Chemotherapy and Unrelated Donor Stem Cell Transplantation for Patients With Cancers of the Blood and Immune System

Summary

Background: Major problems with stem cell transplantation (SCT) for cancer treatment are a lack of suitable donors for patients without a human leukocyte-antigen (HLA) tissue-matched sibling and graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), a serious side effects of immune-suppressing chemotherapy that is given to bring the cancer under control before SCT. In GVHD, the patients immune system attacks the transplanted donor cells. This study will try to improve the results of SCT from unrelated HLA-matched donors using targeted immune-depleting chemotherapy to bring the cancer under control before transplantation and to lower the chance of graft rejection, followed by reduced-intensity transplant chemotherapy to make the procedure less toxic. Objectives: To evaluate the safety and effectiveness of targeted immune-depleting chemotherapy followed by reduced-intensity transplant chemotherapy in patients with advanced cancers of the blood and immune system. To evaluate the safety and effectiveness of two different drug combinations to prevent GVHD. Both regimens have been successful in preventing GVHD, but they work by different mechanisms and affect the rebuilding of the immune system after the transplant. Eligibility: People 18 to 74 years of age with advanced or high-risk cancers of the blood and immune system who do not have a suitable HLA-matched sibling. Design: All patients receive chemotherapy before transplant to treat the cancer and suppress immune function. All patients receive a conditioning regimen of cyclophosphamide for 4 days and fludarabine for 4 days before SCT to prepare for the transplant. Patients are randomly assigned to one of two combination drug treatments to prevent GHVD as follows: * Group 1: Tacrolimus starting 3 days before SCT and continuing for 6 months, plus methotrexate on days 1, 3, 6, and 11 post-SCT, plus sirolimus starting 3 days before the SCT and continues for 6 months following SCT. * Group 2: Alemtuzumab for 4 days starting 8 days before SCT, plus cyclosporine starting 1 day before SCT and continuing for 6 months. Patients receive the donors stem cells and immune cells 2 days after completing the conditioning regimen. Patients are followed at the clinic regularly for the first 6 months after SCT, and then less often for at least 5 years. Some visits may include bone marrow aspirates and biopsies, blood draws, and other tests to monitor disease status. A skin biopsy, oral mucosa biopsy, and saliva collection are done to study chronic GVHD. ...

Timeline

Start

2007-10-30

Primary completion

2015-10-14

Completion

2018-12-31

Publications

• Background Pavletic SZ, Martin P, Lee SJ, Mitchell S, Jacobsohn D, Cowen EW, Turner ML, Akpek G, Gilman A, McDonald G, Schubert M, Berger A, Bross P, Chien JW, Couriel D, Dunn JP, Fall-Dickson J, Farrell A, Flowers ME, Greinix H, Hirschfeld S, Gerber L, Kim S, Knobler R, Lachenbruch PA, Miller FW, Mittleman B, Papadopoulos E, Parsons SK, Przepiorka D, Robinson M, Ward M, Reeve B, Rider LG, Shulman H, Schultz KR, Weisdorf D, Vogelsang GB; Response Criteria Working Group. Measuring therapeutic response in chronic graft-versus-host disease: National Institutes of Health Consensus Development Project on Criteria for Clinical Trials in Chronic Graft-versus-Host Disease: IV. Response Criteria Working Group report. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant. 2006 Mar;12(3):252-66. doi: 10.1016/j.bbmt.2006.01.008.
• Background Shaffer BC, Modric M, Stetler-Stevenson M, Arthur DC, Steinberg SM, Liewehr DJ, Fowler DH, Gale RP, Bishop MR, Pavletic SZ. Rapid complete donor lymphoid chimerism and graft-versus-leukemia effect are important in early control of chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Exp Hematol. 2013 Sep;41(9):772-8. doi: 10.1016/j.exphem.2013.04.015. Epub 2013 May 18.
• Background Pavletic SZ, Lee SJ, Socie G, Vogelsang G. Chronic graft-versus-host disease: implications of the National Institutes of Health consensus development project on criteria for clinical trials. Bone Marrow Transplant. 2006 Nov;38(10):645-51. doi: 10.1038/sj.bmt.1705490. Epub 2006 Sep 18.
• Background Hardy NM, Fellowes V, Rose JJ, Odom J, Pittaluga S, Steinberg SM, Blacklock-Schuver B, Avila DN, Memon S, Kurlander RJ, Khuu HM, Stetler-Stevenson M, Mena E, Dwyer AJ, Levine BL, June CH, Reshef R, Vonderheide RH, Gress RE, Fowler DH, Hakim FT, Bishop MR. Costimulated tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes are a feasible and safe alternative donor cell therapy for relapse after allogeneic stem cell transplantation. Blood. 2012 Mar 22;119(12):2956-9. doi: 10.1182/blood-2011-09-378398. Epub 2012 Jan 30.
• Holtzman NG, Curtis LM, Salit RB, Shaffer BC, Pirsl F, Ostojic A, Steinberg SM, Schulz E, Wilder JS, Hughes TE, Rose J, Memon S, Korngold R, Gea-Banacloche JC, Fowler DH, Hakim FT, Gress RE, Bishop MR, Pavletic SZ. High-dose alemtuzumab and cyclosporine vs tacrolimus, methotrexate, and sirolimus for chronic graft-versus-host disease prevention. Blood Adv. 2024 Aug 27;8(16):4294-4310. doi: 10.1182/bloodadvances.2023010973.
• Assmann JC, Farthing DE, Saito K, Maglakelidze N, Oliver B, Warrick KA, Sourbier C, Ricketts CJ, Meyer TJ, Pavletic SZ, Linehan WM, Krishna MC, Gress RE, Buxbaum NP. Glycolytic metabolism of pathogenic T cells enables early detection of GVHD by 13C-MRI. Blood. 2021 Jan 7;137(1):126-137. doi: 10.1182/blood.2020005770.

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