Arutha Kulasinghe, PhD, senior research fellow, Frazer Institute, the University of Queensland, discusses findings from a study profiling the tumor microenvironment of non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), which he presented during the 2023 IASLC World Conference on Lung Cancer, as well as future directions planned with this research and the implications of these findings.

The study included samples from 90 patients with NSCLC, 45 each of whom received an immune checkpoint inhibitor in the second line and standard-of-care platinum-based chemotherapy. Of the patients in the immunotherapy cohort, 16 responded with immunotherapy and 25 did not respond.

Investigators found that the enrichment of certain neighborhoods within the tumor tissue and tumor microenvironment was associated with varying responses to immunotherapy, Kulasinghe says. For instance, increased glucose uptake was present in tumors that experienced poor responses with immunotherapy, Kulasinghe explains. Other neighborhoods enriched in patients who did not respond to immunotherapy included regulatory T-cell monocytes, CD8-positive regulatory T cells, CD8-positive B cells, regulatory T-cell proliferating lymphocytes, and CD4-positive granulocytes. Neighborhoods enriched in patients who responded to immunotherapy included HLADR tumor macrophages, CD44-positive tumor mast cells, mixed tumor macrophages, mixed tumor effector CD4 cells, mixed tumor blood vessels, and CD8-positive HLADR tumor cells.

Efforts to measure these findings across multiple cohort studies are ongoing. Kulasinghe and his fellow study investigators are currently conducting retrospective analyses of previously published data on cohorts of patients who responded to immunotherapy vs those who did not respond in order to validate these findings across a larger dataset, Kulasinghe notes. So far, this research has included involved many single-site studies. Going forward, researchers aim to compare the findings from those studies with the findings from diverse patient populations in the United States and Europe. This research could help to determine the robustness and generalizability of the tissue signatures identified in this study, Kulasinghe concludes.

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Arutha Kulasinghe, PhD, discusses findings from a study profiling the tumor microenvironment of non–small cell lung cancer, as well as future directions planned with this research and the implications of these findings.

Dr Kulasinghe on a Study Profiling the NSCLC Tumor Microenvironment

Arutha Kulasinghe, PhD, a Faculty of Health at the Queensland University of Technology, discusses identifying COVID-19–associated gene signatures through spatial transcriptomics.

During the recent AACR Virtual Meeting on COVID-19 and Cancer, findings were presented regarding spatial transcriptomics to better understand the tissue biology of COVID-19, Kulasinghe says. This strategy was used to analyze autopsy samples collected from patients with COVID-19 who were from Brazil.

Investigators analyzed samples of pulmonary COVID-19 tissues and compared them with samples of specimens collected that were during the H1N1pdm09 virus outbreak, as well as tissue samples from healthy lungs, Kulasinghe explains. Through this work, a number of genes and gene signatures that appeared to be associated with COVID-19 were identified. Some of these markers can potentially be utilized to assess disease severity in this patient population, Kulasinghe concludes.

Arutha Kulasinghe, PhD, discusses identifying COVID-19–associated gene signatures through spatial transcriptomics.

Dr. Kulasinghe on Identifying COVID-19–Associated Gene Signatures Through Spatial Transcriptomics

Arutha Kulasinghe, PhD, a Faculty of Health at the Queensland University of Technology, discusses cancer care during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in Australia.

To control the spread of the virus, both Australia and New Zealand successfully implemented an elimination or suppression model, Kulasinghe explains. Currently, the spread of the virus in Australia has been linked with international travelers, and lockdowns have been implemented any time a rise in cases has been detected, Kulasinghe says.

Currently, the rate of infection has returned to manageable levels without the need for lockdowns, which is, in part, due to the Australian government's efforts to prevent the spread of the virus, and the benefit of being a relatively isolated island, Kulasinghe explains. 

Moreover, elective surgeries were suspended to protect patients with cancer. The use of technology such as telehealth has also played a major role in safely continuing cancer care during the pandemic, Kulasinghe concludes.

Arutha Kulasinghe, PhD, discusses cancer care during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic in Australia.



Arutha Kulasinghe, PhD

Articles

Dr Kulasinghe on a Study Profiling the NSCLC Tumor Microenvironment

Dr. Kulasinghe on Identifying COVID-19–Associated Gene Signatures Through Spatial Transcriptomics

Dr. Kulasinghe on Cancer Care During the COVID-19 Crisis in Australia