scholarly journals The response to lymphodepletion impacts PFS in patients with aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma treated with CD19 CAR T cells

Blood ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 133 (17) ◽  
pp. 1876-1887 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandre V. Hirayama ◽  
Jordan Gauthier ◽  
Kevin A. Hay ◽  
Jenna M. Voutsinas ◽  
Qian Wu ◽  
...  

Abstract Factors associated with durable remission after CD19 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-modified T-cell immunotherapy for aggressive B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) have not been identified. We report multivariable analyses of factors affecting response and progression-free survival (PFS) in patients with aggressive NHL treated with cyclophosphamide and fludarabine lymphodepletion followed by 2 × 106 CD19-directed CAR T cells/kg. The best overall response rate was 51%, with 40% of patients achieving complete remission. The median PFS of patients with aggressive NHL who achieved complete remission was 20.0 months (median follow-up, 26.9 months). Multivariable analysis of clinical and treatment characteristics, serum biomarkers, and CAR T-cell manufacturing and pharmacokinetic data showed that a lower pre-lymphodepletion serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) level and a favorable cytokine profile, defined as serum day 0 monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) and peak interleukin-7 (IL-7) concentrations above the median, were associated with better PFS. MCP-1 and IL-7 concentrations increased after lymphodepletion, and higher intensity of cyclophosphamide and fludarabine lymphodepletion was associated with higher probability of a favorable cytokine profile. PFS was superior in patients who received high-intensity lymphodepletion and achieved a favorable cytokine profile compared with those who received the same intensity of lymphodepletion without achieving a favorable cytokine profile. Even in high-risk patients with pre-lymphodepletion serum LDH levels above normal, a favorable cytokine profile after lymphodepletion was associated with a low risk of a PFS event. Strategies to augment the cytokine response to lymphodepletion could be tested in future studies of CD19 CAR T-cell immunotherapy for aggressive B-cell NHL. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT01865617.

Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 2941
Author(s):  
Luciana R. C. Barros ◽  
Emanuelle A. Paixão ◽  
Andrea M. P. Valli ◽  
Gustavo T. Naozuka ◽  
Artur C. Fassoni ◽  
...  

Immunotherapy has gained great momentum with chimeric antigen receptor T cell (CAR-T) therapy, in which patient’s T lymphocytes are genetically manipulated to recognize tumor-specific antigens, increasing tumor elimination efficiency. In recent years, CAR-T cell immunotherapy for hematological malignancies achieved a great response rate in patients and is a very promising therapy for several other malignancies. Each new CAR design requires a preclinical proof-of-concept experiment using immunodeficient mouse models. The absence of a functional immune system in these mice makes them simple and suitable for use as mathematical models. In this work, we develop a three-population mathematical model to describe tumor response to CAR-T cell immunotherapy in immunodeficient mouse models, encompassing interactions between a non-solid tumor and CAR-T cells (effector and long-term memory). We account for several phenomena, such as tumor-induced immunosuppression, memory pool formation, and conversion of memory into effector CAR-T cells in the presence of new tumor cells. Individual donor and tumor specificities are considered uncertainties in the model parameters. Our model is able to reproduce several CAR-T cell immunotherapy scenarios, with different CAR receptors and tumor targets reported in the literature. We found that therapy effectiveness mostly depends on specific parameters such as the differentiation of effector to memory CAR-T cells, CAR-T cytotoxic capacity, tumor growth rate, and tumor-induced immunosuppression. In summary, our model can contribute to reducing and optimizing the number of in vivo experiments with in silico tests to select specific scenarios that could be tested in experimental research. Such an in silico laboratory is an easy-to-run open-source simulator, built on a Shiny R-based platform called CARTmath. It contains the results of this manuscript as examples and documentation. The developed model together with the CARTmath platform have potential use in assessing different CAR-T cell immunotherapy protocols and its associated efficacy, becoming an accessory for in silico trials.


Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 743
Author(s):  
Aleksei Titov ◽  
Ekaterina Zmievskaya ◽  
Irina Ganeeva ◽  
Aygul Valiullina ◽  
Alexey Petukhov ◽  
...  

Adoptive cell immunotherapy (ACT) is a vibrant field of cancer treatment that began progressive development in the 1980s. One of the most prominent and promising examples is chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell immunotherapy for the treatment of B-cell hematologic malignancies. Despite success in the treatment of B-cell lymphomas and leukemia, CAR T-cell therapy remains mostly ineffective for solid tumors. This is due to several reasons, such as the heterogeneity of the cellular composition in solid tumors, the need for directed migration and penetration of CAR T-cells against the pressure gradient in the tumor stroma, and the immunosuppressive microenvironment. To substantially improve the clinical efficacy of ACT against solid tumors, researchers might need to look closer into recent developments in the other branches of adoptive immunotherapy, both traditional and innovative. In this review, we describe the variety of adoptive cell therapies beyond CAR T-cell technology, i.e., exploitation of alternative cell sources with a high therapeutic potential against solid tumors (e.g., CAR M-cells) or aiming to be universal allogeneic (e.g., CAR NK-cells, γδ T-cells), tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), and transgenic T-cell receptor (TCR) T-cell immunotherapies. In addition, we discuss the strategies for selection and validation of neoantigens to achieve efficiency and safety. We provide an overview of non-conventional TCRs and CARs, and address the problem of mispairing between the cognate and transgenic TCRs. Finally, we summarize existing and emerging approaches for manufacturing of the therapeutic cell products in traditional, semi-automated and fully automated Point-of-Care (PoC) systems.


Blood ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 132 (Supplement 1) ◽  
pp. 4187-4187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zixun Yan ◽  
Wen Wang ◽  
Zhong Zheng ◽  
Ming Hao ◽  
Su Yang ◽  
...  

Abstract Introduction JWCAR029 is a novel CD19-directed 4-1BB stimulated chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR-T) cell type, which is different from JWCAR017 with independent production of CD4 and CD8 T cells and transfusion in non-fixed ratio. We conducted a single arm, open-label, dose escalation Phase I trial of JWCAR029 in relapsed and refractory B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NCT03355859). Methods From January to July 2018, 10 patients have been enrolled in this trial, including eight diffused large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and two MALT lymphoma, with median age of 47 years (range 32 to 59 years). All the patients received immunochemotherapy as induction and more than two lines of salvage treatment. Two patients received bridging chemotherapy after T-cell collection due to rapid tumor progression, followed by re-evaluation before CAR-T cell infusion. Lymphodepletion preconditioning was accomplished by fludarabine 25mg/m2/d and cyclophosphamide 250mg/m2/d on Day-4 to D-2, followed by CAR-T cell infusion on Day0. JWCAR029 was administrated as a single infusion in escalation dose levels, from 2.5×107 CAR-T cells (dose level 1, DL1) to 5.0×107 CAR-T cells (dose level 2, DL2) and to 1.0×108 CAR-T cells (dose level 3, DL3) according to mTPI-2 algorithm. Circulating blood count, serum biochemistry, and coagulation status were follow-up after infusion. Cytokines were assessed on a Luminex platform. Tumor evaluation was performed on Day 29 by PET-CT. PK data were detected by flow cytometry and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction system. All the adverse events were recorded. The study was approved by the Shanghai Rui Jin Hospital Review Board with informed consent obtained in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. Results The demographic characteristics of the patients were demonstrated in Table 1. Among six evaluable patients (3 of DL1 and 3 of DL2), the ORR was 100% on Day 29, including four complete remission and 2 partial remission. Cytokine release syndrome (CRS) was 100% in Gr 1, with main symptoms as fever (<39.0 degrees), fatigue, and muscle soreness. No neurotoxicity was observed. Four of the six patients with fever >38.0 degrees used prophylactic IL-6 Inhibitor (8mg/kg, ACTEMRA, two patients administered twice). No patients received steroids. The CRS showed no difference between dose level groups (p>0.99). Adverse effects included leukopenia (Gr 3-4: 83.3%, Gr 1-2: 16.7%), hypofibrinogenemia (Gr 1: 16.7%, Gr 2-4: 0%), liver dysfunction (Gr 1: 33.3%, Gr 2-4: 0%), elevated CRP (Gr 1: 83.3%, Gr 2-4: 0%), ferritin (Gr 1-2: 83.3%, Gr 2-4: 0%), or IL-6 (Gr 1-2:100%, Gr 3-4: 0%, Table 2). Conclusion Although long-term follow-up was needed, the preliminary data of six patients in this trial have demonstrated high response rates and safety of JWCAR029 in treating relapsed and refractory B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Disclosures Hao: JW Therapeutics: Employment, Equity Ownership.


2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 60-69
Author(s):  
Manxue Fu ◽  
Liling Tang

Background: Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T cell immunotherapy, as an innovative method for tumor immunotherapy, acquires unprecedented clinical outcomes. Genetic modification not only provides T cells with the antigen-binding function but also endows T cells with better immunological functions both in solid and hematological cancer. However, the CAR T cell therapy is not perfect because of several reasons, such as tumor immune microenvironment, and autologous limiting factors of CAR T cells. Moreover, the safety of CAR T cells should be improved.Objective:Recently many patents and publications have reported the importance of CAR T cell immunotherapy. Based on the patents about CAR T cell immunotherapy, we conclude some methods for designing the CAR which can provide information to readers.Methods:In this review, we collect recent patents and publications, summarize some specific antigens for oncotherapy from patents and enumerate some approaches to conquering immunosuppression and reinforcing the immune response of CAR T cells. We also sum up some strategies for improving the safety of CAR T cell immunotherapy.Results:CAR T cell immunotherapy as a neotype cellular immunotherapy has been proved effective in oncotherapy and authorized by FDA. Improvements in CAR designing enhance functions of CAR T cells.Conclusion:This review, summarizing antigens and approaches to overcome defects of CAR T cell immunotherapy from patents and publications, might contribute to a broad readership.


Author(s):  
Jonathan P Mochel ◽  
Stephen C Ekker ◽  
Chad M Johannes ◽  
Albert E Jergens ◽  
Karin Allenspach ◽  
...  

The advent of the genome editing era brings forth the promise of adoptive cell transfer using engineered chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cells for targeted cancer therapy. CAR T-cell immunotherapy is probably one of the most encouraging developments for the treatment of hematological malignancies. In 2017, two CAR T-cell therapies were approved by the U. S Food and Drug Administration; one for the treatment of pediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL), the other for adult patients with advanced lymphomas. However, despite significant progress in the area, CAR T-cell therapy is still in its early days and faces significant challenges, including the complexity and costs associated with the technology. B-cell lymphoma is the most common hematopoietic cancer in dogs, with an incidence approaching 0.1% and a total of 20-100 cases per 100,000 individuals. It is a widely accepted naturally occurring model for human non-Hodgkin&rsquo;s lymphoma. Current treatment is with combination chemotherapy protocols, which prolong life for less than a year in canines and are associated with severe dose-limiting side effects, such as gastrointestinal and bone marrow toxicity. To date, one canine study generated CAR T-cells by transfection of mRNA for CAR domain expression. While this was shown to provide a transient anti-tumor activity, results were modest, indicating that stable, genomic integration of CAR modules is required in order to achieve lasting therapeutic benefit. This Commentary summarizes the current state of knowledge on CAR T-cell immunotherapy in human medicine and its potential applications in animal health, while discussing the potential of the canine model as a translational system for immuno-oncology research.


Blood ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
David C Bishop ◽  
Leighton E Clancy ◽  
Renee Simms ◽  
Jane Burgess ◽  
Geetha Mathew ◽  
...  

CD19-specific chimeric antigen receptor (CAR19) T-cells effectively induce remission of B-cell malignancy, but the cost and complexity of production using viral vectors is a factor limiting widespread application. Furthermore, the small cargo capacity of viral vectors may hamper future development of more heavily engineered CAR T-cells. We demonstrated the feasibility of generating CAR19 T-cells from HLA-matched donors of sibling allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) patients via a simple and inexpensive method using the high-capacity piggyBac transposon. A cohort of 10 patients with relapsed or refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia or aggressive lymphoma following HSCT were the first human subjects to receive piggyBac-generated CAR19 T-cells. Treatment with intra-patient escalating doses of CAR19 T-cells was effective, with all 9 evaluable patients achieving complete remission. At a median follow-up of 18.0 months, 5 patients remained in complete remission of B-cell malignancy. One patient died of viral sepsis. Four patients developed cytokine release syndrome of maximum grade 2, and no neurotoxicity or new graft-versus-host disease occurred. However, two patients developed malignant CAR19 T-cell tumors, one of whom was successfully treated; one patient died of the secondary tumor. The piggyBac system represents a feasible alternative to viral vectors for the generation of effective CAR19 T-cells, but its oncogenic potential in the context of the described production process will need to be addressed before any further clinical use is possible. This trial was registered at www.anzctr.org.au as ACTRN12617001579381.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 01-11
Author(s):  
Muhammad AH Khoiruddin ◽  
Yusi Windya Febriyanti ◽  
Nafia Amalia

Uveal Melanoma (UM) is the primary intraocular tumor most commonly found in adults. The combination of therapy, Brachytherapy, surgery, Tranpupillary Thermal Therapy (TTT), Proton Beam Theraphy has not produced satisfactory results. The discovery of HER2 receptors expressed by UM cells can be used as a specific antigen target for the treatment of CAR T-celss. However, the effectiveness of CAR T-cell immunotherapy in tumors results in immunosuppressive T cells caused by an increase in Programmed cell Death Ligand-1 (PD-L1). This literature review demonstrates the success of HER2-specific CART T Cells as UM therapeutic efforts capable of eliminating tumor cells. In addition, CRSPR / Cas9 PD-1 / PD-L1-blocking modified HER2-specific CAR T cells can be a gene innovation in UM sufferers. Further clinical trials are needed to prove the effectiveness of CRISPR / Cas9 PD-1 / PD-L1-Blocking modified HER2-specific CAR T Cells in the treatment of UM patients.Keywords: Uveal melanoma, CAR T cell, reseptor HER


Blood ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 128 (22) ◽  
pp. 4192-4192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeremy S. Abramson ◽  
Lia Palomba ◽  
Leo I Gordon ◽  
Matthew Lunning ◽  
Jon Arnason ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Based on promising results seen in patients treated with CD19-directed CAR-T cells in relapsed or refractory (R/R) pediatric B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Gardner, ASCO 2016) and adult B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (Turtle, ASCO 2016), we are conducting a multicenter phase 1 trial of JCAR017 in R/R diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02631044). JCAR017 is a second-generation, CD19-directed CAR-T cell product of defined cellular composition consisting of a 1:1 ratio of CD8+:CD4+ CAR+ T cells. Methods: Patients with R/R DLBCL (de novo or transformed from indolent lymphoma), follicular lymphoma grade 3B, or MCL and adequate organ function are eligible. There was no minimum absolute lymphocyte count (ALC) requirement for apheresis and no test expansion required. Treatment includes lymphodepletion (fludarabine 30 mg/m2 and cyclophosphamide 300 mg/m2 daily for 3 days) and JCAR017 given 2-7 days post-lymphodepletion at a starting dose of 5 x 107 CAR+ T cells (DL1). Single-dose and two-dose schedules are being evaluated. Primary objectives include safety and pharmacokinetics (PK) of JCAR017 measured by flow cytometry and quantitative PCR. Secondary objectives include complete and overall response (CR, OR) rates and duration of response (DOR). Response is assessed using the Lugano (2014) criteria. Results: As of August 1, 2016, 39 patients have been enrolled and 28 patients apheresed. Fourteen patients have been treated, all at DL1. Eight were male and 6 female. Thirteen patients had DLBCL and 1 had MCL. Median age was 61 years (range 37-79) and median number of prior therapies was 5 (range 2-9). Ten patients had undergone prior transplant (7 autologous; 3 allogeneic). Of the 14 patients, there were no cases of severe cytokine release syndrome (sCRS); 3 patients had low grade CRS (21%) (2 grade 1; 1 grade 2) and none required treatment with tocilizumab. Two of the 14 treated patients (14%) had neurotoxicity: 1 grade 4 encephalopathy and 1 grade 4 seizure. Both were in patients with DLBCL and were dose-limiting toxicities. Two deaths were seen in the DLBCL group and were due to disease progression. Twelve patients had at least 1 post-treatment response assessment; 11 patients with DLBCL and 1 with MCL. The patient with MCL had progressive disease at day 29 (D29). In the DLBCL group, response rates were: 82% (9/11) OR, 73% (8/11) CR, 9% (1/11) PR and 18% (2/11) PD at the time of post-treatment assessment on D29. All but one patient who achieved a CR were in remission at the time of this data cut. One DLBCL patient in CR had a parenchymal brain lesion in the right temporal lobe that also completely resolved. Of note, this patient had no CRS or neurotoxicity associated with JCAR017 treatment. The PK profile of JCAR017 in the peripheral blood and bone marrow show cellular expansion in all patients with persistence out to at least 3 months in patients with adequate follow up. Exploratory biomarker analyses will be presented at the meeting along with updated clinical data. Conclusions: Treatment with the defined cellular composition product JCAR017 following lymphodepletion with fludarabine and cyclophosphamide results in high CR rates in patients with heavily pretreated DLBCL, including the first report of a CR in a patient with secondary CNS lymphoma. Observed toxicities are manageable and compare favorably to other reported CAR T-cell products. Disclosures Abramson: Gilead: Consultancy; Kite Pharma: Consultancy; Abbvie: Consultancy; Seattle Genetics: Consultancy. Gordon:Northwestern University: Patents & Royalties: Patent for gold nanoparticles pending. Lunning:Celgene: Consultancy; Bristol-Myer-Squibb: Consultancy; Pharmacyclics: Consultancy; Genentech: Consultancy; Juno: Consultancy; AbbVie: Consultancy; Gilead: Consultancy; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy; Spectrum: Consultancy. Arnason:Gilead: Consultancy. Forero-Torres:Genentech/Roche: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Juno: Research Funding; Incyte: Research Funding; Abbvie: Research Funding; Novartis: Research Funding; Pfizer: Research Funding. Albertson:Juno Therapeutics: Employment, Equity Ownership. Sutherland:Juno therapeutics: Employment. Xie:Juno Therapeutics: Employment, Equity Ownership. Snodgrass:Juno therapeutics: Employment. Siddiqi:Pharmacyclics, LLC, an AbbVie Company: Speakers Bureau; Janssen: Speakers Bureau; Seattle Genetics: Speakers Bureau; Kite pharma: Other: Funded travel, 1 day registration, and 1 night hotel stay for EHA2016 so I could present trial data there.


Blood ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 138 (Supplement 1) ◽  
pp. 1730-1730
Author(s):  
Ying Zhang ◽  
Jiaqi Li ◽  
Xiangping Zong ◽  
Jin Zhou ◽  
Sixun Jia ◽  
...  

Abstract Objective: Despite the remarkable success of chimeric antigen receptor modified T (CAR-T) cell therapy for refractory or relapsed B cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (R/R B-NHL), high rates of treatment failure and relapse after CAR-T cell therapy are considerable obstacles to overcome. Preclinical models have demonstrated that anti-PD-1 antibody is an attractive option following CAR-T therapy to reverse T cell exhaustion. Thus, we investigated their combination in R/R B-NHL. Methods: We performed a prospective, single-arm study of CAR-T cell combined with anti-PD-1 antibody treatment in R/R B-NHL (NCT04539444). Anti-PD-1 antibody was administrated on day 1 after patients received sequential infusion of anti-CD19 and anti-CD22 second-generation CAR-T cells, and the efficacy and safety of the combination treatment were evaluated. Results: From August 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021, a total of 11 patients were enrolled and completed at least 3 months follow-up. The median follow-up time is 5.8 months. Overall response was achieved in 9 of 11 patients (81.8%), and the complete response (CR) was achieved in 8 of 11 patients (72.7%). All 8 patients achieving CR still sustained remission at the last follow-up. The progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) rates at 6 months were 80.8% and 100.0%, respectively. Cytokine release syndrome (CRS) occurred in only 4 patients (all were grade 1), and no neurotoxicity were observed. Conclusion: This study suggests that CAR-T cells combined with anti-PD-1 antibody elicit a safe and durable response in R/R B-NHL. Keywords: chimeric antigen receptor modified T cell, anti-PD-1 antibody, CD19/CD22, refractory or relapsed B cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare. OffLabel Disclosure: We use the T cells were transduced with a lentivirus encoding the CD19-4-1BB-CD3 z and CD22-4-1BB-CD3 ztransgene to produce CAR-T cells. The main purpose of our study is to improve the response rate in patients with R/R B-NHL.


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