Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) such as anti-programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) or programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1) monoclonal antibodies have prolonged survival in various types of malignancies, including advanced gastric cancer (AGC). Nivolumab, a monoclonal anti-PD-1 antibody, showed an improvement in overall survival at a later-line therapy in unselected AGC patients in the ATTRACTION-2 study or in combination with chemotherapy as first-line therapy in the global CheckMate-649 study. Another monoclonal anti-PD-1 antibody, pembrolizumab, showed single agent activity in tumors with high microsatellite instability or high tumor mutational burden. Furthermore, a recent KEYNOTE-811 study demonstrated significant improvement in response rate with pembrolizumab combined with trastuzumab and chemotherapy for HER2-positive AGC. Based on these results, ICIs are now incorporated into standard treatment for AGC patients. As a result of pivotal clinical trials, three anti-PD-1 antibodies were approved for AGC: nivolumab combined with chemotherapy as first-line treatment or nivolumab monotherapy as third- or later-line treatment in Asian countries; pembrolizumab for previously treated microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H) or tumor mutational burden-high AGC, or pembrolizumab combined with trastuzumab and chemotherapy for HER2-positive AGC in the United States; and dostarlimab for previously treated MSI-H AGC in the United States. However, a substantial number of patients have showed resistance to ICIs, highlighting the importance of the better selection of patients or further combined immunotherapy. This review focused on molecular and immunological profiles, pivotal clinical trials of ICIs with related biomarkers, and investigational immunotherapy for AGC.

No abstract

Purpose Although the effectiveness of antiemetic therapy for colorectal cancer chemotherapy has improved with further drug development, some patients still suffer from chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) even with only 5-hydroxytryptamine-3 receptor antagonist and dexamethasone. The present study investigated the risk factors of CINV in patients who received chemotherapy for colorectal cancer and clarified which patients need additional neurokinin 1 receptor antagonist. Methods Patients with colorectal cancer receiving moderate-emetic-risk chemotherapy (MEC) were enrolled in this prospective single-arm study with intravenous palonosetron 0.75 mg and dexamethasone 9.9 mg before chemotherapy and with paroral dexamethasone 8 mg on days 2 and 3. The primary endpoint was the complete response (CR) rate for delayed-phase CINV. Results A total of 179 patients were eligible for this study. The delayed CR rate was 84.9% (152/179). There were no significant differences in any risk factors, but women with a low body mass index (BMI) (a combination of "female sex" and "BMI < 20") showed a significantly lower rate of CC (complete control) (odds ratio [OR] = 0.45, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.17-1.13; p = 0.039), and young patients with a low BMI (combination of "age < 65" and "BMI < 20") showed a significantly lower rate of CR (OR = 0.34, 95% CI = 0.13-0.88; p = 0.022) than the other patients. Conclusions This study failed to identify any single risk factors associated with delayed CINV in patients who received chemotherapy for advanced colorectal cancer. However, combinations of "thin and women" or "young and thin patients" might be possible predictive conditions, thus, candidates for NK1 receptor antagonist administration in MEC. Further investigations are required to develop criteria for the supplementation of NK1 receptor antagonist.

Supporting Information The video may be found in the online version of this article and also on the Colorectal Disease Journal YouTube and Vimeo channels: Video S1. Laparoscopic excision of a cystic vascular malformation of the sigmoid colon mesentery presenting as a retroperitoneal tumour.

The effect of ambient air flow on flow-transition points in thermocapillary convection was investigated using a floatingzone method (full-zone liquid bridge) with a high Prandtl number fluid (Pr = 28.1) under normal gravity conditions. In the liquid bridge, convection changes from two-dimensional steady flow to three-dimensional unsteady flow at a flowtransition point. A pair of partition plates was employed to suppress the ambient air flow. To understand the flow and thermal fields of the ambient air, flow was visualized using smoke and temperature was measured using a thermocouple. Thermocapillary convection was stabilized by suppressing ambient air flow. The primary stabilization factor is heat transfer from the ambient air to the liquid bridge through the free surface. These results suggest that flow-transition point was controllable by modifying ambient air temperature.