Abstract
BACKGROUND: Although cisplatin-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) improves survival of unselected patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC), only a minority responds to therapy and chemoresistance remains a major challenge in this disease setting.
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical significance of oncofetal chondroitin sulfate (ofCS) glycosaminoglycan chains in cisplatin-resistant MIBC and to evaluate these as targets for second-line therapy.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: An ofCS-binding recombinant VAR2CSA protein derived from the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum (rVAR2) was used as an in situ, in vitro, and in vivo ofCS-targeting reagent in cisplatin-resistant MIBC. The ofCS expression landscape was analyzed in two independent cohorts of matched pre- and post-NAC-treated MIBC patients.
INTERVENTION: An rVAR2 protein armed with cytotoxic hemiasterlin compounds (rVAR2 drug conjugate [VDC] 886) was evaluated as a novel therapeutic strategy in a xenograft model of cisplatin-resistant MIBC.
OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Antineoplastic effects of targeting ofCS.
RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: In situ, ofCS was significantly overexpressed in residual tumors after NAC in two independent patient cohorts (p<0.02). Global gene-expression profiling and biochemical analysis of primary tumors and cell lines revealed syndican-1 and chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan 4 as ofCS-modified proteoglycans in MIBC. In vitro, ofCS was expressed on all MIBC cell lines tested, and VDC886 eliminated these cells in the low-nanomolar IC50 concentration range. In vivo, VDC886 effectively retarded growth of chemoresistant orthotopic bladder cancer xenografts and prolonged survival (p=0.005). The use of cisplatin only for the generation of chemoresistant xenografts are limitations of our animal model design.
CONCLUSIONS: Targeting ofCS provides a promising second-line treatment strategy in cisplatin-resistant MIBC.
PATIENT SUMMARY: Cisplatin-resistant bladder cancer overexpresses particular sugar chains compared with chemotherapy-naïve bladder cancer. Using a recombinant protein from the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, we can target these sugar chains, and our results showed a significant antitumor effect in cisplatin-resistant bladder cancer. This novel treatment paradigm provides therapeutic access to bladder cancers not responding to cisplatin.
Original language | English |
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Journal | European Urology Supplements |
Volume | 72 |
Issue number | 1 |
Pages (from-to) | 142-150 |
Number of pages | 9 |
ISSN | 1569-9056 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2017 |