Selective inhibition of FLT3 by gilteritinib in relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukaemia: a multicentre, first-in-human, open-label, phase 1-2 study.

BackgroundInternal tandem duplication mutations in FLT3 are common in acute myeloid leukaemia and are associated with rapid relapse and short overall survival. The clinical benefit of FLT3 inhibitors in patients with acute myeloid leukaemia has been limited by rapid generation of resistance mutations, particularly in codon Asp835 (D835). We aimed to assess the highly selective oral FLT3 inhibitor gilteritinib in patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukaemia.MethodsIn this phase 1-2 trial, we enrolled patients aged 18 years or older with acute myeloid leukaemia who either were refractory to induction therapy or had relapsed after achieving remission with previous treatment. Patients were enrolled into one of seven dose-escalation or dose-expansion cohorts assigned to receive once-daily doses of oral gilteritinib (20 mg, 40 mg, 80 mg, 120 mg, 200 mg, 300 mg, or 450 mg). Cohort expansion was based on safety and tolerability, FLT3 inhibition in correlative assays, and antileukaemic activity. Although the presence of an FLT3 mutation was not an inclusion criterion, we required ten or more patients with locally confirmed FLT3 mutations (FLT3mut+) to be enrolled in expansion cohorts at each dose level. On the basis of emerging findings, we further expanded the 120 mg and 200 mg dose cohorts to include FLT3mut+ patients only. The primary endpoints were the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of gilteritinib. Safety and tolerability were assessed in the safety analysis set (all patients who received at least one dose of gilteritinib). Responses were assessed in the full analysis set (all patients who received at least one dose of study drug and who had at least one datapoint post-treatment). Pharmacokinetics were assessed in a subset of the safety analysis set for which sufficient data for concentrations of gilteritinib in plasma were available to enable derivation of one or more pharmacokinetic variables. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02014558, and is ongoing.FindingsBetween Oct 15, 2013, and Aug 27, 2015, 252 adults with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukaemia received oral gilteritinib once daily in one of seven dose-escalation (n=23) or dose-expansion (n=229) cohorts. Gilteritinib was well tolerated; the maximum tolerated dose was established as 300 mg/day when two of three patients enrolled in the 450 mg dose-escalation cohort had two dose-limiting toxicities (grade 3 diarrhoea and grade 3 elevated aspartate aminotransferase). The most common grade 3-4 adverse events irrespective of relation to treatment were febrile neutropenia (97 [39%] of 252), anaemia (61 [24%]), thrombocytopenia (33 [13%]), sepsis (28 [11%]), and pneumonia (27 [11%]). Commonly reported treatment-related adverse events were diarrhoea (92 [37%] of 252]), anaemia (86 [34%]), fatigue (83 [33%]), elevated aspartate aminotransferase (65 [26%]), and increased alanine aminotransferase (47 [19%]). Serious adverse events occurring in 5% or more of patients were febrile neutropenia (98 [39%] of 252; five related to treatment), progressive disease (43 [17%]), sepsis (36 [14%]; two related to treatment), pneumonia (27 [11%]), acute renal failure (25 [10%]; five related to treatment), pyrexia (21 [8%]; three related to treatment), bacteraemia (14 [6%]; one related to treatment), and respiratory failure (14 [6%]). 95 people died in the safety analysis set, of which seven deaths were judged possibly or probably related to treatment (pulmonary embolism [200 mg/day], respiratory failure [120 mg/day], haemoptysis [80 mg/day], intracranial haemorrhage [20 mg/day], ventricular fibrillation [120 mg/day], septic shock [80 mg/day], and neutropenia [120 mg/day]). An exposure-related increase in inhibition of FLT3 phosphorylation was noted with increasing concentrations in plasma of gilteritinib. In-vivo inhibition of FLT3 phosphorylation occurred at all dose levels. At least 90% of FLT3 phosphorylation inhibition was seen by day 8 in most patients receiving a daily dose of 80 mg or higher. 100 (40%) of 249 patients in the full analysis set achieved a response, with 19 (8%) achieving complete remission, ten (4%) complete remission with incomplete platelet recovery, 46 (18%) complete remission with incomplete haematological recovery, and 25 (10%) partial remission INTERPRETATION: Gilteritinib had a favourable safety profile and showed consistent FLT3 inhibition in patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukaemia. These findings confirm that FLT3 is a high-value target for treatment of relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukaemia; based on activity data, gilteritinib at 120 mg/day is being tested in phase 3 trials.FundingAstellas Pharma, National Cancer Institute (Leukemia Specialized Program of Research Excellence grant), Associazione Italiana Ricerca sul Cancro

Olutasidenib (FT-2102) induces durable complete remissions in patients with relapsed or refractory IDH1-mutated AML

Olutasidenib (FT-2102) is a potent, selective, oral, small-molecule inhibitor of mutant isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (mIDH1). Overall, 153 IDH1 inhibitor–naive patients with mIDH1R132 relapsed/refractory (R/R) acute myeloid leukemia (AML) received olutasidenib monotherapy 150 mg twice daily in the pivotal cohort of this study. The median age of participants was 71 years (range, 32-87 years) and the median number of prior regimens received by patients was 2 (1-7). The rate of complete remission (CR) plus CR with partial hematologic recovery (CRh) was 35%, and the overall response rate was 48%. Response rates were similar in patients who had, and who had not, received prior venetoclax. With 55% of patients censored at the time of data cut-off, the median duration of CR/CRh was 25.9 months. The median duration of overall response was 11.7 months, and the median overall survival was 11.6 months. Of 86 patients who were transfusion dependent at baseline, a 56-day transfusion independence was achieved in 29 (34%), which included patients in all response groups. Grade 3 or 4 treatment-emergent adverse events (≥10%) were febrile neutropenia and anemia (n = 31; 20% each), thrombocytopenia (n = 25; 16%), and neutropenia (n = 20; 13%). Differentiation syndrome adverse events of special interest occurred in 22 (14%) patients, with 14 (9%) grade ≥3 and 1 fatal case reported. Overall, olutasidenib induced durable remissions and transfusion independence with a well-characterized and manageable side effect profile. The observed efficacy represents a therapeutic advance in this molecularly defined, poor-prognostic population of patients with mIDH1 R/R AML

Targeted Alpha-Particle Immunotherapy with Bismuth-213 and Actinium-225 for Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ABSTRACT Lintuzumab, a humanized anti-CD33 antibody, targets myeloid leukemia cells and has modest activity against acute myeloid leukemia (AML). To increase the antibody's potency yet avoid nonspecific cytotoxicity seen with β-emitting isotopes, lintuzumab was conjugated to the α-emitters bismuth-213 (213Bi) and actinium-225 (225Ac). The 46-minute half-life of 213Bi limits its widespread use. Therefore, 225Ac was also conjugated to various antibodies using DOTA-SCN. We conducted a phase I trial of 213Bi-lintuzumab and subsequently administered cytarabine with 213Bi-lintuzumab in a phase I/II study. The toxicity and biological activity of 225Ac-linutuzumab in patients with relapsed/refractory AML in a phase I dose-escalation trial was determined. An initial phase I trial demonstrated the feasibility, safety and antileukemic activity of 213Bi-lintuzumab. 213Bi-lintuzumab produced responses in 24% of AML patients receiving doses ≥ 37 MBq/kg after partial cytoreduction with cytarabine. 225Ac-labeled immunoconjugates killed in vitro at doses at least 1,000 times lower than 213Bi analogs. Eighteen patients with relapsed/refractory AML received 18.5 to 148 kBq/kg of 225Ac-lintuzumab in a phase I study. Dose-limiting toxicities were myelosuppression lasting &gt;35 days in one patient and death due to sepsis in two patients. The maximum tolerated dose (MTD) was 111 KBg/kg. Bone marrow blast reductions were seen across all dose levels. Targeted α- particle immunotherapy with 213Bi- and 225Ac-lintuzumab is safe, has significant antileukemic effects, and can produce remissions after partial cytoreduction. How to cite this article Jurcic JG. Targeted Alpha-Particle Immunotherapy with Bismuth-213 and Actinium-225 for Acute Myeloid Leukemia. J Postgrad Med Edu Res 2013;47(1): 14-17. </jats:sec

Radioimmunotherapy for hematopoietic cell transplantation

Radioimmunotherapy (RIT) represents an attractive strategy to deliver radiation selectively to tumor and other target organs while minimizing toxicity to normal tissues. RIT with β-particle-emitting isotopes targeting CD33, CD45 and CD66 can potentially allow intensification of conditioning before hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) in leukemia. Similarly, RIT directed against CD20 has shown promise in the setting of autologous and allogeneic HCT for B-cell lymphomas. α-particle immunotherapy with isotopes such as bismuth-213, actinium-225 and astatinine-211 offers the possibility of more selective and efficient killing of target cells while sparing the surrounding normal cells. Pretargeting strategies may further improve target:normal organ dose ratios. While RIT has demonstrated significant antitumor activity, ultimately, randomized studies will be required to determine if conditioning regimens that include this therapeutic modality can improve patient outcomes after HCT. </jats:p