Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35951090›Full record

ArticleJournal of cancer research and clinical oncology2023

Fibroblast activation protein in the tumor microenvironment predicts outcomes of PD-1 blockade therapy in advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

Yan Zhao, Yueping Liu, Yunlong Jia, Xiaoxiao Wang, Jiankun He, Shuman Zhen, Jiali Wang, Lihua Liu

Open access · hybridAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of cancer research and clinical oncology, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
13citing papers in PubMed
4.3field-weighted citation impact, top 4% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

13 citing papers in PubMed, 43 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Diagnostic value of [Scientific reports · 2026
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  12. What is new in cancer-associated fibroblast biomarkers?Cell communication and signaling : CCS · 2023
    Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Yan ZhaoDepartment of Tumor Immunotherapy, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050035, China.
Yueping LiuDepartment of Pathology, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050011, China.
Yunlong JiaDepartment of Tumor Immunotherapy, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050035, China.
Xiaoxiao WangDepartment of Pathology, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050011, China.
Jiankun HeDepartment of Pathology, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050011, China.
Shuman ZhenDepartment of Tumor Immunotherapy, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050035, China.
Jiali WangDepartment of Tumor Immunotherapy, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050035, China.
Lihua LiuDepartment of Tumor Immunotherapy, The Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, 050035, China. cdlihualiu@aliyun.com.
Fourth Hospital of Hebei Medical University · CNHebei Medical University · CN

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China No. 81871894the Graduate Innovation Foundation of Hebei Province,China No.CXZZBS2022093
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeThe identification of robust predictive biomarkers of the response to programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) blockade remains a critical concern. Here, we investigated on fibroblast activation protein (FAP) as a microenvironment-derived biomarker of clinical outcomes of PD-1 blockade therapy, and the correlation between FAP expression and T cell infiltration in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

methodsA total of 135 patients with advanced NSCLC who received PD-1 blockade therapy were retrospectively analyzed. The potential associations among FAP expression, CD3 + T cell and CD8 + T cell infiltration, and clinical outcomes of immunotherapy were validated by immunohistochemistry, bioinformatic analyses, and statistical measurements.

resultsFAP was widely expressed in advanced NSCLC tissues. FAP was correlated with decreased density of CD8 + T cells (Spearman's rho  - 0.32, p < 0.001) and immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME) status. No correlations were detected between FAP and PD-L1 expression or with the density of CD3 + T cells. The patients with higher expression of FAP showed worse response rate (16.4% vs. 38.7%, p < 0.001) and worse progression-free survival (HR = 2.56, 95% CI 1.69-3.87, p < 0.001). In addition, FAP contributed to shortened overall survival in subgroups of the patients with squamous cell lung cancer (p = 0.020), PD-1 blockade monotherapy (p = 0.017), and first-line therapy (p = 0.028).

conclusionFAP is a potential predictive biomarker of resistance to PD-1 blockade. Further investigation is warranted to identify a strategy for targeting FAP to alleviate the immunosuppressive TME and broaden the clinical effectiveness of PD-1 blockade therapy.

Indexed as

Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell LungLung NeoplasmsB7-H1 AntigenBiomarkersFibroblastsHumansProgrammed Cell Death 1 ReceptorRetrospective StudiesTumor MicroenvironmentB7-H1 AntigenBiomarkersProgrammed Cell Death 1 ReceptorBiomarkerCancer-associated fibroblastsFibroblast activation proteinNon-small cell lung cancerProgrammed cell death-1 blockadeTumor microenvironment

Identifiers

PMID35951090
PMCPMC10314861
OpenAlexW4291014774

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.