Clinical characteristics and biomarkers of severe immune checkpoint inhibitor-related pneumonitis triggered by immunotherapy followed by radiation: a case report

BackgroundThe advent of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has revolutionized the treatment landscape for tumor patients, dramatically improving survival rate. However, patients treated with immunotherapy are inevitably at risk of immune-related adverse events (irAEs). Immune checkpoint inhibitor-r...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Yan Zhu, Jianhe Yu, Qun Ren, Xiang Wu, Hongxia Xu, Tian Tian, Jiang Liu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2024-11-01
Series:Frontiers in Immunology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2024.1454114/full
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1846160573681631232
author Yan Zhu
Jianhe Yu
Qun Ren
Xiang Wu
Hongxia Xu
Tian Tian
Jiang Liu
author_facet Yan Zhu
Jianhe Yu
Qun Ren
Xiang Wu
Hongxia Xu
Tian Tian
Jiang Liu
author_sort Yan Zhu
collection DOAJ
description BackgroundThe advent of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has revolutionized the treatment landscape for tumor patients, dramatically improving survival rate. However, patients treated with immunotherapy are inevitably at risk of immune-related adverse events (irAEs). Immune checkpoint inhibitor-related pneumonitis (ICI-P) is an important type of IrAEs with a potentially lethal risk, which should be given more attention. Diagnosis and timely treatment of ICI-P is challenging due to the lack of specificity of its clinical and radiological features. Besides, poor understanding of biological mechanisms of ICI-P has led to a lack of reliable biomarkers to identify patients at risk, limiting timely treatment and proper management of it.Case presentationWe presented longitudinal clinical features and successful treatment experience in a metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) patient treated with immunochemotherapy followed by palliative radiotherapy for cervical lymph nodes who developed severe pneumonitis outside of the radiation field ten days after completion of radiotherapy suggestive of ICI-P. In addition, analysis of circulating biomarkers demonstrated an increase in platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and platelet-to-monocyte ratio (PMR), as well as the levels of CD4+T and CD8+T cells that tracked with the progression of ICI-P, and then decreased with corticosteroid treatment.ConclusionsOur data highlight the imaging manifestations associated with ICI-related pulmonary toxicity and describe the dynamics of the corresponding circulating markers. Although our results reveal that dynamic monitoring of PLR and PMR as well as the levels of CD4+T and CD8+T cells may predict the risk of ICI-P, further investigations are needed to elucidate the underlying molecular and biological mechanisms for better management of ICI-P.
format Article
id doaj-art-d23cafd72fe64319bc9bc5abc87b7b8d
institution Kabale University
issn 1664-3224
language English
publishDate 2024-11-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Immunology
spelling doaj-art-d23cafd72fe64319bc9bc5abc87b7b8d2024-11-22T06:17:19ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Immunology1664-32242024-11-011510.3389/fimmu.2024.14541141454114Clinical characteristics and biomarkers of severe immune checkpoint inhibitor-related pneumonitis triggered by immunotherapy followed by radiation: a case reportYan Zhu0Jianhe Yu1Qun Ren2Xiang Wu3Hongxia Xu4Tian Tian5Jiang Liu6Department of Oncology, Dongtai Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Dongtai, Jiangsu, ChinaDepartment of Oncology, The Affiliated Xinghua People’s Hospital, Medical School of Yangzhou University, Xinghua, Jiangsu, ChinaDepartment of Oncology, The Affiliated Xinghua People’s Hospital, Medical School of Yangzhou University, Xinghua, Jiangsu, ChinaDepartment of Oncology, The Affiliated Xinghua People’s Hospital, Medical School of Yangzhou University, Xinghua, Jiangsu, ChinaDepartment of Oncology, The Affiliated Xinghua People’s Hospital, Medical School of Yangzhou University, Xinghua, Jiangsu, ChinaDepartment of Oncology, The Affiliated Xinghua People’s Hospital, Medical School of Yangzhou University, Xinghua, Jiangsu, ChinaDepartment of Oncology, The Affiliated Xinghua People’s Hospital, Medical School of Yangzhou University, Xinghua, Jiangsu, ChinaBackgroundThe advent of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has revolutionized the treatment landscape for tumor patients, dramatically improving survival rate. However, patients treated with immunotherapy are inevitably at risk of immune-related adverse events (irAEs). Immune checkpoint inhibitor-related pneumonitis (ICI-P) is an important type of IrAEs with a potentially lethal risk, which should be given more attention. Diagnosis and timely treatment of ICI-P is challenging due to the lack of specificity of its clinical and radiological features. Besides, poor understanding of biological mechanisms of ICI-P has led to a lack of reliable biomarkers to identify patients at risk, limiting timely treatment and proper management of it.Case presentationWe presented longitudinal clinical features and successful treatment experience in a metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) patient treated with immunochemotherapy followed by palliative radiotherapy for cervical lymph nodes who developed severe pneumonitis outside of the radiation field ten days after completion of radiotherapy suggestive of ICI-P. In addition, analysis of circulating biomarkers demonstrated an increase in platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and platelet-to-monocyte ratio (PMR), as well as the levels of CD4+T and CD8+T cells that tracked with the progression of ICI-P, and then decreased with corticosteroid treatment.ConclusionsOur data highlight the imaging manifestations associated with ICI-related pulmonary toxicity and describe the dynamics of the corresponding circulating markers. Although our results reveal that dynamic monitoring of PLR and PMR as well as the levels of CD4+T and CD8+T cells may predict the risk of ICI-P, further investigations are needed to elucidate the underlying molecular and biological mechanisms for better management of ICI-P.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2024.1454114/fullpneumonitisimmunotherapyimmune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs)immune-related adverse event (irAE)immune checkpoint inhibitor-related pneumonitis (ICI-P)biomarkers
spellingShingle Yan Zhu
Jianhe Yu
Qun Ren
Xiang Wu
Hongxia Xu
Tian Tian
Jiang Liu
Clinical characteristics and biomarkers of severe immune checkpoint inhibitor-related pneumonitis triggered by immunotherapy followed by radiation: a case report
Frontiers in Immunology
pneumonitis
immunotherapy
immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs)
immune-related adverse event (irAE)
immune checkpoint inhibitor-related pneumonitis (ICI-P)
biomarkers
title Clinical characteristics and biomarkers of severe immune checkpoint inhibitor-related pneumonitis triggered by immunotherapy followed by radiation: a case report
title_full Clinical characteristics and biomarkers of severe immune checkpoint inhibitor-related pneumonitis triggered by immunotherapy followed by radiation: a case report
title_fullStr Clinical characteristics and biomarkers of severe immune checkpoint inhibitor-related pneumonitis triggered by immunotherapy followed by radiation: a case report
title_full_unstemmed Clinical characteristics and biomarkers of severe immune checkpoint inhibitor-related pneumonitis triggered by immunotherapy followed by radiation: a case report
title_short Clinical characteristics and biomarkers of severe immune checkpoint inhibitor-related pneumonitis triggered by immunotherapy followed by radiation: a case report
title_sort clinical characteristics and biomarkers of severe immune checkpoint inhibitor related pneumonitis triggered by immunotherapy followed by radiation a case report
topic pneumonitis
immunotherapy
immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs)
immune-related adverse event (irAE)
immune checkpoint inhibitor-related pneumonitis (ICI-P)
biomarkers
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2024.1454114/full
work_keys_str_mv AT yanzhu clinicalcharacteristicsandbiomarkersofsevereimmunecheckpointinhibitorrelatedpneumonitistriggeredbyimmunotherapyfollowedbyradiationacasereport
AT jianheyu clinicalcharacteristicsandbiomarkersofsevereimmunecheckpointinhibitorrelatedpneumonitistriggeredbyimmunotherapyfollowedbyradiationacasereport
AT qunren clinicalcharacteristicsandbiomarkersofsevereimmunecheckpointinhibitorrelatedpneumonitistriggeredbyimmunotherapyfollowedbyradiationacasereport
AT xiangwu clinicalcharacteristicsandbiomarkersofsevereimmunecheckpointinhibitorrelatedpneumonitistriggeredbyimmunotherapyfollowedbyradiationacasereport
AT hongxiaxu clinicalcharacteristicsandbiomarkersofsevereimmunecheckpointinhibitorrelatedpneumonitistriggeredbyimmunotherapyfollowedbyradiationacasereport
AT tiantian clinicalcharacteristicsandbiomarkersofsevereimmunecheckpointinhibitorrelatedpneumonitistriggeredbyimmunotherapyfollowedbyradiationacasereport
AT jiangliu clinicalcharacteristicsandbiomarkersofsevereimmunecheckpointinhibitorrelatedpneumonitistriggeredbyimmunotherapyfollowedbyradiationacasereport