Research on Effective Strategies After Immunotherapy for Mismatch Repair-deficient Early-stage GI Tumors (RESIST)

Background and Rationale: Mismatch repair-deficient (MMRd) or microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H) gastrointestinal (GI) cancers represent a distinct molecular subtype characterized by high tumor mutational burden and increased immunogenicity. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have demonstrated remarkable efficacy in this population, with recent studies showing high rates of pathological complete response (pCR) when used in the neoadjuvant setting for non-metastatic GI cancers and colorectal cancers in particular. These results raise important questions about the necessity of surgical resection in patients who achieve complete clinical response (cCR) after ICI therapy.

Avoiding surgery in patients with complete response through an active surveillance approach could significantly reduce treatment-related morbidity and improve quality of life for selected patients. However, this strategy remains investigational and robust clinical evidence is lacking regarding its safety, long-term oncologic outcomes and appropriate selection criteria. Our study seeks to address this gap by evaluating response-guided, non-operative management in patients with non-metastatic MMRd/ MSI-H GI tumors treated primarily with immunotherapy.

Objectives: The primary objective of this study is to evaluate 2-year relapse-free survival (RFS) in patients with non-metastatic, mismatch repair-deficient (MMRd) or microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H) in patients with stage II/III colorectal cancer who achieve a complete or near-complete response following primary treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) who enter Part B of the study (surveillance study).

Method: Eligible patients may receive immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy as the primary treatment for mismatch repair-deficient (MMRd) or microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H), locally advanced, non-metastatic gastrointestinal cancer according to local practice. Treatment regimens include PD-(L)1 monotherapy (e.g., pembrolizumab, atezolizumab) or combination ICI therapy (e.g., nivolumab plus ipilimumab), administered at the discretion of the treating oncologist for up to 6 months (in case of near complete response ICI may be continued up to a total of 12 months following multidisciplinary evaluation).

Patients who do not achieve a complete or near-complete clinical response-or who are not eligible or not willing to undergo non-operative management-proceed to standard oncological surgery (with or without neo-/adjuvant systemic therapy), in accordance with clinical guidelines. Postoperatively, they receive routine oncological follow-up per institutional standards and remain in registry cohort (Part A).

Patients who demonstrate a complete or near-complete clinical response to ICI and are considered eligible for non-surgical management (based on multidisciplinary evaluation), enter an intensified surveillance program in lieu of immediate surgery (Part B).

The active surveillance includes Clinical assessments, Cross-sectional imaging (e.g., CT or MRI) , Endoscopic evaluations at defined intervals and Facultative ctDNA testing 6 months after completion of immunotherapy (Part B)