Changing Landscape of Systemic Therapy in Biliary Tract Cancer

Abstract

Biliary tract cancers (BTC) are often diagnosed at advanced stages and have a grave outcome due to limited systemic options. Gemcitabine and cisplatin combination (GC) has been the first-line standard for more than a decade. Second-line chemotherapy (CT) options are limited. Targeted therapy or TT (fibroblast growth factor 2 inhibitors or FGFR2, isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 or IDH-1, and neurotrophic tyrosine receptor kinase or NTRK gene fusions inhibitors) have had reasonable success, but <5% of total BTC patients are eligible for them. The use of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) such as pembrolizumab is restricted to microsatellite instability high (MSI-H) patients in the first line. The success of the TOPAZ-1 trial (GC plus durvalumab) is promising, with numerous trials underway that might soon bring targeted therapy (pemigatinib and infrigatinib) and ICI combinations (with CT or TT in microsatellite stable cancers) in the first line. Newer targets and newer agents for established targets are being investigated, and this may change the BTC management landscape in the coming years from traditional CT to individualized therapy (TT) or ICI-centered combinations. The latter group may occupy major space in BTC management due to the paucity of targetable mutations and a greater toxicity profile.

Keywords: FGFR2; HER2; IDH; NTRK; cholangiocarcinoma; durvalumab; gall bladder cancer; gemcitabine; infrigatinib; pemigatinib.

Figure 1

Current approach to biliary tract cancers. BTC—biliary tract cancers; MSI-H—microsatellite instability; MSS—microsatellite stable; GC—gemcitabine/cisplatin; FGFR2—fibroblast growth factor 2; IDH—isocitrate dehydrogenase-1; NTRK—neurotrophic tyrosine receptor kinase; HER2—human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 inhibitors; VEGF—vascular endothelial growth factor; TMB—tumor mutational burden; ATR—ataxia telangiectasia mutated and Rad3-related.