Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40999866›Full record

ArticleJournal of gynecologic oncology2026

The activity of immune checkpoint inhibitors in patients with recurrent cervical cancer developed in previously irradiated field: clinical and immunohistochemical investigations.

Seiji Mabuchi, Naoko Komura, Harumi Nakamura, Michihide Maeda, Takeshi Yokoi, Shinsuke Koyama, Tomoko Ueda

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of gynecologic oncology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Trial
  2. Article
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

7 authors.

Seiji Mabuchi *Department of Gynecology, Osaka International Cancer Institute, Osaka, Japan.ORCID 0000-0003-1803-1166
Naoko Komura *Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Kaizuka City Hospital, Osaka, Japan.ORCID 0000-0003-3904-7810
Harumi NakamuraDepartment of Diagnostic Pathology and Cytology, Osaka International Cancer Institute, Osaka, Japan.ORCID 0000-0003-4476-8794
Michihide MaedaDepartment of Gynecology, Osaka International Cancer Institute, Osaka, Japan.ORCID 0000-0001-8698-8520
Takeshi YokoiDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Kaizuka City Hospital, Osaka, Japan.ORCID 0009-0009-3317-9549
Shinsuke KoyamaDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Osaka Police Hospital, Osaka, Japan.ORCID 0009-0007-3112-7601
Tomoko UedaDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hyogo Medical University, Hyogo, Japan.ORCID 0000-0002-1392-2739

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveWe aimed to 1) evaluate the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in cervical cancer patients according to the site of disease, 2) investigate the mechanism responsible for differential ICIs sensitivities with focuses on CD8⁺ T lymphocytes and programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression.

methodsWe retrospectively reviewed clinical data from patients with recurrent or metastatic cervical cancer treated with pembrolizumab or cemiplimab between January 2019 and January 2024 (clinical cohort). Target diseases were classified according to the site of diseases: within previously irradiated field (in-field diseases), out-of-field diseases, and both. Immunohistochemical investigations were performed using paired tumor samples (i.e. initial cervical tumor and locally-recurrent tumor developed after definitive radiotherapy: Immunohistochemical cohort). Survival rates were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared using the log-rank test.

resultsFifty patients treated with pembrolizumab-containing chemotherapies (n=39) or cemiplimab (n=11) were assessed. Of these, six patients (12.0%) had in-field diseases alone, twenty-eight patients (56.0%) had out-of-field diseases, and the remaining sixteen (32%) patients had both types of diseases. In-field diseases demonstrated a significantly lower response rate compared to out-of-field diseases (36.3% vs. 72.7%, p=0.004). Patients with in-field diseases demonstrated significantly shorter progression-free survival (p=0.003) and overall survival (p=0.003) than those with out-of-field diseases. In-field diseases were associated with decreased tumor-infiltrating CD8⁺ T lymphocytes and PD-L1 expression.

conclusionIn-field cervical cancer recurrence was associated with decreased sensitivity to ICIs-containing chemotherapies when compared to out-of-field diseases. Decreased tumor-infiltrating CD8⁺ T lymphocytes and PD-L1 expression are possible reasons for this differential sensitivity to ICI-containing chemotherapies.

Indexed as

Immune Checkpoint InhibitorsNeoplasm Recurrence, LocalUterine Cervical NeoplasmsAdultAgedAntibodies, Monoclonal, HumanizedB7-H1 AntigenCD8-Positive T-LymphocytesFemaleHumansImmunohistochemistryMiddle AgedRetrospective StudiesAntibodies, Monoclonal, HumanizedB7-H1 AntigenCD274 protein, humancemiplimabImmune Checkpoint InhibitorspembrolizumabImmune Checkpoint InhibitorsNeoplasm Recurrence, LocalRadiotherapyUterine Cervical Neoplasms

Identifiers

PMID40999866
PMCPMC12867656

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
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.