Abstract PO1-15-06: Serum thymidine kinase activity as a “real-time” clinical biomarker of tumor response to CDK4/6 inhibition in hormone receptor positive (HR+), HER2 negative (HER2-) metastatic breast cancer
Authors: Bagegni Nusayba , Williams Amy , Grigsby Isabella , Bergqvist Mattias , Clifton Katherine , Ma Cynthia 
Published: May 2024

Background: CDK4/6 inhibitors (CDK4/6i) plus endocrine therapy (ET) are standard first-line (1L) treatment for hormone receptor positive (HR+), HER2-negative (HER2-) metastatic breast cancer (MBC). Despite general improvements in long-term outcome, not all patients benefit equally from these drugs. The average duration of 1L CDK4/6i therapy is ~2 years. However, 10-15% of patients will progress within 6 months of therapy initiation, while others will derive durable clinical benefit of years. Differences in treatment efficacy cannot be easily explained by clinical-pathological features. No predictive biomarkers are currently available to determine tumor sensitivity to CDK4/6i. There is an unmet need for a complementary diagnostic to identify patients that will or will not respond to these treatments in order to better inform therapy management.

Thymidine kinase (TK) is an E2F-regulated enzyme that plays a key role in DNA replication during cell division. The expression and activity of TK is strongly linked to the cell cycle. TK is first expressed in late G1, peaks during S-phase, and then is degraded during mitosis. Because of the restricted expression of TK (only during S phase of the cell cycle) combined with the mechanism of action of CDK4/6i, the measurement of TK activity (TKa) may serve as an ideal pharmacodynamic biomarker to assess a tumor’s response to CDK4/6i-based therapy.

DiviTum® TKa is an FDA cleared assay that can quantitate TKa from human serum (sTKa) and is intended to be used as a disease progression monitoring tool for patients with HR+, HER2- MBC. TK IMPACT is a prospective, single arm trial designed to assess the impact of incorporation of DiviTum® TKa on the physician’s decision regarding subsequent timing of routine disease monitoring modalities in patients with advanced HR+, HER2- MBC receiving 1L ET plus CDK 4/6i (NCT04968964). As a part of this ongoing study, DiviTum® TKa values are serially assessed relative to imaging findings and other circulating tumor biomarkers, such as CA15-3 and ctDNA. The primary endpoint is any physician-reported intended change in imaging testing interval post TKa by study cohort, within the first 48-week period of study participation, assessments for which are ongoing. Here we report real-world data and examples of the clinical utility of sTKa as a companion diagnostic from patients treated at Washington University Siteman Cancer Center, St. Louis, MO. Methods: Patients with HR+, HER2- MBC receiving 1L ET + any FDA-approved CDK 4/6i (palbociclib, ribociclib, or abemaciclib) had blood serum samples collected at baseline, weeks 2, 4, 6, 8, every 4 weeks up to week 24, and then every 12 weeks thereafter until disease progression. Samples were analyzed for TKa levels in real-time using the DiviTum® TKa assay. Optional repeat TKa within 2-4 wks (+/- 3 days) is permitted in case of rising TKa. Other standard monitoring assessments were carried out according to institutional guidelines and/or treating clinician discretion. Results: Pre-treatment and early on-therapy TKa levels predicted response to CDK4/6i therapy more accurately than a patient’s clinical characteristics. Rising TKa levels also identified patients with clinically occult disease progression ahead of imaging, and in some cases where radiographic interpretation and serum tumor markers such as CA15-3 were ambiguous. Measurement of TKa levels following CDK4/6i dose reduction was able to confirm continued optimal therapy response at the lower dose. A rise in TKa levels aligned with the re-emergence of ESR1 mutation as identified by ctDNA in one patient and may herald molecular progression. Conclusion: sTKa was able to predict tumor sensitivity and resistance (both intrinsic and acquired) to CDK4/6i + ET therapy in patients with HR+, HER2- MBC. We believe these findings help support the role of sTKa as a non-invasive pharmacodynamic biomarker that can assess in real-time a tumor’s response to CDK4/6i based therapy.

Citation Format: Nusayba Bagegni, Amy Williams, Isabella Grigsby, Mattias Bergqvist, Katherine Clifton, Cynthia Ma. Serum thymidine kinase activity as a “real-time” clinical biomarker of tumor response to CDK4/6 inhibition in hormone receptor positive (HR+), HER2 negative (HER2-) metastatic breast cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2023 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2023 Dec 5-9; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(9 Suppl):Abstract nr PO1-15-06.