A Phase I Trial of T Cells Expressing an Anti-GD2 Chimeric Antigen Receptor in Children and Young Adults With GD2+ Solid Tumors

Summary

Background GD2 is a well-characterized tumor antigen in neuroblastoma, which is also expressed on osteosarcomas and some other sarcomas. T cells expressing 1st generation anti-GD2 chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) were safe and mediated modest antitumor activity in some patients with refractory neuroblastoma. A 3rd generation anti-GD2-CAR (GD2-CAR.OX40.28.z.ICD9) has been produced and holds promise for increased activity compared to the 1st generation GD2-CAR already studied in clinical trials. As an added safety measure, the vector includes a suicide switch comprising a caspase dimerization domain (ICD9) that can be activated by a small molecule to induce death of the genetically engineered cells if they were induce untoward toxicity. Objectives Primary:Determine the feasibility of producing anti GD2-CAR cells meeting the established release criteria and to assess the safety of administering escalating doses of anti-GD2-CAR engineered T cells in children and young adults with GD2+ solid tumors, including neuroblastoma, following cyclophosphamide-based lymphodepletion. Secondary: 1. Determine if administration anti-GD2-CAR engineered T cells mediate antitumor effects in children and young adults with GD2+ solid tumors; 2. Measure persistence of adoptively transferred anti-GD2-CAR T cells and correlate this with antitumor effects; 3. Extend information regarding the prevalence and intensity of GD2 expression in non-neuroblastoma, non-osteosarcoma solid tumors in children and young adults; 4. If unacceptable toxicity occurs that is possibly, probably or likely related to anti-GD2-CAR T cells, assess the capacity for AP1903, a dimerizing agent, to mediate clearance of the genetically engineered cells and resolve toxicity; and 5. Assess toxicity of AP1903 if administered to mediate clearance of anti-GD2-CAR T cells. Eligibility Patients 1-35 years of age, at least 15 kg, with osteosarcoma or a GD2+ solid tumor (including neuroblastoma) that has recurred after or not responded to standard therapy and is deemed incurable by standard therapy. Design After apheresis to collect T cells for transduction, patients receive cyclophosphamide 1800mg/m(2)/d as a lymphodepleting regimen. A phase I cell dose escalation scheme will used at 4 dose levels (1 x 10(5) transduced T cells/kg; 1 x 10(6) transduced T cells/kg; 3 x 10(6) transduced T cells/kg; and 1 x 10(7) transduced T cells/kg), using a standard 3 plus 3 dose escalation design. An expanded group of a total of 12 patients will be treated at the highest dose, comprising at least 6 osteosarcoma patients. Patients will be monitored for toxicity, antitumor effects and persistence of anti-GD2-CAR T cells. Patients with a PR, SD may receive a 2nd cycle at the next higher dose level a minimum of 60 days following completion of the first cycle if eligibility criteria are met. A maximum of 36 patients may be treated on this study. Given that there is likelihood that some patients with non-osteosarcoma will not meet the criteria for GD2 expression to be eligible for enrollment, up to 72 subjects will be screened to enroll a maximum of 36 patients for treatment. Up to 2-3 patients will be accrued per month, and therefore this study may require up to 2-3 years to complete enrollment and treatment.

Timeline

Start

2014-02-28

Primary completion

2016-08-15

Completion

2017-01-31

Publications

• Background Yu AL, Gilman AL, Ozkaynak MF, London WB, Kreissman SG, Chen HX, Smith M, Anderson B, Villablanca JG, Matthay KK, Shimada H, Grupp SA, Seeger R, Reynolds CP, Buxton A, Reisfeld RA, Gillies SD, Cohn SL, Maris JM, Sondel PM; Children's Oncology Group. Anti-GD2 antibody with GM-CSF, interleukin-2, and isotretinoin for neuroblastoma. N Engl J Med. 2010 Sep 30;363(14):1324-34. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa0911123.
• Background Lee DW, Barrett DM, Mackall C, Orentas R, Grupp SA. The future is now: chimeric antigen receptors as new targeted therapies for childhood cancer. Clin Cancer Res. 2012 May 15;18(10):2780-90. doi: 10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-11-1920.
• Background Di Stasi A, Tey SK, Dotti G, Fujita Y, Kennedy-Nasser A, Martinez C, Straathof K, Liu E, Durett AG, Grilley B, Liu H, Cruz CR, Savoldo B, Gee AP, Schindler J, Krance RA, Heslop HE, Spencer DM, Rooney CM, Brenner MK. Inducible apoptosis as a safety switch for adoptive cell therapy. N Engl J Med. 2011 Nov 3;365(18):1673-83. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1106152.
• Kaczanowska S, Murty T, Alimadadi A, Contreras CF, Duault C, Subrahmanyam PB, Reynolds W, Gutierrez NA, Baskar R, Wu CJ, Michor F, Altreuter J, Liu Y, Jhaveri A, Duong V, Anbunathan H, Ong C, Zhang H, Moravec R, Yu J, Biswas R, Van Nostrand S, Lindsay J, Pichavant M, Sotillo E, Bernstein D, Carbonell A, Derdak J, Klicka-Skeels J, Segal JE, Dombi E, Harmon SA, Turkbey B, Sahaf B, Bendall S, Maecker H, Highfill SL, Stroncek D, Glod J, Merchant M, Hedrick CC, Mackall CL, Ramakrishna S, Kaplan RN. Immune determinants of CAR-T cell expansion in solid tumor patients receiving GD2 CAR-T cell therapy. Cancer Cell. 2024 Jan 8;42(1):35-51.e8. doi: 10.1016/j.ccell.2023.11.011. Epub 2023 Dec 21.

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