A clinical update on the role of carfilzomib in the treatment of relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma

Even though the prognosis of patients with multiple myeloma is continuing to improve, all patients eventually develop relapsed refractory disease. Several novel therapeutics have been developed in the last few years including the second-generation proteasome inhibitor carfilzomib which has been approved for patients with relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma in the United States since 2012. Recently data from several phase III studies have become available showing the promising efficacy of carfilzomib in combination with lenalidomide, which led to the renewed approval of carfilzomib in combination with lenalidomide and dexamethasone for relapsed myeloma in 2015. Furthermore carfilzomib showed superiority over bortezomib on both efficacy and toxicity profiles, especially a profoundly lower incidence in polyneuropathy. Carfilzomib has been shown to partially overcome the negative effects of high-risk cytogenetics. Promising combinations of carfilzomib with histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors, pomalidomide and several other novel therapeutics have been presented in early studies. The optimal dosing regimen and sequence of treatment regimens remain important questions for the future.

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Novel Non-Immunologic Agents for Relapsed and Refractory Multiple Myeloma: A Review Article

Cancers ◽

10.3390/cancers13205210 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (20) ◽

pp. 5210

Author(s):

Arthur Bobin ◽

Cécile Gruchet ◽

Stéphanie Guidez ◽

Hélène Gardeney ◽

Laly Nsiala Makunza ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Multiple Myeloma ◽

Alkylating Agents ◽

Treatment Options ◽

Hdac Inhibitors ◽

Proteasome Inhibitors ◽

Curative Therapy ◽

Refractory Multiple Myeloma ◽

Novel Treatments ◽

Treatment Regimens ◽

Drug Classes

Novel treatments are needed to address the lack of options for patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma. Even though immunotherapy-based treatments have revolutionized the field in recent years, offering new opportunities for patients, there is still no curative therapy. Thus, non-immunologic agents, which have proven effective for decades, are still central to the treatment of multiple myeloma, especially for advanced disease. Building on their efficacy in myeloma, the development of proteasome inhibitors and immunomodulatory drugs has been pursued, and has led to the emergence of a novel generation of agents (e.g., carfilzomib, ixazomib, pomalidomide). The use of alkylating agents is decreasing in most treatment regimens, but melflufen, a peptide-conjugated alkylator with a completely new mechanism of action, offers interesting opportunities. Moreover, with the identification of novel targets, new drug classes have entered the myeloma armamentarium, such as XPO1 inhibitors (selinexor), HDAC inhibitors (panobinostat), and anti-BCL-2 agents (venetoclax). New pathways are still being explored, especially the possibility of a mutation-driven strategy, as biomarkers and targeted treatments are increasing. Though multiple myeloma is still considered incurable, the treatment options are expanding and are progressively becoming more diverse, largely because of the continuous development of non-immunologic agents.

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Health‐related quality of life maintained over time in patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma treated with daratumumab in combination with bortezomib and dexamethasone: results from the phase III CASTOR trial

British Journal of Haematology ◽

10.1111/bjh.17321 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Vania Hungria ◽

Meral Beksac ◽

Katja C. Weisel ◽

Ajay K. Nooka ◽

Tamas Masszi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Multiple Myeloma ◽

Phase Iii ◽

Health Related Quality ◽

Refractory Multiple Myeloma ◽

Related Quality ◽

Health Related ◽

Over Time

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The role of idecabtagene vicleucel in patients with heavily pretreated refractory multiple myeloma

Therapeutic Advances in Hematology ◽

10.1177/20406207211019622 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

pp. 204062072110196

Author(s):

Albert Oriol ◽

Laura Abril ◽

Anna Torrent ◽

Gladys Ibarra ◽

Josep-Maria Ribera

Keyword(s):

Multiple Myeloma ◽

High Risk ◽

Safety Profile ◽

Proteasome Inhibitors ◽

Clinical Development ◽

Phase Iii ◽

Acceptable Safety Profile ◽

Refractory Multiple Myeloma ◽

High Risk Patients ◽

Risk Patients

The development of several treatment options over the last 2 decades has led to a notable improvement in the survival of patients with multiple myeloma. Despite these advances, the disease remains incurable for most patients. Moreover, standard combinations of alkylating agents, immunomodulatory drugs, proteasome inhibitors, and monoclonal antibodies targeting CD38 and corticoids are exhausted relatively fast in a proportion of high-risk patients. Such high-risk patients account for over 20% of cases and currently represent a major unmet medical need. The challenge of drug resistance requires the development of highly active new agents with a radically different mechanism of action. Several immunotherapeutic modalities, including antibody–drug conjugates and T-cell engagers, appear to be promising choices for patients who develop resistance to standard combinations. Chimeric antigen-receptor-modified T cells (CAR-Ts) targeting B-cell maturation antigen have demonstrated encouraging efficacy and an acceptable safety profile compared with alternative options. Multiple CAR-Ts are in early stages of clinical development, but the first phase III trials with CAR-Ts are ongoing for two of them. After the recent publication of the results of a phase II trial confirming a notable efficacy and acceptable safety profile, idecabtagene vicleucel is the first CAR-T to gain regulatory US Food and Drug Administration approval to treat refractory multiple myeloma patients who have already been exposed to antibodies against CD38, proteasome inhibitors, and immunomodulatory agents and who are refractory to the last therapy. Here, we will discuss the preclinical and clinical development of idecabtagene vicleucel and its future role in the changing treatment landscape of relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma.

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Safety and efficacy of single-agent lenalidomide in patients with relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2008-12-196238 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 114 (4) ◽

pp. 772-778 ◽

Cited By ~ 110

Author(s):

Paul Richardson ◽

Sundar Jagannath ◽

Mohamad Hussein ◽

James Berenson ◽

Seema Singhal ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Multiple Myeloma ◽

Single Agent ◽

Progression Free Survival ◽

Prior Treatment ◽

Once Daily ◽

Free Survival ◽

Refractory Multiple Myeloma ◽

Treatment Regimens ◽

Common Grade ◽

Grade 3

Abstract Lenalidomide plus dexamethasone is effective for the treatment of relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma (MM); however, toxicities from dexamethasone can be dose limiting. We evaluated the efficacy and safety of lenalidomide monotherapy in patients with relapsed and refractory MM. Patients (N = 222) received lenalidomide 30 mg/day once daily (days 1-21 every 28 days) until disease progression or intolerance. Response, progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), time to progression (TTP), and safety were assessed. Overall, 67% of patients had received 3 or more prior treatment regimens. Partial response or better was reported in 26% of patients, with minimal response 18%. There was no difference between patients who had received 2 or fewer versus 3 or more prior treatment regimens (45% vs 44%, respectively). Median values for TTP, PFS, and OS were 5.2, 4.9, and 23.2 months, respectively. The most common grade 3 or 4 adverse events were neutropenia (60%), thrombocytopenia (39%), and anemia (20%), which proved manageable with dose reduction. Grade 3 or 4 febrile neutropenia occurred in 4% of patients. Lenalidomide monotherapy is active in relapsed and refractory MM with acceptable toxicities. These data support treatment with single-agent lenalidomide, as well as its use in steroid-sparing combination approaches. The study is registered at http://www.clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00065351.

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Phase I Study of 30-Minute Infusion of Carfilzomib As Single Agent or in Combination With Low-Dose Dexamethasone in Patients With Relapsed and/or Refractory Multiple Myeloma

Journal of Clinical Oncology ◽

10.1200/jco.2013.52.3522 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 33 (7) ◽

pp. 732-739 ◽

Cited By ~ 58

Author(s):

Kyriakos P. Papadopoulos ◽

David S. Siegel ◽

David H. Vesole ◽

Peter Lee ◽

Steven T. Rosen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Multiple Myeloma ◽

Plasma Concentration ◽

Phase I ◽

Phase I Study ◽

Low Dose ◽

Single Agent ◽

Phase Iii ◽

Maximum Plasma ◽

Irreversible Inhibitor ◽

Refractory Multiple Myeloma

Purpose Carfilzomib is an irreversible inhibitor of the constitutive proteasome and immunoproteasome. This phase I study evaluated the maximum-tolerated dose (MTD), pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of carfilzomib administered as a 30-minute intravenous (IV) infusion. Safety and efficacy of carfilzomib as a single agent or in combination with low-dose dexamethasone were assessed. Patients and Methods Patients with relapsed and/or refractory multiple myeloma (MM) were administered single-agent carfilzomib on days 1, 2, 8, 9, 15, and 16 of a 28-day cycle. Cycle one day 1 and 2 doses were 20 mg/m2, followed thereafter by dose escalation to 36, 45, 56, or 70 mg/m2. Additionally, carfilzomib was combined with low-dose dexamethasone (40 mg/wk). Results Thirty-three patients were treated with single-agent carfilzomib. Dose-limiting toxicities in two patients at 70 mg/m2 were renal tubular necrosis and proteinuria (both grade 3). The MTD was 56 mg/m2. Nausea (51.5%), fatigue (51.5%), pyrexia (42.4%), and dyspnea and thrombocytopenia (each 39.4%) were the most common treatment-related toxicities. Overall response rate (ORR) was 50% (56-mg/m2 cohort). Increasing carfilzomib dosing from 20 to 56 mg/m2 resulted in higher area under the plasma concentration-time curve from time zero to last sampling and maximum plasma concentration exposure with short half-life (range, 0.837 to 1.21 hours) and dose-dependent inhibition of proteasome chymotrypsin-like activity. In 22 patients treated with 45 or 56 mg/m2 of carfilzomib plus low-dose dexamethasone, the ORR was 55% with a safety profile comparable to that of single-agent carfilzomib. Conclusion Carfilzomib administered as a 30-minute IV infusion at 56 mg/m2 (as single agent or with low-dose dexamethasone) was generally well tolerated and highly active in patients with relapsed and/or refractory MM. These data have provided the basis for the phase III randomized, multicenter trial ENDEAVOR.

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ELOTUZUMAB FOR THE TREATMENT OF RELAPSED OR REFRACTORY MULTIPLE MYELOMA, WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO ITS MODES OF ACTION AND SLAMF7 SIGNALING

Mediterranean Journal of Hematology and Infectious Diseases ◽

10.4084/mjhid.2018.014 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

pp. e2018014 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Masafumi Taniwaki ◽

Mihoko Yoshida ◽

Yosuke Matsumoto ◽

Kazuho Shimura ◽

Junya Kuroda ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Multiple Myeloma ◽

Nk Cell ◽

Cell Activity ◽

Adaptor Protein ◽

Progression Free Survival ◽

Sh2 Domain ◽

Phase Iii ◽

Refractory Multiple Myeloma ◽

Pathway Activation ◽

Signaling Lymphocytic Activation Molecule

Elotuzumab, targeting signaling lymphocytic activation molecule family 7 (SLAMF7), has been approved in combination with lenalidomide and dexamethasone (ELd) for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (MM) based on the findings of the phase III randomized trial ELOQUENT-2 (NCT01239797). Four-year follow-up analyses of ELOQUENT-2 have demonstrated that progression-free survival was 21% in ELd versus 14% in Ld. Elotuzumab binds a unique epitope on the membrane IgC2 domain of SLAMF7, exhibiting a dual mechanism of action: natural killer (NK) cell-mediated antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) and enhancement of NK cell activity. The ADCC is mediated through engagement between Fc portion of elotuzumab and FcgRIIIa/CD16 on NK cells. Enhanced NK cell cytotoxicity results fromm phosphorylation of the immunoreceptor tyrosine-based switch motif (ITSM) that is induced via elotuzumab binding and recruits the SLAM-associated adaptor protein EAT-2.The coupling of EAT-2 to the phospholipase Cg enzymes SH2 domain leads to enhanced Ca2+. Influx and MAPK/Erk pathway activation, resulting in granule polarization and enhanced exocytosis inNK cells. Elotuzumab does not stimulate the proliferation of MM cells due to a lack of EAT-2.The inhibitory effects of elotuzumab on MM cell growth are not induced by the lack of CD45, even though SHP-2, SHP-1, SHIP-1, and Csk may be recruited to phosphorylated ITSM of SLAMF7. ELd improves PFS in patients with high-risk cytogenetics, i.e. t(4;14), del(17p), and 1q21 gain/amplification. Since the immune state is paralytic in advanced MM, the efficacy of ELd with minimal toxicity may bring forward for consideration of its use in the early stages of the disease.

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Role of Histone Deacetylase Inhibitors in Relapsed Refractory Multiple Myeloma: A Focus on Vorinostat and Panobinostat

Pharmacotherapy The Journal of Human Pharmacology and Drug Therapy ◽

10.1002/phar.1671 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 35 (12) ◽

pp. 1173-1188 ◽

Cited By ~ 32

Author(s):

Salma Afifi ◽

Angela Michael ◽

Mahshid Azimi ◽

Mabel Rodriguez ◽

Nikoletta Lendvai ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Multiple Myeloma ◽

Histone Deacetylase ◽

Histone Deacetylase Inhibitors ◽

Refractory Multiple Myeloma

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Incidence of Second Primary Malignancies and Peripheral Sensory Neuropathy in Patients with Multiple Myeloma Receiving Daratumumab Containing Regimen

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2019-123156 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 134 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 5550-5550 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Thura Win Htut ◽

Donald P. Quick ◽

Myint Aung Win ◽

Sriman Swarup ◽

Anita Sultan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Multiple Myeloma ◽

Sensory Neuropathy ◽

Phase Iii ◽

Control Group ◽

Second Primary ◽

Peripheral Sensory Neuropathy ◽

Antitumor Effects ◽

Refractory Multiple Myeloma ◽

Second Primary Malignancies ◽

Peripheral Sensory

Introduction: Proteasome inhibitors-based regimens are the mainstay of initial therapy for most patients with multiple myeloma. Daratumumab is a human IgGκ monoclonal antibody that targets CD38 with direct antitumor effects and has an immunomodulatory component. Recent studies have demonstrated that addition of daratumumab to standard regimens enhance direct cytotoxicity on myeloma cells and have shown survival benefits. Yet, there are notable safety concerns. We performed a combined analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCT) to determine the risk of second primary malignancies (SPM) and peripheral sensory neuropathy (PSN) with newer daratumumab combination regimens. Methods: We systematically conducted a comprehensive literature search using MEDLINE, EMBASE databases and meeting abstracts from inception through June 2019. Phase III RCTs utilizing daratumumab in patients with multiple myeloma that mention SPM and PSN as adverse effects were incorporated in the analysis. Mantel-Haenszel (MH) method was used to calculate the estimated pooled risk ratio (RR), and risk difference (RD) with 95% confidence interval (CI). Heterogeneity was assessed with Cochran's Q- statistic. Random effects model was applied. Results: A total of 3,547 patients with multiple myeloma from 5 phase III RCTs were eligible. Studies compared daratumumab (D) + bortezomib (V) + melphan (M) + prednisone (P) vs VMP, D + lenalidomide (R) + dexamethasone (d) vs Rd, DVd vs Vd and DVd + thalidomide (T) vs VTd. The randomization ratio was 1:1 in all studies. Daratumumab was utilized in relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma in the POLLUX study (n= 564) and the CASTOR study (n= 480) and as first-line treatment for patients with multiple myeloma in the ALCYONE study (n= 700), the CASSIOPEIA study (n= 1085) and the MAIA study (n= 737). The I2 statistic for heterogeneity was 25, suggesting some heterogeneity among RCT. The SPM incidence was 76 (4.29%) in study group vs 77 (4.34%) in control group. The RR for SPM was 1.12 (95% CI: 0.74 - 1.69; P = 0.58) and RD was 0.01 (95% CI: -0.01 to 0.02; P = 0.34). The RR for SPM was noted at 2.56 (95% CI: 0.26 - 25.46; P = 0.42) in a subset of relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma. Any-grade PSN was reported in 527 (46.84%) in daratumumab arm vs 550 (48.72%) in control arm with the RR of 0.98 (95% CI: 0.80 -1.21; P = 0.88). High-grade PSN was noted in 63 (5.6%) vs 76 (6.73%) in control group with the RR of 0.73 (95% CI: 0.42 -1.27; P = 0.27). Conclusions: Our meta-analysis depicted that there was no significant increase in the risk of second primary malignancies and peripheral sensory neuropathy in patients on daratumumab combination regimen, in newly diagnosed and relapsed refractory multiple myeloma, compared to control arm. However, long-term follow-up of these patients is required to determine the actual relation with second primary malignancies. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

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