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Cited by 16Bone Tumor Diagnosis and TreatmentsSarcoma Diagnosis and TreatmentCancer Immunotherapy and Biomarkers

Role of immunotherapy in chondrosarcoma: A case report and review of the literature

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Cohen-Nowak, Adam J., Dressler, Danielle B., Rock, Adam, Mojica, Katherine, Woo, Doni, Zuckerman, Lee M., Chow, Warren, Agulnik, Mark·2023·Therapeutic Advances in Medical Oncology
DOI 10.1177/17588359231199877PMC PMC10515522
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Abstract

Chondrosarcomas (CSs) consist of a heterogenous group of primary bone cancers arising from malignant cells which produce cartilaginous matrix. As the second most common primary bone cancer, CS are often resistant to systemic chemotherapy due to poor vascularization, slow proliferation, and expression of multidrug-resistant pumps. Immune checkpoint inhibitors have transformed the field of oncology and are now designated as frontline therapy for many solid tumor cancers. Several studies have demonstrated increased expression of programed cell death 1 (PD-1) and PD-L1 in CS tissue in vitro, which has led to the development of multiple clinical trials for immunotherapy in patients with aggressive CS. In this review, we highlight the ongoing investigation into the role for immunotherapy in CS. We also report the case of a 44-year-old female with a history of stage IV primary CS of the right shoulder who underwent radical resection with recurrence and demonstrated a spectacular sustained response to pembrolizumab at our center. Our review highlights the need for further studies investigating the role of immunotherapy in the treatment of aggressive bone sarcomas that are resistant to standard surgical resection, chemotherapy, and radiation treatment.

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  • Anecdotal responses to immune agents have been reported in conventional chondrosarcoma and in one of five patients with DDCS (20%).

    “there are anecdotal responses to immune agents in conventional chodrosarcoma 46 and in one of five patients with DDCS (20%). 39”

    From Nivolumab and sunitinib in patients with advanced bone sarcomas: A multicenter, single‐arm, phase 2 trial (2025) · cites this paper as [46]

    The Clinical studies in CS section and Conclusion report that one of five chondrosarcoma patients responded to pembrolizumab, matching the count and 20% figure. They do not identify those five patients as having dedifferentiated chondrosarcoma (DDCS), so the subtype attribution is unsupported. The conventional-chondrosarcoma clause has a separate citation in the citing sentence. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

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Authors
Cohen-Nowak, A. J., Dressler, D. B., Rock, A., Mojica, K., Woo, D., Zuckerman, L. M., Chow, W., & Agulnik, M.
Affiliations
  • Northwestern University (US)
  • City Of Hope National Medical Center (US)
  • University of California, Irvine (US)
Corresponding author
Agulnik, Mark
ORCID
Venue
Therapeutic Advances in Medical Oncology
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Published
2023-01
Volume
15
Pages
17588359231199877-17588359231199877
ISSN
  • 1758-8340 (ISSN-L)
  • 1758-8359
DOI
10.1177/17588359231199877
PMC
PMC10515522
OpenAlex
W4386939067
Cited by
16
References
7
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 1
FWCI
3.35
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Therapeutic Advances in Medical Oncology (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Rheumatology › Bone Tumor Diagnosis and Treatments
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine › Sarcoma Diagnosis and Treatment
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer Immunotherapy and Biomarkers
Keywords
chondrosarcoma, immunotherapy, immune checkpoint inhibitors, pembrolizumab, PD-1, PD-L1, bone sarcoma, chemoresistance, tumor recurrence, radical resection, sustained response

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