Cancer cytopathology
-
Cancer cytopathology · Jul 2019
Programmed death-ligand 1 expression on direct Pap-stained cytology smears from non-small cell lung cancer: Comparison with cell blocks and surgical resection specimens.
Programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression, as assessed by immunohistochemistry (IHC), is used to select patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) for anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1)/PD-L1 therapy. The current study evaluated the feasibility and efficacy of PD-L1 immunostaining and quantitation on direct Papanicolaou-stained cytological smears compared with formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded samples (cytological cell blocks and surgical resection specimens) in NSCLC cases using 2 commercially available assays: the PD-L1 IHC 22C3 pharmDx assay (Agilent Technologies/Dako, Carpinteria, CA, USA) and the Ventana SP263 Assay (Ventana Medical Systems Inc, Tucson, Arizona). ⋯ The quantification of PD-L1 expression on direct Papanicolaou-stained cytology smears is feasible and reliable for both PD-L1 assays.
-
Cancer cytopathology · Jul 2019
Programmed cell death ligand 1 expression in cytologic and surgical non-small cell lung carcinoma specimens from a single institution: Association with clinicopathologic features and molecular alterations.
Programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression by the 22C3 pharmDx companion assay has been validated in surgical specimens to support pembrolizumab treatment decisions for patients with non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC). The aims of this study were 1) to assess the adequacy of cytologic specimens for PD-L1 evaluation and 2) to explore correlations of PD-L1 expression with clinicopathologic and molecular features. ⋯ The data indicate that cytologic specimens are comparable to surgical specimens for PD-L1 evaluation. The association of PD-L1 expression with KRAS mutations may have clinical relevance in selecting patients with NSCLC for immunotherapy.