Systematic vitamin D supplementation is associated with improved outcomes and reduced thyroid adverse events in patients with cancer treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors: results from the prospective PROVIDENCE study
Authors: Bersanelli Melissa , Cortellini Alessio , Leonetti Alessandro , Parisi Alessandro , Tiseo Marcello , Bordi Paola , Michiara Maria , Bui Simona , Cosenza Agnese , Ferri Leonarda , Giudice Giulia Claire , Testi Irene , Rapacchi Elena , Camisa Roberta , Vincenzi Bruno , Caruso Giuseppe , Rauti Antonio Natale , Arturi Federica , Tucci Marco , Santo Valentina , Ricozzi Valentina , Burtet Vanessa , Sgargi Paolo , Todeschini Renata , Zustovich Fable , Stucci Luigia Stefania , Santini Daniele , Buti Sebastiano 
Published: August 2023

Background

Hypovitaminosis D can have a negative prognostic impact in patients with cancer. Vitamin D has a demonstrated role in T-cell-mediated immune activation. We hypothesized that systematic vitamin D repletion could impact clinical outcomes in patients with cancer receiving immune-checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs).

Methods

We planned a prospective observational study (PROVIDENCE) to assess serum vitamin D levels in patients with advanced cancer receiving ICIs (cohort 1 at treatment initiation, cohort 2 during treatment) and the impact of systematic repletion on survival and toxicity outcomes. In an exploratory analysis, we compared the clinical outcomes of cohort 1 with a control cohort of patients followed at the participating centers who did not receive systematic vitamin D repletion.

Results

Overall, 164 patients were prospectively recruited in the PROVIDENCE study. In cohort 1, consisting of 101 patients with 94.1% hypovitaminosis (≤ 30 ng/ml) at baseline, adequate repletion with cholecalciferol was obtained in 70.1% at the three months re-assessment. Cohort 2 consisted of 63 patients assessed for vitamin D at a median time of 3.7 months since immunotherapy initiation, with no patients having adequate levels (> 30 ng/ml). Even in cohort 2, systematic supplementation led to adequate levels in 77.8% of patients at the three months re-assessment.

Compared to a retrospective control group of 238 patients without systematic vitamin D repletion, PROVIDENCE cohort 1 showed longer overall survival (OS, p = 0.013), time to treatment failure (TTF, p = 0.017), and higher disease control rate (DCR, p = 0.016). The Inverse Probability of Treatment Weighing (IPTW) fitted multivariable Cox regression confirmed the significantly decreased risk of death (HR 0.55, 95%CI: 0.34–0.90) and treatment discontinuation (HR 0.61, 95%CI: 0.40–0.91) for patients from PROVIDENCE cohort 1 in comparison to the control cohort. In the context of longer treatment exposure, the cumulative incidence of any grade immune-related adverse events (irAEs) was higher in the PROVIDENCE cohort 1 compared to the control cohort. Nevertheless, patients from cohort 1 experienced a significantly decreased risk of all grade thyroid irAEs than the control cohort (OR 0.16, 95%CI: 0.03–0.85).

Conclusion

The PROVIDENCE study suggests the potential positive impact of early systematic vitamin D supplementation on outcomes of patients with advanced cancer receiving ICIs and support adequate repletion as a possible prophylaxis for thyroid irAEs.