Stereotactic body radiation therapy and thymosin alpha-1-induced anti-tumor effects in heavily pretreated, metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma patients.
Du. Dexi D; Song. Tao T; Dai. Hui H; Jing. Zhao Z; Chen. Peng P; Wu. Shixiu S
Key Findings
- 45% of treated metastatic lesions were controlled (partial response or stable disease)
- Median overall survival was 5.2 months and abscopal progression‑free survival was 2.9 months
- Higher CD8+ T‑cell levels after treatment were linked to better lesion control and the combo was well tolerated with no grade‑4 toxicity
Practical Outcomes
- For most biohackers this isn’t a ready‑to‑use protocol for longevity or performance. It does show thymosin‑alpha‑1 can be safely combined with radiation and may enhance immune activity, suggesting potential for cancer‑focused immunotherapy research, but more studies are needed before applying it outside a clinical setting.
Summary
A small study gave cancer patients a combo of precise radiation and a peptide called thymosin‑alpha‑1. About half of the treated spots stopped growing, and the treatment was safe with no severe side effects, but overall survival was still limited (about 5 months). The results hint that the peptide might boost the immune response when paired with radiation, but it’s only been tested in advanced esophageal cancer, not in healthy people.
Abstract
This study investigated the anti-tumor effects of stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) with thymosin alpha-1 (Tα1) in heavily pretreated, metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (mESCC) patients. Thirty-one patients with at least 2 metastatic sites were enrolled. SBRT was delivered with a daily fraction of 5.0 Gy for a total dosage of 25 Gy over one week to one metastatic lesion. Concurrent Tα1 (1.6mg subcutaneously) was administered twice a week with an interval of 3-4 days until tumor progression of other documented metastatic lesions. Anti-tumor effects (the primary endpoint) were evaluated by assessing the CT/MRI response of other distinct measurable lesions. Secondary endpoints included treatment safety, survival outcomes and immune-related blood parameters. This study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT 02545751). Partial response occurred in three (9.7%) patients, and 11 (35.5%) patients had stable metastatic disease, which yielded a metastatic-lesion control rate of 45.2%. Seventeen (54.8%) patients were documented to have progressive disease in other metastatic lesions. The median overall survival and abscopal progression free survival (APFS) times were 5.2 and 2.9 months, respectively. Significant differences in survival outcomes were observed between the abscopal control group (without progression in the abscopal lesions at 12 weeks) and the non-control group (P = 0.035 and 0.044, respectively). Treatment-related toxicity was acceptable, and no grade 4 acute toxicity occurred. Immunomonitoring of lymphocytes showed that the proportion of CD8<sup>+</sup> T cells after treatment was significantly different between the abscopal control group and the non-control group (P=0.047). In conclusion, the combination of SBRT with Tα1 produced encouraging effects in heavily pretreated, mESCC patients and further research on radiation enhanced immunotherapy is warranted.
Study Information
pubmed
2018
2018-04-09T00:00:00.000Z
10.1080/2162402x.2018.1450128