Neoadjuvant nivolumab or nivolumab plus ipilimumab in early-stage triple negative breast cancer: phase 2 adaptive BELLINI trial. RNA-Seq

The adaptive BELLINI trial explored whether short combination ICI induces immune activation (primary endpoint: two-fold increase in CD8+ T cells or IFNG), providing rationale for neoadjuvant ICI without chemotherapy. In window of opportunity cohorts A (4 weeks anti-PD1) and B (4 weeks anti-PD1 + anti-CTLA4), we observed immune activation in 53% (8/15) and 60% (9/15) of patients, respectively. High tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) correlated with response. Based on these data, we opened cohort C for patients with high TILs (≥50%) who received 6 weeks neoadjuvant anti-PD1 + anti-CTLA4 followed by surgery (primary endpoint: pathological complete response, pCR). 53% (8/15) of patients had major pathological response (< 10% viable tumor) at resection, with 33% (5/15) having pCR. All cohorts met Simon’s two-stage threshold for expansion to stage II. In conclusion, neoadjuvant immunotherapy without chemotherapy demonstrates potential efficacy and warrants further investigation in patients with early TNBC.

• Type: RNASeq
• Archiver: European Genome-Phenome Archive (EGA)