Efficacy, Toxicity and Targets for Adoptive Cellular Therapy in Multiple Myeloma: A Systematic Review

Abstract Introduction Advancement in multiple myeloma (MM) has led to the development of adoptive cell transfer (ACT), an immunotherapeutic modality that utilizes body's own effector cells (T cells or Natural killer cells) to kill cancer cells. These include chimeric antigen receptor T cells (CAR-T cells), genetically modified T cell receptors (TCRs), activated Natural Killer (NK) cells and native T cells armed with bispecific antibodies. Potential antigen targets for TCRs in MM include B cell maturation antigen (BCMA), CD19, CD138, NKG2D, Ig kappa, LeY and SLMF7/CS-1, MAGE A3 and NY-ESO-1. The purpose of this review is to summarize various types of cellular therapies which are being tested in early phase clinical trials for treatment of MM. Methods We performed a comprehensive literature search (PubMed, EMBASE, AdisInsight and Clinicaltrials.gov) between January 2008 to December 2017, to identify early phase (I and I/II) trials of cellular therapy for the treatment of MM. We included studies involving cellular therapy, irrespective of the geo-location, age, sex or specific eligibility criteria. Results With initial search yielded 2537 phase I and phase I/II studies. After initial screening by two reviewers and categorization by mechanism of action, 37 clinical trials (CTs) that involved ACT were included. Out of the 37 trials, 18 are active or completed (Table 1) and 19 are recruiting subjects (Table 2). Most explored mechanism of action (21 CTs) in these trials is CAR T-cell therapy directed against B cell maturation antigen (BCMA). Anti-BCMA CART has shown promising efficacy of up to 100% objective response (OR) in a phase I trial (NCT03090659, n=22). In a phase I/II trial by Fan et al. (n=19), 6 (32%) patients showed complete response (CR), 12 (63%) developed near complete response (nCR), 1 (5%) achieved partial response (PR). In phase I trial by Ali et al. (2016, n=12), anti-BCMA CART cells led to stringent complete response (sCR) in 1 (8%) patient, very good partial response (VGPR) in 2 (16%), PR in 1 (8%) and stable disease (SD) in 8 (66%). Grade 3-4 cytokine release syndrome (CRS) was reported in 3 (25%) patients receiving high dose of CAR T cells (9 x 106 / kg in 2 patients and 3 x 106 /kg in 1 patient). Cohen et al., 2017 (n= 24) reported the objective response rate (ORR) defined as ≥PR in 11 (47%) patients. In 75% of patients with grade 3-4 CRS, tocilizumab/siltuximab was used to manage CRS. According to Garfall et al. (2018, n=10), administration of anti-CD19 CART after autologus stem cell transplant (auto-SCT) improved progression free survival (PFS) in 2 (20%) patients compared to PFS due to auto-SCT done earlier in same patients (from 181 to 479 days and 127 to 249 days). Leivas et al. (2016, n=5) showed that infusion of expanded and activated natural killer cells (NKAE) with lenalidomide have shown better response (PR=1, SD=1, SD to PD=1) than NKAE with bortezomib (SD=1, PD=1). In 10 (83%) patients, VGPR or better response was achieved after infusion of allogenic cord blood derived NK cells along with auto-SCT (Shah et al., 2017). Rapoport et al. (2017, n=25) infused CAR T-cells against cancer testes antigens (NY-ESO-1, LAGE-1a) and demonstrated the OR in 19 (76%) patients (1 sCR, 12 VGPR, 6PR) at day 100. Al-Kadhimi et al. (2011, n=9) administered activated autologous T cells armed with bispecific antibodies against CD3 and CD20 (aATC) prior to auto-SCT. Two patients achieved VGPR, two patients achieved CR while five patients developed PR. Fowler et al. (2016, n=20) used type 1 polarized, rapamycin resistant T (T1-Rapa) cells after auto-SCT in high risk myeloma patients. Out of 19 evaluable patients, 5 had ongoing CR (at 733, 787, 847, 926, 1186 days) while 14 patients had disease progression (from 64 to 917 days). No adverse effects or dose limiting toxicity was observed in any of the patients. Conclusion Adoptive cellular therapy has shown excellent clinical activity against myeloma cells in relapsed refractory patients. The adverse events like CRS and infusion reactions are concerning but manageable. The results of trials involving T cells targeting BCMA are very encouraging. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

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Possible Factors on Efficacy and Safety of CAR-T Therapy in Relapsed or Refractory Aggressive B-Cell Lymphoma

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2018-99-114727 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 132 (Supplement 1) ◽

pp. 5386-5386

Author(s):

Haiwen Huang ◽

Yibin Jiang ◽

Zhengming Jin ◽

Caixia Li ◽

Depei Wu

Keyword(s):

T Cells ◽

T Cell ◽

B Cell ◽

Objective Response ◽

B Cell Lymphoma ◽

Efficacy And Safety ◽

B Cell Lymphomas ◽

Car T Cells ◽

Car T ◽

Grade 3

Abstract Background: Recent advances have improved the treatment of B-cell malignancies, but patients who have disease resistant to primary or salvage treatment or who relapse after transplantation have an extremely poor prognosis. Studies of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapy have shown high response rates and long response duration in refractory B-cell lymphomas after the failure of conventional therapy, which suggest that this therapy may be potentially curative. To explore the possible factors on efficacy and safety of CAR T-Cell therapy in relapsed or refractory aggressive B-cell lymphomas, we conducted the clinical trial of CAR-T Cell Treating Relapsed/Refractory B-cell lymphomas (NCT03196830). Methods: From March 2017 to April 2018, 25 patients were enrolled into our clinical trial. According to the surface expression of tumor cells by either flow cytometry or immunohistochemistry, different targets of CAR T-cells were infused, ionly anti-CD19 (n=11), sequential infusion of anti-CD22 and anti-CD19 (n=8), and sequential infusion of anti-CD20 and anti-CD19 (n=6). Patients received conditioning treatment (low-dose cyclophosphamide, 300 mg/m² per day, and fludarabine, 30 mg/m² per day) on days -5, -4, and -3 before the administration of autologous CAR T-cells. The primary endpoint was the proportion of patients with an objective response. Secondary endpoints included safety and biomarker assessments. Results: Among the 25 patients who were enrolled, response was successfully evaluated for 24. The objective response rate was 75%, and the complete response rate was 33%. With a median follow-up of 3.2 months, 54% of the patients continued to have a response, with 25% continuing to have a complete response. Grade 3 or higher cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and neurologic events occurred in 24% and 16% of the patients, respectively. One of the patients died during treatment. Serum biochemical index analysis confirmed the associations of peak serum interleukin-2, -6, -10, INF-γ, ferritin, C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations and the level of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) before therapy with the grade 3 or higher CRS, as well as peak serum interleukin-6, -10, INF-γ, CRP, ferritin and the level of LDH before therapy with grade 3 or higher neurologic events. Conclusion: Our study demonstrates the efficacy and safety of CAR-T therapy relapsed or refractory aggressive B-cell lymphoma. The level of LDH before therapy was higher in patients who developed grade 3 or serious CRS, which suggest that we should improve safety by reducing tumor burden before CAR T-cells infusion. Due to the small number of enrolled cases, no significant improvement of efficacy was observed, this result needs to be further confirmed by expanding the number of study cases. Figure. Figure. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

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Preliminary Safety and Efficacy of PBCAR0191, an Allogeneic 'Off-the-Shelf' CD19-Directed CAR-T for Patients with Relapsed/Refractory (R/R) CD19+ B-ALL

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2021-153166 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 138 (Supplement 1) ◽

pp. 650-650

Author(s):

Nitin Jain ◽

Hagop Kantarjian ◽

Scott R. Solomon ◽

Fiona He ◽

Craig S. Sauter ◽

...

Keyword(s):

T Cells ◽

Dose Level ◽

Research Funding ◽

Complete Response ◽

Cell Transplant ◽

Publicly Traded ◽

Car T Cells ◽

Car T ◽

Grade 3 ◽

Privately Held

Abstract Introduction: CD19-directed autologous CAR-T products induce high response rates in adults with R/R B-ALL, yet many patients relapse within the first year. Additionally, cell manufacturing timelines, and poor t-cell fitness may imperil efficacy, especially among those with proliferative disease. This makes access to a donor-derived, readily available CAR-T product of great interest in this patient population, particularly when consolidation with allogeneic stem cell transplant (allo-SCT) is possible. We report preliminary safety, efficacy, and correlative data for the R/R B-ALL patients dosed with at least 3 x 10 6 CAR-T cells/kg of PBCAR0191, an allogeneic 'off-the-shelf' CD19-directed CAR-T. Methods: Subjects were 18 years or older with CD19+ R/R B-ALL after at least 2 prior lines of therapy. Patients were required to have adequate organ function and no active GvHD, CNS disease, active infections, or other active medical issues. Prior allo-SCT and/or autologous CAR-T therapy were allowed. Subjects received either standard (sLD; 30mg/m2/day and 500mg/m2/day x 3 days fludarabine and cyclophosphamide, respectively) or enhanced (eLD; 30mg/m2/day x 4 days flu and 1000mg/m2/day x 3 days cy) lymphodepletion preceding PBCAR0191 infusion. Correlative laboratory samples were taken for CAR-T expansion, persistence, molecular response to treatment and safety assessments. Results: As of August 2, 2021, 15 subjects with R/R CD19+ B-ALL have been dosed with dose Dose level 3/4a (3 X 10 6 CAR-T cells/kg or equivalent, n=11) or a Dose level 4b (flat dose of 5 X 10 8 CAR-T cells, n=4). Demographics, baseline disease, and prior treatment data are presented in the table. Most of the Adverse events (AE) reported to date were mild, with no cases of GvHD, no Grade ≥3 CRS and 1 case of Grade 3 ICANS which resolved within 48 hours. 67% of subjects treated (10/15) experienced PBCAR0191 related AEs, with 60% (9/15) of subjects experiencing serious AEs (one related to PBCAR0191, ICANS Grade 3). The complete response (CR) or CRi (incomplete marrow recovery) rate at Day ≥28 is 33% (2/6) in DL3/4a and sLD, 80% (4/5) in DL3/4a with eLD and 75% (3/4) in DL4b with sLD. Importantly, 4/15 (27%) responding subjects underwent allo-SCT, with one additional subject not able to receive transplant due to eligibility yet maintaining an MRD- CR for >250 days, and one refusing to proceed with transplant. Product accessibility was evident compared to autologous CAR-T products, with median time from screening completion to PBCAR0191 infusion of 7 days (median of 1 day until start of LD) and all eligible subjects receiving PBCAR0191 infusion. Conclusion: PBCAR0191 has demonstrated a manageable safety profile and high complete response rate at day 28 or later, providing an adequate window for potential bridge to allo-SCT. Figure 1 Figure 1. Disclosures Jain: Adaptive Biotechnologies: Honoraria, Research Funding; Precision Biosciences: Honoraria, Research Funding; Cellectis: Honoraria, Research Funding; Pfizer: Research Funding; Janssen: Honoraria; Genentech: Honoraria, Research Funding; AstraZeneca: Honoraria, Research Funding; Beigene: Honoraria; TG Therapeutics: Honoraria; Bristol Myers Squibb: Honoraria, Research Funding; Aprea Therapeutics: Research Funding; Incyte: Research Funding; AbbVie: Honoraria, Research Funding; Fate Therapeutics: Research Funding; Servier: Honoraria, Research Funding; ADC Therapeutics: Honoraria, Research Funding; Pharmacyclics: Research Funding. Kantarjian: KAHR Medical Ltd: Honoraria; Ascentage: Research Funding; Immunogen: Research Funding; Jazz: Research Funding; Aptitude Health: Honoraria; Ipsen Pharmaceuticals: Honoraria; Precision Biosciences: Honoraria; Novartis: Honoraria, Research Funding; Astra Zeneca: Honoraria; AbbVie: Honoraria, Research Funding; NOVA Research: Honoraria; BMS: Research Funding; Daiichi-Sankyo: Research Funding; Pfizer: Honoraria, Research Funding; Amgen: Honoraria, Research Funding; Astellas Health: Honoraria; Taiho Pharmaceutical Canada: Honoraria. Sauter: Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; GSK: Consultancy; Celgene: Consultancy, Research Funding; Gamida Cell: Consultancy; Kite/Gilead: Consultancy; Precision Biosciences: Consultancy; Genmab: Consultancy; Novartis: Consultancy; Spectrum Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy; Juno Therapeutics: Consultancy, Research Funding; Sanofi-Genzyme: Consultancy, Research Funding. Heery: Precision BioSciences: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company, Ended employment in the past 24 months; Arcellx: Current Employment, Current holder of stock options in a privately-held company. List: Halia Therapeutics: Consultancy, Current holder of individual stocks in a privately-held company; CTI Biosciences: Consultancy; Precision BioSciences: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company; Aileron Therapeutics: Consultancy. Johnson: Precision BioSciences, Inc: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Lou: Precision BioSciences: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Vainorius: Precision BioSciences: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company; Abbvie: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company; United Therapeautics: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Olszewski: Genentech, Inc.: Research Funding; TG Therapeutics: Research Funding; PrecisionBio: Research Funding; Celldex Therapeutics: Research Funding; Acrotech Pharma: Research Funding; Genmab: Research Funding. Stein: Amgen: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Celgene: Speakers Bureau; Stemline: Speakers Bureau. Shah: Adaptive Biotechnologies: Consultancy; Bristol-Myers Squibb/Celgene: Consultancy, Other: Expenses; Novartis: Consultancy, Other: Expenses; Pfizer: Consultancy, Other: Expenses; Amgen: Consultancy; Precision Biosciences: Consultancy; Kite, a Gilead Company: Consultancy, Honoraria, Other: Expenses, Research Funding; Pharmacyclics/Janssen: Honoraria, Other: Expenses; Acrotech/Spectrum: Honoraria; BeiGene: Consultancy, Honoraria; Incyte: Research Funding; Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Research Funding; Servier Genetics: Other. OffLabel Disclosure: PBCAR0191 is not FDA approved

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RBTT-12. A PHASE I STUDY OF EGFRVIII-DIRECTED CAR T CELLS COMBINED WITH PD-1 INHIBITION IN PATIENTS WITH NEWLY, DIAGNOSED, MGMT-UNMETHYLATED GLIOBLASTOMA: TRIAL IN PROGRESS

Neuro-Oncology ◽

10.1093/neuonc/noz175.923 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 21 (Supplement_6) ◽

pp. vi221-vi221 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Stephen Bagley ◽

Arati Desai ◽

Zev Binder ◽

MacLean Nasrallah ◽

Wei-Ting Hwang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

T Cells ◽

Phase I ◽

Phase I Study ◽

Phase 1 ◽

Objective Response ◽

Tumor Resection ◽

Adjuvant Radiation ◽

Newly Diagnosed ◽

Car T Cells ◽

Car T

Abstract BACKGROUND This study builds on the results of the University of Pennsylvania sponsored phase I study of a single peripheral infusion of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells targeting epidermal growth factor receptor variant III (EGFRvIII) in recurrent glioblastoma (GBM) (NCT02209376). A dose of 5x108 CART-EGFRvIII cells was safe, and the cells were able to expand in the host and reach the GBM tumor in the brain. In addition, there was no cross-reactivity of CART-EGFRvIII cells with wild-type EGFR normally expressed by human tissues. Some patients required tumor resection after CAR T cell infusion. In situ evaluation of the tumor microenvironment demonstrated increased and robust expression of inhibitory molecules, such as programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1), compared to pre–CART-EGFRvIII tumor specimens. Therefore, we hypothesized that using a combination of CART-EGFRvIII cells and a PD-1 inhibitor would improve the outcome of the treatment. METHODS This single-center study (NCT03726515) has a single-arm, open-label, phase 1 design and will enroll 7 patients with newly diagnosed, O6-methylguanine-methyltransferase (MGMT)-unmethylated, EGFRvIII+ GBM. Following maximal safe tumor resection, patients receive a short course of adjuvant radiation with a total dose of 40 Gy administered in 15 fractions. Peripheral IV infusions of 2x108 CART-EGFRvIII cells and 200mg pembrolizumab begin 2–3 weeks after completing radiation therapy. Thereafter, subjects receive CART-EGFRvIII cells + pembrolizumab in 3-week cycles for up to 3 infusions of CART-EGFRvIII cells and 4 infusions of pembrolizumab. The primary endpoint of the study is the safety and tolerability of administering multiple infusions of CART-EGFRvIII cells in combination with pembrolizumab, as measured by the occurrence of study-related adverse events. Secondary endpoints include overall survival, progression-free survival, and objective response rate. PROGRESS: At 5 June 2019, 2 patients have been enrolled and treated on study.

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Adoptive cellular therapy in solid tumor malignancies: review of the literature and challenges ahead

Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer ◽

10.1136/jitc-2021-002723 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (7) ◽

pp. e002723

Author(s):

Kedar Kirtane ◽

Hany Elmariah ◽

Christine H Chung ◽

Daniel Abate-Daga

Keyword(s):

T Cells ◽

T Cell ◽

Solid Tumor ◽

Cellular Therapy ◽

Specific Antigen ◽

Genetically Engineered ◽

Standards Of Care ◽

Adoptive Cellular Therapy ◽

Car T Cells ◽

Car T

While immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have ushered in major changes in standards of care for many solid tumor malignancies, primary and acquired resistance is common. Insufficient antitumor T cells, inadequate function of these cells, and impaired formation of memory T cells all contribute to resistance mechanisms to ICI. Adoptive cellular therapy (ACT) is a form of immunotherapy that is rapidly growing in clinical investigation and has the potential to overcome these limitations by its ability to augment the number, specificity, and reactivity of T cells against tumor tissue. ACT has revolutionized the treatment of hematologic malignancies, though the use of ACT in solid tumor malignancies is still in its early stages. There are currently three major modalities of ACT: tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), genetically engineered T-cell receptors (TCRs), and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells. TIL therapy involves expansion of a heterogeneous population of endogenous T cells found in a harvested tumor, while TCRs and CAR T cells involve expansion of a genetically engineered T-cell directed toward specific antigen targets. In this review, we explore the potential of ACT as a treatment modality against solid tumors, discuss their advantages and limitations against solid tumor malignancies, discuss the promising therapies under active investigation, and examine future directions for this rapidly growing field.

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Interim analysis of ZUMA-5: A phase II study of axicabtagene ciloleucel (axi-cel) in patients (pts) with relapsed/refractory indolent non-Hodgkin lymphoma (R/R iNHL).

Journal of Clinical Oncology ◽

10.1200/jco.2020.38.15_suppl.8008 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 38 (15_suppl) ◽

pp. 8008-8008 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Caron A. Jacobson ◽

Julio C. Chavez ◽

Alison R. Sehgal ◽

Basem M. William ◽

Javier Munoz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

T Cells ◽

T Cell ◽

Objective Response ◽

Blood Levels ◽

Car T Cells ◽

Car T Cell ◽

Car T ◽

Grade 3 ◽

Anti Cd20

8008 Background: Advanced stage iNHL, including follicular lymphoma (FL) and marginal zone lymphoma (MZL), is considered incurable as most pts experience multiple relapses (Wang, et al. Ther Adv Hematol. 2017), highlighting a need for novel therapies. Here, we present interim results from ZUMA-5, a Phase 2, multicenter study of axi-cel, an autologous anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy, in pts with R/R iNHL. Methods: Adults with R/R FL (Grades 1-3a) or MZL (nodal or extranodal) after ≥ 2 lines of therapy (including an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody [mAb] with an alkylating agent), and an ECOG of 0 – 1 were eligible. Pts were leukapheresed and received conditioning chemotherapy followed by axi-cel infusion at 2 × 106 CAR T cells/kg. The primary endpoint was objective response rate (ORR) by central review (Cheson, et al. J Clin Oncol. 2014). Secondary endpoints included duration of response (DOR), progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), safety, and blood levels of cytokines and CAR T cells. Results: As of 8/20/19, 94 pts (80 FL; 14 MZL) received axi-cel with a median follow-up of 11.5 mo (range, 4.2 – 24.9). Median age was 63 y (range, 34 – 79), 47% of pts were male, 52% had stage IV disease, 51% had ≥ 3 FLIPI, and 59% had high tumor bulk (GELF). Pts had a median 3 prior lines of therapy, 66% progressed < 2 y after initial anti-CD20 mAb-containing therapy (POD24), and 73% were refractory to the last prior treatment. Of 87 pts evaluable for efficacy, ORR was 94% (79% complete response [CR] rate). Pts with FL (n = 80) had an ORR of 95% (80% CR rate). Pts with MZL (n = 7) had an ORR of 86% (71% CR rate). Overall, 68% of pts had ongoing responses as of the data cutoff. Updated data, including DOR, PFS, and OS with longer follow-up, will be included in the presentation. Of 94 pts evaluable for safety, 83% experienced Grade ≥ 3 adverse events (AEs), most commonly neutropenia (33%) and anemia (28%). Grade ≥ 3 cytokine release syndrome (CRS; per Lee et al, Blood 2014) and neurologic events (NEs; per CTCAE v4.03) occurred in 11% and 19% of pts, respectively. Median times to onset of CRS and NEs were 4 and 7 d, with median durations of 6 and 14.5 d. There were 2 Grade 5 AEs: multisystem organ failure in the context of CRS (related to axi-cel) and aortic dissection (unrelated to axi-cel). Median peak and AUC0-28 CAR T cell levels were 44 cells/µL and 490 cells/µL × d, respectively. Conclusions: Axi-cel demonstrated significant and durable clinical benefit, with high rates of ORR and CR, and a manageable safety profile in pts with R/R iNHL. Clinical trial information: NCT03105336 .

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Orvacabtagene autoleucel (orva-cel), a B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)-directed CAR T cell therapy for patients (pts) with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM): update of the phase 1/2 EVOLVE study (NCT03430011).

Journal of Clinical Oncology ◽

10.1200/jco.2020.38.15_suppl.8504 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 38 (15_suppl) ◽

pp. 8504-8504 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Sham Mailankody ◽

Andrzej J. Jakubowiak ◽

Myo Htut ◽

Luciano J. Costa ◽

Kelvin Lee ◽

...

Keyword(s):

T Cells ◽

T Cell ◽

Median Time ◽

Phase 1 ◽

Objective Response ◽

Bridging Therapy ◽

Car T Cells ◽

Car T Cell ◽

Car T ◽

Grade 3

8504 Background: Orva-cel is an investigational, BCMA-directed CAR T cell product with a fully human binder. Over 100 pts have been treated in the EVOLVE phase 1 study. Pts treated at 50 and 150 × 106 CAR+ T cells were previously reported (Mailankody ASH 2018 #957). We now report results of the higher dose levels (DLs) in 51 pts who received orva-cel manufactured using the process intended to support commercial use. Methods: Pts with RRMM who had ≥3 prior regimens, a proteasome inhibitor (PI), an immunomodulatory drug (IMiD), and an anti-CD38 monoclonal antibody (mAb), received orva-cel at 300, 450, and 600 × 106 CAR+ T cells after lymphodepletion with fludarabine/cyclophosphamide. Results: Median pt age was 61 (range, 33–77) y; median time from diagnosis was 7.0 (range, 1.7–23.6) y, with a median of 6 (range, 3–18) prior regimens. Overall, 92% of pts were penta-exposed (2 IMiDs, 2 PIs, and an mAb); 61% of pts received bridging therapy (77% were refractory to bridging therapy). Two pts had dose-limiting toxicities: grade 3 neurological event (NE) for >7 d at 300 × 106 CAR+ T cells and grade 4 neutropenia for >28 d at 450 × 106 CAR+ T cells. Key efficacy and safety outcomes are shown in the Table. Cytokine release syndrome (CRS)/NEs were managed with tocilizumab and/or steroids (78%), anakinra (14%), and/or vasopressors (6%). Grade ≥3 anemia, neutropenia, and thrombocytopenia at 29 d occurred in 21%, 55%, and 44% of pts (median time to resolution to grade ≤2 of any cytopenia, ≤2.1 mo). Grade ≥3 infections occurred in 14%. After a median follow-up (F/U) of 5.9 mo, median progression-free survival was not reached. Conclusions: Orva-cel at 300, 450, and 600 × 106 CAR+ T cells demonstrated manageable safety (CRS grade ≥3: 2%; NE grade ≥3: 4%) and compelling efficacy in heavily pretreated pts with RRMM, with a 91% objective response rate (ORR) and 39% complete response (CR)/stringent CR (sCR) rate. Updated results will be presented, including minimal residual disease, durability of response, and recommended phase 2 dose. Clinical trial information: NCT03430011 . [Table: see text]

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Academic, Phase I/II Trial on T Cells Expressing a Second Generation, CD19-Specific Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) and Inducible Caspase 9 Safety Switch for the Treatment of B-Cell Precursor Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (BCP-ALL) and B-Cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (B-NHL) in Children

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2019-129821 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 134 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 1341-1341

Author(s):

Francesca Del Bufalo ◽

Concetta Quintarelli ◽

Biagio De Angelis ◽

Ignazio Caruana ◽

Matilde Sinibaldi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

T Cells ◽

Phase I ◽

Board Of Directors ◽

Cytokine Release ◽

Cytokine Release Syndrome ◽

Caspase 9 ◽

Advisory Committees ◽

Car T Cells ◽

Car T ◽

Grade 3

Survival rates of children with relapsed/refractory (r/r) BCP-ALL remain unsatisfactory and little progress has been made in the past 2 decades. Similarly, relapse of childhood B-NHL is usually associated with an aggressive disease and poor outcomes. Targeted immunotherapy with T-cells genetically modified to express a CD19-directed CAR showed an unprecedented antitumor efficacy, leading to the recent FDA and EMA approval of two CD19-CAR products for treatment of BCP-ALL and B-NHL. Relevant toxicities have, however, been reported, mainly related to the development of severe Cytokine Release Syndrome (CRS) and/or of neurotoxicity. At Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù (OPBG) in Rome, we developed a clinical-grade, 2nd generation, CD19-specific CAR construct, including 4.1bb as costimulatory domain and the inducible caspase-9 safety switch (iC9-CD19-CAR), vehiculated by a retroviral vector, to conduct an academic, phase I/II clinical trial in patients (age 1-25 yrs) affected by BCP-ALL or B-NHL. We now report on the results of the phase I and of the first 8 patients treated in the phase II portion of the study, in terms of feasibility, toxicity, maximum tolerated/recommended dose (MTD/RD) and data on response rate and biological correlates. The phase I, dose-escalation portion of the study included 3 dose levels (DL), namely: DL1, 0.5×106; DL2, 1.5×106; DL3, 3.0×106 CAR+ T cells per kg of recipient body weight. In the phase II portion, patients were treated at the RD identified in the phase I, namely 3.0×106 CAR+cells/kg. All patients received a lymphodepleting regimen consisting of fludarabine and cyclophosphamide for 3 days and iC9-CD19-CAR T cells were subsequently administered as single infusion. Patients were monitored for toxicity, expansion and persistence of iC9-CD19-CAR T cells. Seventeen children were enrolled into the trial and received iC9-CD19-CAR T cells between January 2018 and June 2019. Data were analyzed as of July 20, 2019. The characteristics of the patients are detailed in table 1. The designed dose concentration was successfully produced for all the enrolled patients and we did not observe any production failure. The median transduction rate in the drug product was 54% (range 21-73), while the median vector copy number was 3.8 (range 2.8-6.2). During the phase I portion of the study, no dose limiting toxicities (DLTs) have been recorded, defining the MTD as 3.0×106 CAR+ T cells per kg of recipient body weight. The treatment was overall tolerated and all the toxicities were reversible, the most severe being grade 3-4 neutropenia, thrombocytopenia and/or anemia, occurring in 16/17 (94.1%) patients; in 13/16 patients (81.2%) the hematological toxicity developed before the infusion and persisted after the administration of CAR T cells. Cytokine release syndrome (CRS) occurred in 10/17 patients (58.8%) and was overall moderate, reaching grade 3 (Lee criteria) in one patient only. Notably, none of the patients developed neurotoxicity and no activation of the safety switch was required. All patients were assessed for response at 4 weeks from iC9-CD19-CAR T cell infusion and 13/15 (86.7%) patients with ALL achieved complete remission (CR) with negativity of minimal residual disease (MRD), including 2/3 patients receiving the DL1, 9 patients who had failed a previous allogeneic haematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT) and 6 patients that had previously received blinatumomab, as CD19-directed immunotherapy. The iC9-CD19-CAR T cells expanded in vivo and were detectable by both flow-cytometry and molecular biology in the blood (Fig.1), bone marrow and cerebrospinal fluid of the responders. One CD19-negative relapse 3 months after infusion was recorded, while 3 additional patients relapsed with CD19+ leukemia blasts. Four patients received HSCT while in CR with MRD negativity because of regrowth of normal CD19+ B cells. The 18-month probability of overall survival for the BCP-ALL cohort is 72.2% (Fig.2). One of the 2 B-NHL patients showed a partial response. Our data indicate that iC9-CD19-CAR T cell in an academic setting is feasible, safe and extremely effective in treating highly resistant/relapsed BCP-ALL. In our trial, no major or life-threatening toxicities were observed and, despite the moderate CRS recorded, high rates of CR were achieved, suggesting that the combination of a retroviral platform and 4.1bb as costimulation is able to mediate a potent antitumor effect Disclosures Merli: Amgen: Honoraria; Novartis: Honoraria; Sobi: Consultancy; Bellicum: Consultancy. Algeri:Bluebird bio: Consultancy, Honoraria; Atara Biotherapeutics: Consultancy, Honoraria; Miltenyi: Honoraria. Locatelli:Amgen: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Bellicum: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; bluebird bio: Consultancy; Miltenyi: Honoraria; Novartis: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees.

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A Phase I Study of CD19 Chimeric Antigen Receptor-T Cells Generated By the PiggyBac Transposon Vector for Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2021-150469 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 138 (Supplement 1) ◽

pp. 3831-3831

Author(s):

Nobuhiro Nishio ◽

Ryo Hanajiri ◽

Yuichi Ishikawa ◽

Makoto Murata ◽

Rieko Taniguchi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

T Cells ◽

Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽

T Cell ◽

Phase I ◽

Chimeric Antigen Receptor ◽

Lymphoblastic Leukemia ◽

Piggybac Transposon ◽

Car T Cells ◽

Car T ◽

Grade 3

Abstract Introduction: Chimeric antigen receptor-modified T cells targeting CD19 (CD19.CAR-T cells) have shown clinical success in patients with hematological malignancies. Despite the encouraging results obtained with this novel therapy, a major concern to its global spread, particularly in developing countries, is its high cost. We developed a method of non-viral gene transfer using piggyBac transposon to reduce the cost of CAR-T therapy. In preclinical study, the median number and transduction efficiency of CAR-T cells obtained from 2x10 7 PBMC in 9 donors were 1.0x10 8 (range, 0.58-1.8x10 8) and 51% (range, 29-73%), respectively. The major subset of CAR-T cells was phenotypically CD8+CD45RA+CCR7+, closely related T-memory stem cells. Ex vivo, CD19.CAR-T cells showed cytotoxic effect on CD19 positive tumor cell lines. In NSG mice model, CD19.CAR-T cells successfully inhibit tumor growth. CAR gene integration sites were determined by inverse polymerase chain reaction and subsequent next-generation sequencing using MiSeq and equally distributed throughout the genome without preference for specific sites. The pre-clinical testing in mouse demonstrated safe toxicity profile at the 50 times dose of CD19.CAR-T cells. We started a human clinical trial to define feasibility, toxicity, maximum tolerated dose and clinical response of CD19.CAR-T cells (jRCTa040190099). Methods: We report the results of cohort 1 of the study in which the safety and efficacy of autologous CD19.CAR-T in patients with relapsed or refractory B-precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia were evaluated. We engineered autologous T cells via the piggyBac transposon system with CD19.CAR-expression transposon vector and piggyBac transposase-expression vector to express CD19.CAR incorporating CD28 costimulatory domain. We designed this phase I trial using a modified 3 + 3 design to enroll 3-12 patients with relapsed or refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia in both children and adults. In this study, patients in cohorts 1 (16-60 years old) and 2 (1-15 years old) receive 1 × 10 5 CAR-transduced T cells per kg. Patients in cohorts 3 and 4 (both 1-60 years old) receive 3 × 10 5 and 1 × 10 6 CAR-transduced T cells per kg, respectively. All patients receive 25mg/m 2/d of fludarabine and 250mg/m 2/d of cyclophosphamide for 3 days followed by a single infusion of CAR-T cells. Results: Three patients were enrolled in cohort 1 and infused with 1 × 10 5 CAR-transduced T cells per kg. All patients had previously undergone allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. All patients had achieved a hematological complete response with salvage treatment before CAR-T therapy. None of the patients had dose-limiting toxicities (DLT) defined as nonhematological toxicities above grade 4 or cytokine release syndrome (CRS) above grade 4 or graft versus host disease (GVHD) above 4, or grade 3 nonhematological toxicities and GVHD not improved to grade 2 within 4 weeks after CAR-T infusion. There was no occurrence of non-hematological adverse events above grade 3. CRS was observed in one patient (grade 1) who also developed headache due to infiltration of CAR-T cells into the spinal fluid. In two patients, B cell aplasia lasted 2 and 9 months, respectively. Elevation of serum cytokine levels was observed in all patients and the peak time point was 7-21 days after CAR-T cell infusion. Conclusions: CD19.CAR-T cell infusion produced by the piggyBac transposon gene engineering system was safe in cohort 1 of our study. As no patients had DLT in cohort 1, we are enrolling the patients in further cohorts. Disclosures Murata: MSD: Honoraria; Kyowa Kirin: Honoraria; Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma: Honoraria; FUJIFILM: Honoraria; Toyama Chemical: Honoraria; Novartis: Honoraria; JCR Pharmaceutical: Honoraria; Astellas: Honoraria; Miyarisan Pharmaceutical: Honoraria; Asahi Kasei: Honoraria; GlaxoSmithKline: Honoraria; Celgene: Honoraria; Otsuka Pharmaceutical: Honoraria.

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