Application of mTORC1 Inhibitors for Tissue-Agnostic Management of Standard-Therapy-Refractory Solid Tumors

Hossein Taghizadeh1,2,3, Agnieszka Maj-Hes1,2, Gerald W Prager1,2

  • 1Department of Medicine I, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria.

Cancers
|April 23, 2022
PubMed

Insights

mTOR inhibitors showed limited efficacy in heavily pretreated cancer patients with mTOR pathway activation. This precision medicine approach revealed weak antitumoral activity, highlighting the need for novel therapeutic strategies.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Precision Medicine
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Standard cancer treatments often fail in advanced stages.
  • The mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway is implicated in various cancers.
  • Targeted therapies require detailed molecular profiling for efficacy.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the efficacy and limitations of mTOR inhibitors in pretreated cancer patients.
  • To assess the feasibility of precision medicine using molecular profiling for mTOR pathway activation.
  • To identify common mutations associated with mTOR pathway activation.

Main Methods:

  • Real-world analysis of 71 cancer patients with advanced solid tumors.
  • Next-generation sequencing, microsatellite instability testing, and immunohistochemistry for molecular profiling.
  • Multidisciplinary team review for targeted treatment recommendations.

Main Results:

  • Only 32.4% of patients received mTORC1-inhibitor therapy; 4.2% achieved stable disease.
  • Median time to treatment failure was 2.8 months.
  • TP53, PTEN, and KRAS mutations were most frequent, found in 84.5% of patients.

Conclusions:

  • mTORC1 inhibition demonstrated weak antitumoral activity in selected heavily pretreated patients.
  • Molecular profiling identified common mutations but did not predict significant response to mTOR inhibitors.
  • Further research is needed to improve targeted therapy efficacy in advanced cancers.

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