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Circulating immune biomarkers correlating with response in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma on immunotherapy.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Hwang, J; Holl, E; Wu, Y; Agarwal, A; Starr, MD; Reyes Martinez, MA; Wang, AZ; Armstrong, AJ; Harrison, MR; George, DJ; Nixon, AB; Zhang, T
Published in: JCI Insight
January 7, 2025

Since multiple front-line immune checkpoint inhibitor-based (ICI-based) combinations are approved for metastatic renal cell carcinoma, biomarkers predicting for ICI responses are needed past clinical prognostication scores and transcriptome gene expression profiling. Circulating markers represent opportunities to assess baseline and dynamic changes in immune cell frequency and cytokine levels while on treatment. We conducted an exploratory prospective correlative study of 33 patients with metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma undergoing treatment with ICIs and correlated changes in circulating immune cell subsets and cytokines with clinical responses to treatment. Cell frequencies and cytokine levels were compared between responders and nonresponders using unpaired parametric t tests, using prespecified alpha level of significance of 0.05. Classical monocyte subsets (CD14+CD16-), as well as 7 cytokines (IL-12/23 p40, macrophage inflammatory protein-1a, macrophage inflammatory protein-1b, vascular cell adhesion molecule-1, intercellular adhesion molecule-1, IL-8, and TNF-α) were higher at baseline for responding versus nonresponding patients. Dynamic changes in thymus- and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC), placental growth factor (PlGF), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) also correlated with patients with ICI response. In summary, macrophage-activating agents were observed to be important in ICI response and may highlight the importance of the innate immune response in ICI responses.

Duke Scholars

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Published In

JCI Insight

DOI

EISSN

2379-3708

Publication Date

January 7, 2025

Volume

10

Issue

4

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Treatment Outcome
  • Prospective Studies
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Kidney Neoplasms
  • Immunotherapy
  • Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Cytokines
 

Citation

APA
Chicago
ICMJE
MLA
NLM
Hwang, J., Holl, E., Wu, Y., Agarwal, A., Starr, M. D., Reyes Martinez, M. A., … Zhang, T. (2025). Circulating immune biomarkers correlating with response in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma on immunotherapy. JCI Insight, 10(4). https://doi.org/10.1172/jci.insight.185963
Hwang, Joyce, Eda Holl, Yuan Wu, Anika Agarwal, Mark D. Starr, Marco A. Reyes Martinez, Andrew Z. Wang, et al. “Circulating immune biomarkers correlating with response in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma on immunotherapy.JCI Insight 10, no. 4 (January 7, 2025). https://doi.org/10.1172/jci.insight.185963.
Hwang J, Holl E, Wu Y, Agarwal A, Starr MD, Reyes Martinez MA, et al. Circulating immune biomarkers correlating with response in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma on immunotherapy. JCI Insight. 2025 Jan 7;10(4).
Hwang, Joyce, et al. “Circulating immune biomarkers correlating with response in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma on immunotherapy.JCI Insight, vol. 10, no. 4, Jan. 2025. Pubmed, doi:10.1172/jci.insight.185963.
Hwang J, Holl E, Wu Y, Agarwal A, Starr MD, Reyes Martinez MA, Wang AZ, Armstrong AJ, Harrison MR, George DJ, Nixon AB, Zhang T. Circulating immune biomarkers correlating with response in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma on immunotherapy. JCI Insight. 2025 Jan 7;10(4).

Published In

JCI Insight

DOI

EISSN

2379-3708

Publication Date

January 7, 2025

Volume

10

Issue

4

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Treatment Outcome
  • Prospective Studies
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Kidney Neoplasms
  • Immunotherapy
  • Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Cytokines