Purpose: Homologous DNA repair-deficient (HRD) ovarian cancers (OCs), including those with BRCA1/2 mutations, have higher levels of genetic instability, potentially resulting in higher immunogenicity, and have been suggested to respond better to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) than homologous DNA repair-proficient OCs. However, clinical evidence is lacking. The study aimed to evaluate the associations between BRCA1/2 mutations, HRD, and other genomic parameters and response to ICIs and survival in OC.
Methods: This is a single-institution retrospective analysis of women with recurrent OC treated with ICIs. BRCA1/2 mutation status and clinicopathologic variables were abstracted from the medical records. Targeted and whole-exome sequencing data available for a subset of patients were used to assess tumor mutational burden (TMB), HRD, and fraction of genome altered (FGA). ICI response was defined as lack of disease progression for ≥ 24 weeks. Associations of BRCA1/2 status and genomic alterations with progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were determined using Cox proportional hazards models.
Results: Of the 143 women treated with ICIs, 134 had known BRCA1/2 mutation status. Deleterious germline or somatic BRCA1/2 mutations were present in 31 women (24%). There was no association between presence of BRCA1/2 mutations and response (P = .796) or survival. Genomic analysis in 73 women found no association between TMB (P = .344) or HRD (P = .222) and response, PFS, or OS. There were also no significant differences in somatic genetic alterations between responders and nonresponders. High FGA was associated with an improvement in PFS (P = .014) and OS (P = .01).
Conclusion: TMB, BRCA1/2 mutations, and HRD are not associated with response or survival, cautioning against their use as selection criteria for ICI in recurrent OC. FGA should be investigated further as a biomarker of response to immunotherapy in OC.
© 2020 by American Society of Clinical Oncology.