First Report of Pembrolizumab Activity in KIT-Mutated Thymic Carcinoma

The antitumor activity of immunotherapy is strongly influenced by the presence of driver gene mutations/translocations. For this reason, knowledge of the predictive value of specific genetic alterations in relation to anti-PD(L)1 activity is highly useful for the clinical decision making process in...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Tommaso Martino De Pas, Giuseppe Giaccone, Chiara Catania, Fabio Conforti, Laura Pala, Periklis Mitsakis, Pierre-Yves Dietrich
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-01-01
Series:Current Oncology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1718-7729/32/2/68
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850080675663708160
author Tommaso Martino De Pas
Giuseppe Giaccone
Chiara Catania
Fabio Conforti
Laura Pala
Periklis Mitsakis
Pierre-Yves Dietrich
author_facet Tommaso Martino De Pas
Giuseppe Giaccone
Chiara Catania
Fabio Conforti
Laura Pala
Periklis Mitsakis
Pierre-Yves Dietrich
author_sort Tommaso Martino De Pas
collection DOAJ
description The antitumor activity of immunotherapy is strongly influenced by the presence of driver gene mutations/translocations. For this reason, knowledge of the predictive value of specific genetic alterations in relation to anti-PD(L)1 activity is highly useful for the clinical decision making process in many solid tumors, particularly in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer. Although data on the correlation between genetic alterations and response to immunotherapy are available in the majority of common cancers, data are lacking in the subset of patients with KIT-mutated Thymic Carcinoma (TC). As a consequence, although immunotherapy is a standard treatment for TC patients, the lack of this knowledge leads to uncertainty when proposing immunocheckpoint inhibitors in this subset of patients. Here we describe the first report of a patient with KIT-mutated TC who received the anti-PD1 agent pembrolizumab, which caused a sustained partial response. This case report of a sustained partial response achieved with pembrolizumab in a patient with KIT-mutated TC after progression to chemotherapy and imatinib may be supportive during clinical decision making for this extremely rare disease.
format Article
id doaj-art-45c5c9d36fb3406a91cbcb34b2f96cad
institution DOAJ
issn 1198-0052
1718-7729
language English
publishDate 2025-01-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Current Oncology
spelling doaj-art-45c5c9d36fb3406a91cbcb34b2f96cad2025-08-20T02:44:53ZengMDPI AGCurrent Oncology1198-00521718-77292025-01-013226810.3390/curroncol32020068First Report of Pembrolizumab Activity in KIT-Mutated Thymic CarcinomaTommaso Martino De Pas0Giuseppe Giaccone1Chiara Catania2Fabio Conforti3Laura Pala4Periklis Mitsakis5Pierre-Yves Dietrich6Division of Medical Oncology, Cliniche Humanitas Gavazzeni, 24125 Bergamo, ItalyDepartment of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY 10075, USADivision of Medical Oncology, Cliniche Humanitas Gavazzeni, 24125 Bergamo, ItalyDivision of Medical Oncology, Cliniche Humanitas Gavazzeni, 24125 Bergamo, ItalyDivision of Medical Oncology, Cliniche Humanitas Gavazzeni, 24125 Bergamo, ItalyNuclear Medicine, Hirslanden Clinique des Grangettes, 1224 Geneva, SwitzerlandMedical Oncology, Hirslanden Clinique des Grangettes, 1208 Geneva, SwitzerlandThe antitumor activity of immunotherapy is strongly influenced by the presence of driver gene mutations/translocations. For this reason, knowledge of the predictive value of specific genetic alterations in relation to anti-PD(L)1 activity is highly useful for the clinical decision making process in many solid tumors, particularly in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer. Although data on the correlation between genetic alterations and response to immunotherapy are available in the majority of common cancers, data are lacking in the subset of patients with KIT-mutated Thymic Carcinoma (TC). As a consequence, although immunotherapy is a standard treatment for TC patients, the lack of this knowledge leads to uncertainty when proposing immunocheckpoint inhibitors in this subset of patients. Here we describe the first report of a patient with KIT-mutated TC who received the anti-PD1 agent pembrolizumab, which caused a sustained partial response. This case report of a sustained partial response achieved with pembrolizumab in a patient with KIT-mutated TC after progression to chemotherapy and imatinib may be supportive during clinical decision making for this extremely rare disease.https://www.mdpi.com/1718-7729/32/2/68thymic carcinomaimmunotherapyKIT mutation
spellingShingle Tommaso Martino De Pas
Giuseppe Giaccone
Chiara Catania
Fabio Conforti
Laura Pala
Periklis Mitsakis
Pierre-Yves Dietrich
First Report of Pembrolizumab Activity in KIT-Mutated Thymic Carcinoma
Current Oncology
thymic carcinoma
immunotherapy
KIT mutation
title First Report of Pembrolizumab Activity in KIT-Mutated Thymic Carcinoma
title_full First Report of Pembrolizumab Activity in KIT-Mutated Thymic Carcinoma
title_fullStr First Report of Pembrolizumab Activity in KIT-Mutated Thymic Carcinoma
title_full_unstemmed First Report of Pembrolizumab Activity in KIT-Mutated Thymic Carcinoma
title_short First Report of Pembrolizumab Activity in KIT-Mutated Thymic Carcinoma
title_sort first report of pembrolizumab activity in kit mutated thymic carcinoma
topic thymic carcinoma
immunotherapy
KIT mutation
url https://www.mdpi.com/1718-7729/32/2/68
work_keys_str_mv AT tommasomartinodepas firstreportofpembrolizumabactivityinkitmutatedthymiccarcinoma
AT giuseppegiaccone firstreportofpembrolizumabactivityinkitmutatedthymiccarcinoma
AT chiaracatania firstreportofpembrolizumabactivityinkitmutatedthymiccarcinoma
AT fabioconforti firstreportofpembrolizumabactivityinkitmutatedthymiccarcinoma
AT laurapala firstreportofpembrolizumabactivityinkitmutatedthymiccarcinoma
AT periklismitsakis firstreportofpembrolizumabactivityinkitmutatedthymiccarcinoma
AT pierreyvesdietrich firstreportofpembrolizumabactivityinkitmutatedthymiccarcinoma