Successful Treatment of Advanced Gastric Cancer with Brain Metastases through an Abscopal Effect by Radiation and Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy
- Author:
Momotaro MUTO
1
;
Hirotaka NAKATA
;
Kenichi ISHIGAKI
;
Shion TACHIBANA
;
Moe YOSHIDA
;
Mizue MUTO
;
Nobuyuki YANAGAWA
;
Toshikatsu OKUMURA
Author Information
- Publication Type:Case Report
- From:Journal of Gastric Cancer 2021;21(3):319-324
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
- Abstract: The abscopal effect refers to the phenomenon in which local radiotherapy is associated with the regression of metastatic cancer that is distantly located from the irradiated site.Here, we present a case of a patient with advanced gastric cancer and brain metastases who was successfully treated with brain radiotherapy and anti-programmed death-1 (PD-1) therapy-induced abscopal effect. Although anti-PD-1 therapy alone could not prevent disease progression, the metastatic lesions in the brain and also in the abdominal lymph node showed a drastic response after brain radiotherapy and anti-PD-1 therapy. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of successful treatment of advanced gastric cancer with multiple brain and abdominal lymph node metastases, possibly through anti-PD-1 therapy combined with brain radiotherapy-induced abscopal effect. We suggest that the combination of brain radiotherapy and anti-PD-1 therapy may be considered as a therapeutic option for advanced gastric cancer, especially when there is brain metastasis.
