival, overall survival, pharmacokinetics, and safety of T-DXd. 86 patients were enrolled (53 in cohort A, 15 in cohort B, and 18 in cohort C). Results of the primary analysis are published, reporting an ORR of 45.3% in cohort A. Here, we report the final results. No responses occurred in cohorts B or C. Median progression-free survival, overall survival, and duration of response were 6.9, 15.5, and 7.0 months, respectively. Overall serum exposure (cycle 1) of T-DXd, total anti-HER2 antibody, and DXd were similar regardless of HER2 status. Most common grade ≥3 treatment-emergent adverse events were decreased neutrophil count and anemia. Adjudicated drug-related interstitial lung disease/pneumonitis occurred in 8 patients (9.3%). These findings support the continued exploration of T-DXd in HER2-positive mCRC.

Clinical trials have reported the efficacy of tropomyosin receptor kinase (TRK) inhibitors against neurotrophic receptor tyrosine kinase (NTRK) fusion gene-positive advanced solid tumors. The accumulated evidence of tumor-agnostic agent has made since TRK inhibitors were approved and used in clinical practice. Therefore, we have revised the 'Japan Society of Clinical Oncology (JSCO)/Japanese Society of Medical Oncology (JSMO)-led clinical recommendations on the diagnosis and use of tropomyosin receptor kinase inhibitors in adult and pediatric patients with neurotrophic receptor tyrosine kinase fusion-positive advanced solid tumors, cooperated by the Japanese Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology (JSPHO)'.

Japanese national oncological experts convened to evaluate the efficacy and safety of particle beam therapy (PT) for pulmonary, liver and lymph node oligometastases (P-OM, L-OM and LN-OM, respectively) and to conduct a statistically comparative analysis of the local control (LC) rate and overall survival (OS) rate of PT versus those of X-ray stereotactic body radiotherapy (X-SBRT) and X-ray intensity-modulated radiotherapy (X-IMRT). They conducted [1] an analysis of the efficacy and safety of metastasis-directed therapy with PT for P-OM, L-OM and LN-OM using a Japanese nationwide multi-institutional cohort study data set; [2] a systematic review of X-ray high-precision radiotherapy (i.e. X-SBRT/X-IMRT) and PT for P-OM, L-OM and LN-OM; and [3] a statistical comparison between LC and OS of the cohort data set in PT and that of the extracted historical data set in X-SBRT/X-IMRT from the preceding systematic review. Safety was evaluated as the incidence of grade ≥ 3 adverse events, while statistical comparisons of LC and OS were conducted by estimating the incidence rate ratios (IRR) for local progression and mortality, respectively. This study demonstrated that PT provided durable LC (3-year LC rate: 72.8-83.2%) with acceptable OS (3-year OS rate: 38.5-68.1%) and risk of severe toxicity incidence of 0.8-3.5% in radical metastasis-directed therapy for P-OM, L-OM and LN-OM. Compared to LC with X-SBRT or X-IMRT, LC with PT was potentially superior for P-OM; superior for L-OM; and equivalent for LN-OM. In particular, this study demonstrated that PT may be a new treatment option for L-OM tumors measuring > 5 cm.

Immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) combinations represent an emerging treatment strategies in cancer. However, their efficacy in microsatellite stable (MSS) or mismatch repair-proficient (pMMR) colorectal cancer (CRC) is variable. Here, a multiomic characterization was performed to identify predictive biomarkers associated with patient response to ICI combinations in MSS/pMMR CRC for the further development of ICI combinations.