Francine Aubin

Université de Montréal | UdeM · Department of Medicine

Background Nutritional stress is a mechanism that allows tumor cells to evade the immune system. Arginine (ARG), an amino acid involved in immunomodulation, aids in regulating T-lymphocyte cell activity and the antitumor response. ARG deficiency in the tumor microenvironment can impair T-cell response while ARG supplementation may promote antitumor...

3587 Background: ICIs have limited efficacy in microsatellite stable (MSS) mCRC. The mechanisms of resistance to ICI remain incompletely understood. Recent findings suggest that erythyroid progenitor cells (EPCs) in the tumour microenvironment can exert immunosuppressive properties and promote tumour progression through the secretion of artemin, a...

137 Background: Colorectal cancer poses a substantial healthcare burden due to its elevated rates of diagnosis and mortality. Managing refractory metastatic cases remains a challenge in our practice due to the paucity of therapeutic options. Treatment with Trifluridine-Tipiracil (TAS-102) prolonged overall survival among patients (pts) with mCRC. T...

Importance Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have limited activity in microsatellite-stable (MSS) or mismatch repair–proficient (pMMR) colorectal cancer. Recent findings suggest the efficacy of ICIs may be modulated by the presence of liver metastases (LM). Objective To investigate the association between the presence of LM and ICI activity in a...

e18691 Background: PET-CT scan is key tool in the diagnosis and follow up of cancer patients. In 2017, a governmental study demonstrated that the use of PET-CT scans in the province of Quebec, Canada was two times more elevated than other Canadian provinces, and similar to the United States (507 vs 510 PET-CT scans per 100,000 persons, respectively...

3545 Background: Nutritional stress is one of the mechanisms used by tumour cells to evade the immune system. Arginine (ARG), an amino acid involved in several cellular functions including immunomodulation, is important in regulating T-lymphocyte cell activity and the anti-tumour response. ARG deficiency in the tumour microenvironment has been show...

6050 Background: Anti-PD-1/PD-L1 is now part of first line therapy in metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Stereotactic radiotherapy (SBRT) to metastatic lesions can reduce tumor burden and could be immune-stimulatory. The combination of SBRT with dual-checkpoint blockade with Durvalumab (D, anti-PD-L1) and Tremelimumab (T, ant...

Background: Biliary tract cancers, which arise from the intrahepatic or extrahepatic bile ducts and the gallbladder, generally have a poor prognosis and are rising in incidence worldwide. The standard-of-care treatment for advanced biliary tract cancer is chemotherapy with gemcitabine and cisplatin. Because most biliary tract cancers have an immun...

183 Background: In response to energetic stress, colorectal cancer cells secrete creatine kinase brain-type (CKB). CKB converts creatine and ATP from the extracellular matrix to PC, which is imported intracellularly to sustain survival and metastatic spread. In addition, PC modulates immune cell functions and may play a role in mediating responses...

793 Background: In the province of Quebec, Canada, PET-CT scan recommendations are published by the Institut national d’excellence en santé et en services sociaux (INESSS). These recommendations are based on evidence-based literature and publications from oncology societies (ASCO, NCCN...) Judicious use of PET-CT scans is particularly important in...

86 Background: Patients with left-sided metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) without mutations in RAS or BRAF V600E are eligible to a combination treatment of an anti-EGFR monoclonal antibody in association with chemotherapy. This combination is associated with a survival benefit and is recommended by oncology guidelines as first line therapy for RA...

Importance: Early results at 3 years from the PRODIGE 24/Canadian Cancer Trials Group PA6 randomized clinical trial showed survival benefits with adjuvant treatment with modified FOLFIRINOX vs gemcitabine in patients with resected pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma; mature data are now available. Objective: To report 5-year outcomes and explore pr...

The systemic therapy management of metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) has evolved from primarily cytotoxic chemotherapies to now include targeted agents given alone or in combination with chemotherapy, and immune checkpoint inhibitors. A better understanding of the pathogenesis and molecular drivers of colorectal cancer not only aided the developm...

3600 Background: Immune checkpoint blockade has limited activity in microsatellite-stable (MSS) or mis-match repair proficient (pMMR) CRC. Recent findings suggest that immunotherapy efficacy may be modulated by the presence of liver metastases. We conducted a retrospective analysis of the Canadian Cancer Trials Group (CCTG) CO.26 study to investiga...

Background: Cytoreductive surgery in combination with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (CRS-HIPEC) has recently shown promise for the treatment of patients with various types of peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC). However, it is an extensive procedure that is associated with a variety of morbidities. We evaluated the safety and clinical outco...

The annual Eastern Canadian Gastrointestinal Cancer Consensus Conference 2019 was held in Morell, Prince Edward Island, 19–21 September 2019. Experts in medical oncology, radiation oncology, and surgical oncology who are involved in the management of patients with gastrointestinal malignancies participated in presentations and discussion sessions f...

Primary small-cell carcinoma of the anal canal is an exceedingly rare tumor with a poor prognosis even when aggressive therapy is initiated. We present the case of a 53-year-old male patient who presented with chronic anal pain. Examination under general anesthesia revealed the presence of a mass in the anal canal. A biopsy was performed, and histo...

Background: Fluoropyrimidines are used in chemotherapy combinations for multiple cancers. Deficient dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase activity can lead to severe life-threatening toxicities. DPYD*2A polymorphism is one of the most studied variants. The study objective was to document the impact of implementing this test in routine clinical practice....

6531 Background: PD-1/PD-L1 +/- CTLA-4 blockade in head-and-neck carcinoma (HNSCC) has shown signs of clinical activity. SBRT aims to reduce tumor burden and perhaps be immune-stimulatory. This analysis seeks to assess the safety and efficacy signal of the triple treatment combination (TTC) consisting of SBRT sandwiched between cycles of D (αPD-L1)...

6580 Background: The combination of carboplatin and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) is effective when used concurrently with radiotherapy for locoregionally advanced oropharyngeal carcinomas (Calais et al. 1999). DPYD polymorphisms can be associated with an increased risk of severe toxicity to fluoropyrimidines (Deenen et al. 2016). Upfront screening for the...

Importance Single-agent immune checkpoint inhibition has not shown activities in advanced refractory colorectal cancer (CRC), other than in those patients who are microsatellite-instability high (MSI-H). Objective To evaluate whether combining programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) and cytotoxic T-lymphocyte–associated protein 4 (CTLA-4) inhibition imp...

34 Background: Half of patients with colorectal cancer develop liver metastases during the course of their disease. Surgery is the only potentially curative option for CRLM if resectable. Treatment of patients over 70 years old is challenging mainly because of comorbidities and other geriatric syndromes. Thus, we intended to report our experience w...

Introduction Bien que bénignes, les verrues peuvent être la source d’un inconfort important. La vaseline salicylée (VS) kératolytique est la référence. Les échecs sont fréquents et aucune étude n’a été réalisée comparant l’efficacité des 5 possibilités potentielles : VS (pommade Cochon ®), cryothérapie, 5-FU topique (Efudix ®), imiquimod 5 % (Aldar...

3512 Background: Targeting both PD-L1 and CTLA-4 may be synergistic immunotherapy approaches. CO.26 evaluated if dual inhibition leads to improved pt survival vs BSC alone in rmCRC. Methods: rmCRC pts were randomized 2:1 to D+T vs BSC. Treatment consisted of D (1500 mg) D1 q 28 days and T (75 mg) D1 for first 4 cycles, and supportive measures. Prim...

e15747 Background: Surgical resection of PAC followed by adjuvant therapy is the standard of care for non-metastatic resectable tumors. Surgical resection with clear margins of borderline (BR) or locally advanced (LA) tumors is either challenging or impossible. Furthermore, there are no clear recommendations concerning NAT for non-upfront resectabl...

Background: Chemoradiotherapy used for the treatment of locally advanced head and neck cancer (HNC) causes a high incidence of mucositis that may be accentuated by a reactivation of herpes simplex virus (HSV). To date, no study has evaluated the impact of antivirals used as prophylaxis to prevent mucositis or their severity. Methods: This is a retr...

481 Background: D is a human monoclonal antibody (mAb) that inhibits binding of programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) to its receptor. T is a mAb against the cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (CTLA-4). Targeting both PD-L1 and CTLA-4 may have additive/synergistic activity as the mechanisms of action of CTLA-4 and PD-L1 inhibition are non...

650 Background: Fluoropyrimidines (FU) are part of chemotherapy combinations for multiple gastrointestinal cancers. Deficient dihydropyrimidine deshydrogenase (DPD) activity can lead to severe life-threatening toxicities in 3-5% of populations tested. The DPYD*2A polymorphism leading to deficient DPD activity is one of the most studied variants. Me...

Abstract Background The efficacy of immunotherapy targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway has previously been demonstrated in metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy (SBRT) aims at ablating metastatic lesions and may play a synergistic role with immunotherapy. The purpose of this study is to assess the safe...

260 Background: Clinical data concerning pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAC) in young adults is restricted. Limited evidence might suggest a worse prognosis in terms of overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS), when compared to an older population. Methods: The studied population included adults ≤45 diagnosed with a PAC (stages I to IV...

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the 2nd leading cause of cancer related-death in Canada. Clinical responses of metastatic (m)CRC to first-line treatment range from 35 to 60%, but even responders inevitably develop therapeutic resistance. Studies aiming at understanding mechanisms of resistance have largely investigated primary tumors. However, selective...

Introduction Primary bone lymphoma (PBL) is an uncommon form of lymphoma. Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) represents the main histology associated with PBL. Clinicopathological understanding and management of PBL rely only on retrospective series. Methods Cases of DLBCL diagnosed by bone biopsy treated in one referring center between 1993 and...

The annual Eastern Canadian Colorectal Cancer Consensus Conference held in Montreal, Quebec, 17-19 October 2013, marked the 10-year anniversary of this meeting that is attended by leaders in medical, radiation, and surgical oncology. The goal of the attendees is to improve the care of patients affected by gastrointestinal malignancies. Topics discu...

367 Background: FOLFIRINOX has emerged as a new standard for patients with performance status ECOG 0-1 in metastatic pancreatic cancer and non-randomized studies also support this regimen in locally advanced disease. This regimen is however associated with significant toxicity. The purpose of this study was to assess efficacy and toxicity outside o...

e15094 Background: Anal squamous carcinoma (ASC) is a rare cancer, representing only 1.5 to 2% of all gastrointestinal (GI) malignancies. Combined chemo-radiotherapy therapy (CRT) is the treatment of choice with a response rate of 80% and recurrence rate of 10 to 15%. HPV is a risk factor for anal cancer but its role in cancer recurrence is less cl...

Brain metastases from colorectal cancer (crc) are quite rare. Here, we review the characteristics, presentation, and clinical course of such patients at our institution. We reviewed the medical records of patients with brain metastases from crc treated during 2000-2009. Associations between patient, tumour characteristics, treatment modality, and s...

The annual Eastern Canadian Colorectal Cancer Consensus Conference was held in Ottawa, Ontario, October 22-23, 2010. Health care professionals involved in the care of patients with colorectal cancer participated in presentation and discussion sessions for the purpose of developing the recommendations presented here. This consensus statement address...

677 Background: A 2004 randomized study showed a meaningful improvement in survival with bev added to chemotherapy (CT) for patients with mCRC. This combination is now widely used and generally well tolerated although adverse events (AEs) are described associated with the use of bev, some of which may be increased in incidence in an elderly populat...

Monoclonal antibodies against the epidermal growth factor receptor (anti-egfr) when used in the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer are associated with improved survival. Patients whose tumours harbor a KRAS mutation in codon 12 or 13 have been shown not to benefit from anti-egfr antibodies. The importance of KRAS mutation status in the manag...

91 Background: HER2-positive rates have been reported as 20% of GC and 34% in GEJ adenocarcinoma in a recent global phase III trial with trastuzumab and chemotherapy. This study examines the incidence and distribution HER2-positive GC and GEJ adenocarcinomas in the province of BC. Methods: Formalin fixed embedded tissue from patients (pts) with res...

600 Background: Colorectal cancer affects many elderly patients as approximately 50% of cases are diagnosed in patients older than 70 years of age. We retrospectively studied characteristics, presentation, treatment and clinical course of our senior patients with (mCRC). Methods: Medical records of all patients ≥70 years with mCRC treated in our in...

Complete resection offers the greatest chance of cure for patients with isolated colorectal cancer liver metastases. While few patients present as candidates for curative surgery, induction chemotherapy may make patients with initially unresectable disease amenable to surgery. Even those whose disease is potentially curable at presentation may bene...