scholarly journals A Phase 1 Single Dose Escalation Study of Palifermin Administered Pre-Transplant Conditioning in Subjects Undergoing Matched Unrelated Donor Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

Blood ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 136 (Supplement 1) ◽  
pp. 21-21
Author(s):  
Alen Ostojic ◽  
Noa G. Holtzman ◽  
Lauren M. Curtis ◽  
Brian C. Shaffer ◽  
Jeffrey S Rubin ◽  
...  

Background: Early initiation of graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) is driven by donor alloreactive T-lymphocytes directed against recipient's histocompatibility antigens often overexposed during damage to tissues during the conditioning chemotherapy. Palifermin is a truncated form of human recombinant keratinocyte growth factor (KGF, also known as FGF7) that binds to FGF receptor 2b expressed in many epithelia including the epithelium of the epidermis, oral and GI mucosa, urothelium, and thymus, in which it exerts cytoprotective and regenerative effects. Palifermin also has immunomodulatory effects manifested as improvements in thymic function and downregulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Palifermin was FDA approved in 2004 at a dose of 60 mcg/kg/day (x3 consecutive days) for prevention of severe oral mucositis in hematologic malignancy patients receiving autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). A single dose of 180 mcg/kg/day appears to have similar effects. In animal models, palifermin showed efficacy in controlling acute and chronic GvHD. However, subsequent clinical studies did not confirm efficacy for prevention of GvHD or for stimulation of functional thymus recovery using a dose/schedule based on the one that had been approved for autologous HSCT. We conducted a phase 1 study (NCT02356159) to determine the maximal safe single dose level of palifermin administered prior to starting transplant conditioning. Methods: This was an open-label, dose escalation study with standard 3+3 design. Four different dose levels of palifermin (180, 360, 540 and 720 µg/kg) were administered as a single dose on day -7 pretransplant. The reduced-intensity conditioning regimen (cyclophosphamide 1200 mg/m2/day IV and fludarabine 30 mg/m2/day IV), was given on days -6 to -3. Sirolimus, tacrolimus and low-dose post-HSCT methotrexate were used for GvHD prophylaxis. On day 0 all subjects received a peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) graft from an unrelated donor (MUD) matched at least at HLA-A, -B, -C, -DRB1. Prior to transplant, subjects received one or two cycles of disease-specific lymphodepleting induction chemotherapy (EPOCH-F/R or FLAG). Subjects must have been ≥18 years old with a high-risk hematologic malignancy, Karnofsky performance status ≥60%, and acceptable organ function. The primary objective was to assess safety of palifermin and to recommend the phase 2 study dose. DLT was defined as non-relapse mortality before day 30 post-HSCT regardless of attribution to palifermin and non-hematologic grade ≥4 adverse events (AEs) occurring within 14 days after administration. AEs were recorded according to CTCAEv4. Results: From Oct 2015 to Mar 2019, 18 subjects were enrolled (NHL=7, AML/MDS=5, ALL/LBL=2, CML=2, MPN=1 and MM=1). Kahl's relapse risk was high, standard, and low in 15, 2, and 1 subject, respectively. Median HCT-CI score was 1 (0-4) with median age 47 years (21-66); 14 (78%) were males. Six subjects received dose level 1 (subject #3 was diagnosed with achalasia and grade 4 elevated lipase without radiological signs of pancreatitis, still attributed as DLT possibly related to palifermin). No DLTs occurred afterwards. Three subjects were enrolled onto each of dose levels 2, 3 and 4, with expansion of dose level 4 to 3 more subjects for additional safety exploration. Skin rash and Increased serum amylase or lipase were the most frequent AEs (Table 1A). Grade 3 increased serum amylase and grade 3 possible pancreatitis in subject #3 were the only SAEs attributed to study drug. All subjects engrafted successfully. Day 14 median CD3 and myeloid chimerism was 97% (36-100) and 99% (82-100), respectively, with the median time to 100% CD3 chimerism of 44 days (14-181). Table 1B lists occurrence of GvHD prior to any malignancy relapse. Four subjects had relapsed malignancy, for which 3 received DLI. After a median follow up of 28 months (2-55), 5 subjects have died, 2 malignancy relapses and 3 non-relapse related causes. Conclusion: Palifermin administered at dose four-times higher than previously given in humans is safe to use in patients undergoing MUD peripheral blood HSCT. MTD was not reached. Recommended phase 2 dose for examining efficacy in prevention of GvHD is 720 µg/kg. Disclosures Rubin: NIH/NCI: Ended employment in the past 24 months, Patents & Royalties; KGF/palifermin: Patents & Royalties; Paradigm Shift Therapeutics: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. OffLabel Disclosure: Palifermin was FDA approved at a dose of 60 mcg/kg/day (x3 consecutive days) for prevention of severe oral mucositis in hematologic malignancy patients receiving autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT).

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dânia Sofia Marques ◽  
Carlos Pinho Vaz ◽  
Rosa Branca ◽  
Fernando Campilho ◽  
Catarina Lamelas ◽  
...  

Hematopoietic stem-cell transplant recipients are at increased risk of developing invasive fungal infections. This is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. We report a case of a 17-year-old male patient diagnosed with severe idiopathic acquired aplastic anemia who developed fungal pneumonitis due toRhizomucor sp.and rhinoencephalitis due toScedosporium apiospermum6 and 8 months after undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem-cell transplant from an HLA-matched unrelated donor. Discussion highlights risk factors for invasive fungal infections (i.e., mucormycosis and scedosporiosis), its clinical features, and the factors that must be taken into account to successfully treat them (early diagnosis, correction of predisposing factors, aggressive surgical debridement, and antifungal and adjunctive therapies).


Blood ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 116 (21) ◽  
pp. 1329-1329 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Dayand Borge ◽  
Narda Theobald ◽  
Rosamma DeCastro ◽  
Harry L. Malech ◽  
Susan Leitman ◽  
...  

Abstract Abstract 1329 Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is a congenital disorder resulting from decreased or absent oxidase production by neutrophils. As a result, patients with CGD are prone to bacterial and fungal infections and have a shortened life expectancy. Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) can be curative, and patients are increasingly referred for transplant due to an ongoing infection not amenable to cure using standard treatments. The use of granulocyte transfusions has been described in patients undergoing transplant with an underlying infection at the time of conditioning, but reports are limited to single cases. We describe here the effects of granulocyte transfusions in four patients undergoing either an HLA matched sibling or unrelated donor HSCT, using an alemtuzumab containing regimen and sirolimus as GVHD prophylaxis. Age of the patients was 6 to 25 (mean 11.5) yrs, and weight was 15.3 to 54 (mean 27.5) kg. Three of the patients had persistent Aspergillus infection involving the spine, lung, and/or brain despite long term combination antifungal therapy including a triazole, echinocandin and/or amphotericin. The fourth patient had an Actinomyces pneumonia progressive on combination antibacterial treatment. None of the patients had detectable HLA antibodies prior to the transfusions, and none received G-CSF post-transplant. The granulocytes were started on the anticipated day of neutropenia after conditioning and graft infusion and continued until evidence of graft recovery. Volunteer community donors underwent mobilization with dexamethasone 8 mg PO plus G-CSF 480 mcg SC, followed the next day by a 7-liter leukapheresis procedure (Spectra) using Tricitrasol/Hetastarch (Hespan) as the anticoagulant/sedimenting solution. Patients received a mean of 4.5 transfusions each, with three patients receiving biweekly transfusions and one receiving transfusions three times a week. The mean number of granulocytes per component transfused was 6.17 × 10e10 (range 4.0–9.12). This resulted in a mean of 2.78 × 10e9 granulocytes transfused per kg recipient weight (range 0.76–4.48). All patients tolerated the infusions well, without respiratory symptoms. The mean increase in absolute neutrophil count posttransfusion was 1.95 × 10e3/uL (range 0.5–4.61), although the timing of collection of the blood count samples was variable for each transfusion. Using a dihydrorhodamine (DHR) fluorescence based assay we were able to track the presence of oxidase positive cells to help differentiate transfused donor from residual host cells. DHR assays were performed before and after every transfusion in one patient. The number of DHR positive cells prior to infusion was 0–1.4% with a rise to 68.2% 24 hours after transfusion. 24.5% oxidase positive cells were still detectable almost 72 hours after transfusion, just prior to the next transfusion. One product required sedimentation for ABO incompatibility. The mean time to engraftment was 22 days and did not differ in patients with CGD receiving the same transplant regimen with (n=4) or without (n=6) peri-transplant granulocyte transfusions (30 days). Although all four patients had infectious processes not responding to standard antimicrobial therapy prior to transplant, there was no evidence of progressive infection during the period of neutropenia. Imaging studies of the brain, lung and/or spine suggested improvement in the infectious process in all four patients, although the timing of the scans made assessments inconclusive. Our prior experience with granulocyte transfusions in patients with CGD not undergoing transplant is that the cells do not persist in the circulation longer than 24 hours. Higher cell doses per kg in our four patients may have contributed to the sustained detection of transfused circulating cells, particularly as three of the patients weighed less than 21 kg. Peri-transplant immune suppression may also have facilitated the longer circulation time of the cells. We conclude that community-donor granulocyte transfusions are well tolerated in non-alloimmunized CGD patients undergoing HSCT, do not impact engraftment, are logistically feasible, and may provide a therapeutic bridge for patients with an underlying infection during a prescribed period of neutropenia, thus decreasing transplantation risk for such patients. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


Blood ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 118 (21) ◽  
pp. 4126-4126
Author(s):  
Ellen C Christianson ◽  
Barb Trotz ◽  
Qing Cao ◽  
Emily Lipsitz ◽  
Brenda Weigel ◽  
...  

Abstract Abstract 4126 Background: Childhood myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) is a rare, heterogeneous disorder that is clinically distinct from adult MDS. Hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) is the treatment of choice, but there is no consensus regarding patient, disease, or treatment-related factors that predict outcomes after HSCT. Materials and Methods: We performed a retrospective review of 37 consecutive pediatric patients who received allogeneic HSCT for MDS at the University of Minnesota Amplatz Children's Hospital between 1990 and 2010. The median age at transplant was 11 years (range 1–21 years). Twenty patients had primary (de novo) MDS and 17 had secondary MDS (4 treatment-related, 8 with preceeding idiopathic aplastic anemia, 3 with Schwachman Diamond syndrome, and 2 familial). Those with Fanconi Anemia were excluded. Cytogenetics at diagnosis included monosomy 7 (n=21), trisomy 8 (n=7), normal/other (n=8). Thirty-one had refractory cytopenia (RC) and 6 had refractory anemia with excess blasts (RAEB) according to the modified WHO MDS classification. Patients were scored according to the International Prognostic Scoring System as low risk (n=1), intermediate-1 (Int-1; n=15), intermediate-2 (Int-2; n=21), or high risk MDS (n=0). Six patients received pre HSCT chemotherapy. Immediately prior to transplant, 27 had <5% bone marrow (BM) blasts and 10 had ≥ 5% blasts. Time from diagnosis to transplant was <140 days in 18 patients and ≥140 days in 19. Donor sources included umbilical cord blood (UCB; n=9), HLA-matched related donor (MRD; n=15), HLA-matched unrelated donor (MURD; n=7), and HLA-mismatched unrelated donor (MMURD; n=6). All patients received myeloablative conditioning prior to transplant (Cy/TBI n=35, Bu based n=2). The majority (70%) received cyclosporin based GVHD prophylaxis. Results: Neutrophil engraftment occurred in 89% (95%CI 77–97%) of patients at a median of 23 days (range 12–40). Patients transplanted after year 1999 were more likely to engraft (RR 2.27; 95% CI 1.06–4.88, p=.04). Overall survival (OS) was 70% (95%CI 53–82%) and 53% (95% CI 36–68%) at 1 and 3 years. In multivariate analysis (MVA), OS at 1 year was increased in patients who did not receive pre HSCT chemotherapy (RR of death 0.04; 95% CI 0–0.50, p=.01) and decreased in those with an IPSS score of Int-2 (RR of death 11.96; 95%CI 1.29–110.74, p=.03). Disease free survival (DFS) was 62% (95%CI 44–75%) and 48% (95% CI 31–63%) at 1 and 3 years. In MVA, factors associated with improved DFS at 3 years include having secondary MDS (RR of death or relapse 0.13; 95% CI 0.02–0.69 p=.02), undergoing HSCT after 1999 (RR 0.06; 95% CI 0.01–0.70, p=.02), not receiving pre HSCT chemotherapy (RR 0.06, 95% CI 0.01–0.36, p<.01), and a short interval (<140 days) from diagnosis to transplant (RR 0.21; 95% CI 0.05–0.85, p=.03). Those with an IPSS score of Int-2 had a significantly lower DFS (RR 3.96; 95% CI 1.12–14.00, p=.03). WHO classification, cytogenetics and pre HSCT blast percentage had no significant impact on either OS or DFS. The relapse rate at 2 years was 20% (95% CI 733%). Factors associated with decreased relapse include having secondary MDS (RR 0.04; 95% CI 0.01–0.21, p<.01) and not receiving pre HSCT chemotherapy (RR 0.21; 95% CI 0.05–0.85, p=0.03). Treatment-related mortality (TRM) was 25% (95%CI 11–39%) at 1 year. The risk of TRM was increased in patients with a pre HSCT blast count ≥ 5% (RR 6.65; 95% CI 1.60–27.67, p= 0.01) and was decreased in patients who did not receive pre HSCT chemotherapy (RR 0.07; 95% CI 0.01–0.69, P=.02). At 100 days the cumulative incidence of grades II-IV and III-IV acute graft versus host disease (GVHD) was 41% (95% CI 24–57%) and 16% (95% CI 5–28%), respectively. The incidence of chronic GVHD at one year was 19% (95% CI 6–32%). Conclusions: Our results suggest that in order to achieve optimal outcomes, children with MDS should be referred for allogeneic HSCT soon after diagnosis and that unlike in adult MDS, pre HSCT chemotherapy does not appear to improve outcomes. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


Blood ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 122 (21) ◽  
pp. 2114-2114
Author(s):  
Jennifer Cuellar-Rodriguez ◽  
Alexandra F Freeman ◽  
Juan Gea-Banacloche ◽  
Helen Su ◽  
Jennifer K. Grossman ◽  
...  

Abstract Background DOCK8 deficiency— a combined immunodeficiency characterized by recurrent sinopulmonary infections and severe cutaneous DNA viral infections, eczema, food and drug allergies, and increased risk of viral driven malignancies— results from homozygous or compound heterozygous mutations in the dedicator of cytokinesis 8 protein. Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) represents a potential curative therapy for DOCK8 deficiency. Methods We treated 4 patients with DOCK8 deficiency with allogeneic HSCT using a reduced toxicity, myeloablative-conditioning regimen consisting of busulfan 3.2 mg/kg/day IV for 4 days and fludarabine 40 mg/m2/day for 4 days. Two patients received matched related donor allogeneic HSCT, and 2 received 10/10 HLA matched unrelated donor allogeneic HSCT. All patients received tacrolimus, and short methotrexate on days 1,3, 6, and 11, for graft-versus-host-disease (GVHD) prophylaxis. Indication for transplant was severe recurrent infections with end organ damage in three patients, and a refractory EBV-virus driven lymphoma at the time of unrelated donor PBSC transplant in the fourth patient. Results The ages of the patients at the time of transplant were 27, 25, 18, and 16. The median follow-up for patients was 7 months (range 5-18 months). All 4 patients engrafted at a median of 12 days, and all 4 had complete reconstitution of the CD3/CD4 and CD3/CD8 compartments with donor cells. Clinical correction of the DOCK8 clinical phenotype occurred within 3-6 months of engraftment and correlated with lymphocyte reconstitution. Mucositis was the major side effect of the transplant-conditioning regimen. All had transient worsening of their pre-transplant infections 1-3 months post-transplant. In the patient with an EBV-virus driven lymphoma that had been refractory to chemotherapy, there was complete resolution of the disease on PET scanning at 100 days post-transplant. One patient, who received unrelated donor bone marrow cells, had skin GVHD that responded to a short course of steroids. There was no chronic GVHD. Conclusions Allogeneic HSCT in DOCK8 deficiency results in reconstitution of the deficient lymphocyte compartments that are present pre-transplant and complete reversal of the infection susceptibility phenotype. There was minimal regimen-related toxicity, and the incidence of GVHD was low despite complete donor chimerism. With genetic testing for DOCK8 deficiency now more widely available, we anticipate that earlier diagnosis will enable patients to be transplanted earlier in their clinical course, before significant organ damage or the development of viral-driven malignancies Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


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