This phase 1b, open-label, dose-escalation study assessed the safety, efficacy, and pharmacokinetics of anti-CD38 monoclonal antibody isatuximab given in 2 schedules (3, 5, or 10 mg/kg every other ...week Q2W or 10 or 20 mg/kg weekly QW for 4 weeks and then Q2W thereafter QW/Q2W), in combination with lenalidomide 25 mg (days 1-21) and dexamethasone 40 mg (QW), in patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM). Patients received 28-day treatment cycles; the primary objective was to determine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) of isatuximab with lenalidomide and dexamethasone. Fifty-seven patients (median 5 range 1-12 prior regimens; 83% refractory to previous lenalidomide therapy) were treated. Median duration of dosing was 36.4 weeks; 15 patients remained on treatment at data cutoff. Isatuximab-lenalidomide-dexamethasone was generally well tolerated with only 1 dose-limiting toxicity reported (grade 3 pneumonia at 20 mg/kg QW/Q2W); the MTD was not reached. The most common isatuximab-related adverse events were infusion-associated reactions (IARs) (56%), which were grade 1/2 in 84% of patients who had an IAR and predominantly occurred during the first infusion. In the efficacy-evaluable population, the overall response rate (ORR) was 56% (29/52) and was similar between the 10 mg/kg Q2W and 10 and 20 mg/kg QW/Q2W cohorts. The ORR was 52% in 42 evaluable lenalidomide-refractory patients. Overall median progression-free survival was 8.5 months. Isatuximab exposure increased in a greater than dose-proportional manner; isatuximab and lenalidomide pharmacokinetic parameters appeared independent. These data suggest that isatuximab combined with lenalidomide and dexamethasone is active and tolerated in heavily pretreated patients with RRMM. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT01749969.
•Isatuximab (anti-CD38 monoclonal antibody) given with lenalidomide/ dexamethasone is active in heavily pretreated relapsed/refractory myeloma•Overall, the safety profile of this combination is similar to the characteristic safety profiles of the individual agents.
Nivolumab plus ipilimumab in advanced melanoma Wolchok, Jedd D; Kluger, Harriet; Callahan, Margaret K ...
New England journal of medicine/The New England journal of medicine,
07/2013, Volume:
369, Issue:
2
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
In patients with melanoma, ipilimumab (an antibody against cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 CTLA-4) prolongs overall survival, and nivolumab (an antibody against the programmed death 1 ...PD-1 receptor) produced durable tumor regression in a phase 1 trial. On the basis of their distinct immunologic mechanisms of action and supportive preclinical data, we conducted a phase 1 trial of nivolumab combined with ipilimumab in patients with advanced melanoma.
We administered intravenous doses of nivolumab and ipilimumab in patients every 3 weeks for 4 doses, followed by nivolumab alone every 3 weeks for 4 doses (concurrent regimen). The combined treatment was subsequently administered every 12 weeks for up to 8 doses. In a sequenced regimen, patients previously treated with ipilimumab received nivolumab every 2 weeks for up to 48 doses.
A total of 53 patients received concurrent therapy with nivolumab and ipilimumab, and 33 received sequenced treatment. The objective-response rate (according to modified World Health Organization criteria) for all patients in the concurrent-regimen group was 40%. Evidence of clinical activity (conventional, unconfirmed, or immune-related response or stable disease for ≥24 weeks) was observed in 65% of patients. At the maximum doses that were associated with an acceptable level of adverse events (nivolumab at a dose of 1 mg per kilogram of body weight and ipilimumab at a dose of 3 mg per kilogram), 53% of patients had an objective response, all with tumor reduction of 80% or more. Grade 3 or 4 adverse events related to therapy occurred in 53% of patients in the concurrent-regimen group but were qualitatively similar to previous experience with monotherapy and were generally reversible. Among patients in the sequenced-regimen group, 18% had grade 3 or 4 adverse events related to therapy and the objective-response rate was 20%.
Concurrent therapy with nivolumab and ipilimumab had a manageable safety profile and provided clinical activity that appears to be distinct from that in published data on monotherapy, with rapid and deep tumor regression in a substantial proportion of patients. (Funded by Bristol-Myers Squibb and Ono Pharmaceutical; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01024231.).
Purpose Pneumonitis is an uncommon but potentially fatal toxicity of anti-programmed death-1 (PD-1)/programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). Clinical, radiologic, and ...pathologic features are poorly described. Methods Patients who received anti-PD-1/PD-L1 monotherapy or in combination with anti-cytotoxic T-cell lymphocyte-4 mAb were identified at two institutions (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center: advanced solid cancers, 2009 to 2014, and Melanoma Institute of Australia: melanomas only, 2013 to 2015). Pneumonitis was diagnosed by the treating investigator; cases with confirmed malignant lung infiltration or infection were excluded. Clinical, radiologic, and pathologic features of pneumonitis were collected. Associations among pneumonitis incidence, therapy received, and underlying malignancy were examined with Fisher's exact test as were associations between pneumonitis features and outcomes. Results Of 915 patients who received anti-PD-1/PD-L1 mAbs, pneumonitis developed in 43 (5%; 95% CI, 3% to 6%; Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, 27 of 578 5%; Melanoma Institute of Australia, 16 of 337 5%). Time to onset of pneumonitis ranged from 9 days to 19.2 months. The incidence of pneumonitis was higher with combination immunotherapy versus monotherapy (19 of 199 10% v 24 of 716 3%; P < .01). Incidence was similar in patients with melanoma and non-small-cell lung cancer (overall, 26 of 532 5% v nine of 209 4%; monotherapy, 15 of 417 v five of 152 P = 1.0; combination, 11 of 115 v four of 57 P = .78). Seventy-two percent (31 of 43) of cases were grade 1 to 2, and 86% (37 of 43) improved/resolved with drug holding/immunosuppression. Five patients worsened clinically and died during the course of pneumonitis treatment; proximal cause of death was pneumonitis (n = 1), infection related to immunosuppression (n = 3), or progressive cancer (n = 1). Radiologic and pathologic features of pneumonitis were diverse. Conclusion Pneumonitis associated with anti-PD-1/PD-L1 mAbs is a toxicity of variable onset and clinical, radiologic, and pathologic appearances. It is more common when anti-PD-1/PD-L1 mAbs are combined with anti-cytotoxic T-cell lymphocyte-4 mAb. Most events are low grade and improve/resolve with drug holding/immunosuppression. Rarely, pneumonitis worsens despite immunosuppression, and may result in infection and/or death.
The recent development of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) has revolutionized the treatment armamentarium for multiple myeloma. The success of daratumumab and elotuzumab in relapsed/refractory patients, ...has generated tremendous enthusiasm for mAbs in this disease. Combination treatment with other anti-myeloma treatment modalities and clinical evaluation in newly diagnosed patients are expected to fundamentally change the natural history of the disease. Advances in biopharmaceutical engineering together with a robust interest in novel mAb-derivatives, including antibody drug conjugates and poly-specific antibodies are the next rapidly approaching treatment frontier in multiple myeloma. In this review, we comprehensively outline the currently available evidence and the future landscape of mAbs and mAb-derivative therapies in multiple myeloma.
Cancer cells can exploit the programmed death-1 (PD-1) immune checkpoint pathway to avoid immune surveillance by modulating T-lymphocyte activity. In part, this may occur through overexpression of ...PD-1 and PD-1 pathway ligands (PD-L1 and PD-L2) in the tumor microenvironment. PD-1 blockade has produced significant antitumor activity in solid tumors, and similar evidence has emerged in hematologic malignancies.
In this phase I, open-label, dose-escalation, cohort-expansion study, patients with relapsed or refractory B-cell lymphoma, T-cell lymphoma, and multiple myeloma received the anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody nivolumab at doses of 1 or 3 mg/kg every 2 weeks. This study aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of nivolumab and to assess PD-L1/PD-L2 locus integrity and protein expression.
Eighty-one patients were treated (follicular lymphoma, n = 10; diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, n = 11; other B-cell lymphomas, n = 10; mycosis fungoides, n = 13; peripheral T-cell lymphoma, n = 5; other T-cell lymphomas, n = 5; multiple myeloma, n = 27). Patients had received a median of three (range, one to 12) prior systemic treatments. Drug-related adverse events occurred in 51 (63%) patients, and most were grade 1 or 2. Objective response rates were 40%, 36%, 15%, and 40% among patients with follicular lymphoma, diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, mycosis fungoides, and peripheral T-cell lymphoma, respectively. Median time of follow-up observation was 66.6 weeks (range, 1.6 to 132.0+ weeks). Durations of response in individual patients ranged from 6.0 to 81.6+ weeks.
Nivolumab was well tolerated and exhibited antitumor activity in extensively pretreated patients with relapsed or refractory B- and T-cell lymphomas. Additional studies of nivolumab in these diseases are ongoing.
Preclinical studies suggest that Reed-Sternberg cells exploit the programmed death 1 (PD-1) pathway to evade immune detection. In classic Hodgkin's lymphoma, alterations in chromosome 9p24.1 increase ...the abundance of the PD-1 ligands, PD-L1 and PD-L2, and promote their induction through Janus kinase (JAK)-signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) signaling. We hypothesized that nivolumab, a PD-1-blocking antibody, could inhibit tumor immune evasion in patients with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin's lymphoma.
In this ongoing study, 23 patients with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin's lymphoma that had already been heavily treated received nivolumab (at a dose of 3 mg per kilogram of body weight) every 2 weeks until they had a complete response, tumor progression, or excessive toxic effects. Study objectives were measurement of safety and efficacy and assessment of the PDL1 and PDL2 (also called CD274 and PDCD1LG2, respectively) loci and PD-L1 and PD-L2 protein expression.
Of the 23 study patients, 78% were enrolled in the study after a relapse following autologous stem-cell transplantation and 78% after a relapse following the receipt of brentuximab vedotin. Drug-related adverse events of any grade and of grade 3 occurred in 78% and 22% of patients, respectively. An objective response was reported in 20 patients (87%), including 17% with a complete response and 70% with a partial response; the remaining 3 patients (13%) had stable disease. The rate of progression-free survival at 24 weeks was 86%; 11 patients were continuing to participate in the study. Reasons for discontinuation included stem-cell transplantation (in 6 patients), disease progression (in 4 patients), and drug toxicity (in 2 patients). Analyses of pretreatment tumor specimens from 10 patients revealed copy-number gains in PDL1 and PDL2 and increased expression of these ligands. Reed-Sternberg cells showed nuclear positivity of phosphorylated STAT3, indicative of active JAK-STAT signaling.
Nivolumab had substantial therapeutic activity and an acceptable safety profile in patients with previously heavily treated relapsed or refractory Hodgkin's lymphoma. (Funded by Bristol-Myers Squibb and others; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01592370.).
Immune checkpoint blockade has driven a revolution in modern oncology, and robust drug development of immune checkpoint inhibitors is underway in both solid tumors and hematologic malignancies. High ...response rates to programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) blockade using nivolumab or pembrolizumab in classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) and several variants of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) revealed an intrinsic biological sensitivity to this approach, and work is ongoing exploring combinations with immune checkpoint inhibitors in both cHL and NHL. There are also preliminary data suggesting antitumor efficacy of PD-1 inhibitors used in combination with immunomodulatory drugs in multiple myeloma, and effects of novel monoclonal antibody therapies on the tumor microenvironment may lead to synergy with checkpoint blockade. Although immune checkpoint inhibitors are generally well tolerated, clinicians must use caution and remain vigilant when treating patients with these agents in order to identify immune-related toxicities and prevent treatment-related morbidity and mortality. Autologous stem cell transplant is a useful tool for treatment of hematologic malignancies and has potential as a platform for use of immune checkpoint inhibitors. An important safety signal has emerged surrounding the risk of graft-versus-host disease associated with use of PD-1 inhibitors before and after allogeneic stem cell transplant. We aim to discuss the facts known to date in the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors for patients with lymphoid malignancies and our hopes for expanding the benefits of immunotherapy to patients in the future.
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Sklavenitis-Pistofidis et al. report clinical and correlative results of a single-arm phase II trial of elotuzumab, lenalidomide, and dexamethasone in patients with high-risk smoldering myeloma. The ...authors explore the interactions between the genetics of the plasma cell clone and the immune microenvironment as potential biomarkers of treatment susceptibility and efficacy.
Sklavenitis-Pistofidis et al. report clinical and correlative results of a single-arm phase II trial of elotuzumab, lenalidomide, and dexamethasone in patients with high-risk smoldering myeloma. The authors explore the interactions between the genetics of the plasma cell clone and the immune microenvironment as potential biomarkers of treatment susceptibility and efficacy.
Bispecific antibodies (BsAbs) are emerging as an important novel class of immunotherapeutic agents for the treatment of multiple myeloma (MM), and are set to be more widely used in clinical practice. ...However, this new class of therapies is associated with a distinct adverse event (AE) profile that includes cytokine release syndrome and immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome, as well as AEs leading to increased infection risk such as cytopenias and hypogammaglobulinemia, and infections themselves. As preliminary data with this class of agents shows an increased risk of infections as compared with conventional MM treatment regimens, such as immunomodulatory drugs, proteasome inhibitors, and anti-CD38 monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), guidance on infection monitoring, prophylaxis and treatment is required. This review provides consensus recommendations from a panel of 13 global experts, following a meeting in August 2022. The meeting objective was to review existing literature and identify relevant information on infections with all BsAbs in patients with MM, as well as to discuss clinical experience of experts in managing these infections. The recommendations outlined here can be used to guide management of infection risk factors, such as hypogammaglobulinemia and neutropenia. In addition, they can be used to guide the monitoring, prophylaxis, and treatment of bacterial, viral and fungal infections, including emerging infections of interest, such as coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19), and the use of vaccinations prior to and during BsAb treatment. The recommendations have been graded by the panel based on level of data available. Key recommendations include universal herpes simplex and varicella zoster virus prophylaxis, screening for hepatitis B virus reactivation risk in all patients, monthly intravenous immunoglobulin treatment for immunoparesis and in the absence of life-threatening infectious manifestations, use of colony-stimulating factors in patients with Grade 3 neutropenia, universal pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia prophylaxis and no routine anti-fungal prophylaxis.