Individualized induction chemotherapy by pre-treatment plasma Epstein-Barr viral DNA in advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma
Jian Zhang,
Hao Peng,
Wen-Fei Li,
Yuan Zhang,
Li-Zhi Liu,
Li Tian,
Ai-Hua Lin,
Ying Sun,
Jun Ma
Affiliations
Jian Zhang
Department of Radiation Oncology, Affiliated Cancer Hospital & Institute of Guangzhou Medical University
Hao Peng
Department of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in Southern China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy
Wen-Fei Li
Department of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in Southern China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy
Yuan Zhang
Department of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in Southern China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy
Li-Zhi Liu
Imaging Diagnosis and Interventional Center, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in Southern China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine
Li Tian
Imaging Diagnosis and Interventional Center, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in Southern China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine
Ai-Hua Lin
Department of Medical Statistics and Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University
Ying Sun
Department of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in Southern China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy
Jun Ma
Department of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in Southern China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy
Abstract Background The role of pretreatment Epstein-Barr virus DNA (pre-DNA) for individualized induction chemotherapy (IC) in locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LA-NPC) still remains unknown. We aimed to address this clinical issue. Methods In total, data on 6218 patient with newly diagnosed LA-NPC receiving concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) with or without IC were retrospectively reviewed. Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve was adopted to calculate the cut-off value of pre-DNA based on disease-free survival (DFS). Propensity score matching (PSM) method was adopted to balance prognostic factors and match patients. Survival outcomes between IC + CCRT and CCRT groups were compared. Results Among the original cohort, no survival difference between IC + CCRT and CCRT groups was found. The cut-off value of pre-DNA was 4650 copies/ml (area under curve [AUC], 0.620; sensitivity, 0.6224; specificity, 0.5673). For patients with Pre-DNA ≤ 4650 copies/ml, the IC + CCRT and CCRT groups also achieved comparable survival outcomes (P > 0.05 for all rates). However, IC + CCRT was associated with significantly improved 3-year DFS (78.6% vs. 74.8%, P = 0.03), overall survival (OS; 91.4% vs. 87.5%, P = 0.002) and distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS; 86.0% vs. 82.2%, P = 0.036) for patient with pre-DNA > 4650 copies/ml. Multivariate analysis also confirm that IC + CCRT was an independent prognostic factor for DFS (HR, 0.817; 95% CI, 0.683–0.977; P = 0.027), OS (HR, 0.675; 95% CI, 0.537–0.848; P = 0.001) and DMFS (HR, 0.782; 95% CI, 0.626–0.976; P = 0.03). Conclusions Pre-DNA may be a feasible and powerful consideration for individualized IC apart from other baseline clinical characteristics in LA-NPC.
