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Evaluation of treatment predictors reflecting beta-catenin activation in hepatocellular carcinoma

Award Number: R01CA262460
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 07/01/2021
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 06/30/2028

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Evaluation of treatment predictors reflecting beta-catenin activation in hepatocellular carcinoma - PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a leading cause of cancer mortality worldwide and its incidence is rising in both men and women in the United States. Anti-PD1 and anti-PD-L1 immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) antibodies are now FDA approved for advanced HCC, however, as few as 20% of patients receiving these agents will show an objective response to therapy. Because immune-related adverse events are non-trivial, predictive biomarkers that can explain the variability in immunotherapy response are needed to optimize patient selection. Several lines of research have recently converged to associate oncogenic activation of the Wnt/beta- catenin signaling pathway with tumor immune-evasion and poor clinical response to ICI therapy in HCC. In previous research, we found that HCC exhibiting high uptake of the positron emission tomography / computed tomography (PET/CT) imaging agent 18F- fluorocholine (FCH) often belonged to molecular tumor sub-types associated with beta-catenin activation and immune avoidance. Liquid biopsy based on targeted sequencing of cell-free DNA (cfDNA) has also made it possible to identify patients who have tumors that harbor mutations associated with increased Wnt/beta-catenin signaling. This project comprises a phase 2 biomarker clinical trial to prospectively evaluate these specific embodiments of PET/CT and liquid biopsy as tools for detecting HCC recalcitrant to ICI therapy on the basis of beta-catenin activation. In addition to characterizing and comparing the predictive capabilities of FCH PET/CT and cfDNA mutation profiling based on phase 2 clinical endpoints, this project will utilize decision tree based machine learning to estimate the predictive performance of an integrative imaging-genomic biomarker while also further examining how tumor mutations are related to PET metabolic phenotype and immunotherapy response. Furthermore, because tumor 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake is incongruent with FCH uptake in HCC, a third aim will utilize the trial as a molecular screening process to create an enriched sub-cohort of patients with FDG-avid tumors. These patients will undergo serial FDG PET/CT to evaluate FDG as a source of predictive biomarkers of ICI response for an orthogonal molecular sub-type of HCC. If these diagnostic tests are found reliable at predicting tumor resistance/response, they could significantly enhance the clinical precision and overall benefit of immunotherapy for HCC and possibly other cancers.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2025 ( Subtotal = $1 )
2025	2025	THE QUEEN'S MEDICAL CENTER	1301 PUNCHBOWL ST	HONOLULU	HI	96813	HONOLULU	USA	Cancer Detection and Diagnosis Research	000	4	9/12/2025	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$1
														Subtotal = $1

Issue Date FY: 2024 ( Subtotal = $0 )
2024	2023	THE QUEEN'S MEDICAL CENTER	1301 PUNCHBOWL ST	HONOLULU	HI	96813	HONOLULU	USA	Cancer Detection and Diagnosis Research	000	3	9/10/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$0
														Subtotal = $0

Issue Date FY: 2023 ( Subtotal = $586,680 )
2023	2023	THE QUEEN'S MEDICAL CENTER	1301 PUNCHBOWL ST	HONOLULU	HI	96813	HONOLULU	USA	Cancer Detection and Diagnosis Research	000	3	8/4/2023	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$586,680
														Subtotal = $586,680

Issue Date FY: 2022 ( Subtotal = $238,598 )
2022	2022	THE QUEEN'S MEDICAL CENTER	1301 PUNCHBOWL ST	HONOLULU	HI	96813	HONOLULU	USA	Cancer Detection and Diagnosis Research	000	2	8/30/2022	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$238,598
														Subtotal = $238,598

Issue Date FY: 2021 ( Subtotal = $520,008 )
2021	2021	THE QUEEN'S MEDICAL CENTER	1301 PUNCHBOWL ST	HONOLULU	HI	96813	HONOLULU	USA	Cancer Detection and Diagnosis Research	000	1	6/24/2021	NEW	$520,008
														Subtotal = $520,008

Grand Total All Awards = $1,345,287

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Evaluation of treatment predictors reflecting beta-catenin activation in hepatocellular carcinoma

Award Number: R01CA262460

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 07/01/2021

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 06/30/2028

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