Pembrolizumab, Cetuximab and Docetaxel demonstrate an Effect on adenoid cystic carcinoma of Head and neck ex vivo.

Introduction The adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) is a rare form of cancer of the salivary glands of head and neck. There are only a few evidences about the effectiveness of a systemic therapy, therefore, when possible ACC is being resected and adjuvant, otherwise primarily irradiated. Data about the efficacy of PD-1 blockade in ACC are not available. Hence, we report about the efficacy of Pembrolizumab (Pemb) alone and combined with Cetuximab (E) and Docetaxel (DTX) on colony formation and cytokine production in a short-time chemo-response test (FLAVINO).

Methods Following collagenase-digestion, 30000 cells/well from a histologically confirmed ACC were seeded in laminin-coated 96-well-plates and incubated for 16 h. Afterwards the end-concentrations of 50 µg/ml Pemb, 50 µg/ml E or 275 nM DTX alone and in binary or ternary combinations in replicates (n = 6) were tested. After 3 days, supernatants were reserved and then the colony formation and the IFN-γ, IL-6, IL-8, TNF-α, MCP-1 concentrations in ELISA, were examined.

Results Pemb, E, or DTX suppressed the colony formation at about 25 % and in binary combination at about 40 %. DTX+E reduced the concentration of IFN-γ (-11 %), IL-6 (-82 %), IL-8 (-90 %), TNF- α (-81 %), MCP-1 (-97 %) and VEGF (-84 %). The ternary combination reduced IL-6 (-84 %), IL-8 (-88 %), TNF- α (-46 %), MCP-1 (-96 %) and VEGF (-83 %), while the IFN-γ concentration was increased (+28 %). Pemb+E boosted the IFN-γ concentration ca. 36 % und suppressed the concentrations of IL-6 (-55 %), IL-8 (-52 %), TNF- α (-66 %), MCP-1 (-84 %) and VEGF (-30 %). Additivity was observed regarding the effectiveness of Pemb and E.

Conclusion A simultaneous blockade of EGFR and PD-1 and additionally DTX could be a potential therapy option for ACC.

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Publication History

Article published online:
10 June 2020