Multiplex Quantitative Analysis of Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes and Immunotherapy Outcome in Metastatic Melanoma

Purpose: Since durable response to programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) inhibition is limited to a subset of melanoma patients, new predictive biomarkers could have clinical utility. We hypothesize that pretreatment tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) profiles could be associated with response. Methods: Pretreatment whole tissue sections from 94 melanoma patients treated with anti-PD-1 therapy were profiled by multiplex immunofluorescence to perform TIL quantification (CD4, CD8, CD20) and assess TIL activation (CD3, GZMB, Ki67). Two independent image analysis technologies were used: inForm (PerkinElmer) to determine cell counts, and AQUA™ to measure protein by quantitative immunofluorescence (QIF). TIL parameters by both methodologies were correlated with objective response or disease control rate (ORR/DCR) by Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) 1.1, and survival outcome. Results: Pretreatment lymphocytic infiltration, by cell counts or QIF, was significantly higher in complete or partial response than in stable or progressive disease, particularly for CD8 (P 3) were independently significant in multivariable analyses and accounted for similar CD3 associations in anti-PD-1 treated patients. CD8 was not associated with melanoma prognosis in the absence of immunotherapy. Predictive performance of CD8 cell count (and QIF) had an area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve above 0.75 (ORR/DCR), which reached 0.83 for ipilimumab plus nivolumab. Conclusion: Pretreatment lymphocytic infiltration is associated with anti-PD-1 response in metastatic melanoma. Quantitative TIL analysis has potential for application in digital precision immuno-oncology as an "indicative" companion diagnostic.