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O'Dwyer, Kristen M.

Mayo Clinic

University of Rochester Medicine

Citations 8

NGS MRD Negativity on Day 28 after Brexu Cel in Adults with R/R ALL Is Associated with Favorable Progression Free Survival
Valtis, Yannis K. , Devlin, Sean, Jeyakumar, Nikeshan , Miller, Katharine, Zhang, Amy , Sutherland, Katherine C. , Kopmar, Noam E. , Dekker, Simone E. , Yaghmour, George , Tsai, Stephanie B., Moore, Jozal , O'Dwyer, Kristen M., Connor, Matthew P. , Frey, Noelle, Vasu, Sumithira , Ulrickson, Matthew L. , Boccucci, Jacob , Merchant, Akil, Pullarkat, Vinod , Langston, Amelia , Solh, Melhem , O’Connor, Timothy E. , Malik, Shabaz, Mountjoy, Luke , Hoeg, Rasmus T. , Oliai, Caspian , Gupta, Vishal , Koura, Divya, Kumaran, Muthu V., Schwartz, Marc S. , Tracy, Sean , Bobillo, Maria Odstrcil, Ladha, Abdullah , Gatell, Vivian Irrizary, Shaughnessy, Paul , Muffly, Lori , Park, Jae H. , Muffly, Lori , Nemirovsky, David , Roloff, Gregory W. , Aldoss, Ibrahim , Advani, Anjali S. , Luskin, Marlise R , Chen, Evan , Jamy, Omer , Grunwald, Michael R. , Muhsen, Ibrahim N. , Dholaria, Bhagirathbhai , Leonard, Jessica T , Tsai, Stephanie B., Stock, Wendy , O'Dwyer, Kristin , Logan, Aaron C , Frey, Noelle, Bezerra, Evandro D. , Dykes, Kaitlyn C. , Battiwalla, Minoo , Lin, Chenyu , Reshef, Ran , Cassaday, Ryan D. , Hill, LaQuisa C. , Lee, Catherine J , Kota, Vamsi , Sasine, Joshua , Hilal, Talal , Faramand, Rawan , Othman, Tamer , Majhail, Navneet S. , Oliai, Caspian H , Schwartz, Marc, Bachanová, Veronika , Jackson, Clayton, Gatell, Vivian Irizarry , Oluwole, Olalekan O. , Daunov, Michael , Mathews, John, Shah, Bijal

Blood | December 6, 2024 | Volume: 144 | Issue: Supplement 1 | Pages: 4200-4200

10.1182/blood-2024-201610 Get It

Introduction: Brexucabtagene autoleucel (brexu cel) is a CD19-targeted chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy approved for the treatment of adults with relapsed/refractory (R/R) acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Some patients (pts) proceed with a consolidative allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) after breux cel. We do not know which pts can safely avoid a consolidative HCT and its associated morbidity. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study utilizing the Real-World Outcomes Collaborative of CAR-T in Adult ALL (ROCCA) dataset. ROCCA is a registry of brexu cel pts in 32 centers in North America. We defined complete remission (CR) as < 5% blasts in the bone marrow and no central nervous system (CNS) or extramedullary (EM) disease on or around D28 after brexu cel. We defined measurable residual disease negative (MRD-) CR as CR and no abnormal blasts in the bone marrow by multiparameter flow cytometry, quantitative polymerase chain reaction, ClonoSeq next generation sequencing (NGS), or other sequencing modalities with lower sensitivity. ClonoSeq NGS has a sensitivity of 10-6, while the other modalities have a sensitivity of at least 10-4. We defined progression free survival (PFS) as the time from CAR-T infusion to relapse or death, censored at the date of last follow-up. Statistical analyses were performed in R. Univariable Cox proportional hazards regression analyses were performed to determine the association of pre-specified variables with PFS. Variables known to be associated with CAR T outcomes in ALL were entered into a multivariable model. HCT was incorporated as a time-varying covariate. Results: During the study period, 281 pts were infused with brexu cel. We focused our analysis on 172 (61%) pts with confirmed MRD- CR on D28, as that is the group with clinical equipoise regarding maintenance strategy. 38 (22%) of those pts received a consolidative HCT, 30 (17%) received another form of maintenance therapy (primarily tyrosine kinase inhibitors for Philadelphia (Ph)-chromosome positive ALL), and 104 (60%) pts received no maintenance therapy. Pts who underwent consolidative HCT were younger (median age 35 years) than those who received no maintenance (42y) (p = 0.023) and were less likely to have a history of prior HCT (13% vs. 47%, p < 0.001). No differences were observed with respect to sex, TP53 mutation status, prior inotuzumab (ino) or blinatumomab (blina) exposure, disease burden prior to CAR, or development of any cytokine release syndrome (CRS) or any neurotoxicity with brexu cel. We performed univariable Cox proportional hazard regression analyses among pts in MRD- CR on D28, excluding those who received other maintenance therapy besides HCT; the median follow up was 8.1 months. In univariable analyses, D28 MRD negativity by ClonoSeq NGS (versus MRD negativity by other, less sensitive methods), development of CRS, and pre-CAR BM blasts < 5% were associated with improved PFS; prior ino exposure was negatively associated with PFS (p < 0.05). Age, sex, Ph status, TP53 status, and neurotoxicity development were not associated with PFS. In a multivariable model incorporating ALL type, prior HCT, prior ino/blina, and pre-CAR blast burden, as well as consolidative HCT as a time-varying covariate, only MRD negativity by ClonoSeq NGS with at least 10-6 sensitivity retained statistical significance (PFS hazard ratio 0.34, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.15-0.77, p = 0.005). Pts who were MRD- by ClonoSeq NGS on D28 and received no maintenance had favorable 6m PFS of 76% (95% CI: 59-98%) and OS of 100% with a median follow up of 6.3 months in this subgroup. Among those in MRD- CR by NGS, HCT as a time-varying covariate was not associated with improved PFS (HR 0.6, p = 0.6). Conclusions: In a large real-world cohort of adults with R/R B-ALL infused with brexu cel, we identified practice variation regarding the use of consolidative HCT. Among brexu cel recipients who entered an MRD- CR, we identified ClonoSeq NGS MRD negativity as a novel predictive factor of favorable oncologic outcomes, even without a consolidative HCT. Similar results have been obtained in pediatric ALL patietns ftreated with 41BB-based tisagenleucleucel (Pulsipher et al., Blood Cancer Discovery 2022). Longer follow-up is needed to validate the safety of omitting consolidative HCT in such pts, but these results encourage the potential for definitive therapy with brexu cel when D28 ClonoSeq NGS MRD is negative.
Efficacy and Safety of Brexucabtagene Autoleucel for Relapsed/Refractory B-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Patients Aged 60 and Above
Jeyakumar, Nikeshan , Miller, Katharine, Zhang, Amy , Sutherland, Katherine C. , Boccucci, Jacob , Ulrickson, Matthew L. , Vasu, Sumithira, Langston, Amelia , Kopmar, Noam E. , Tsai, Stephanie B., O’Connor, Timothy E. , Park, Jae H. , Valtis, Yannis K. , Solh, Melhem , Dekker, Simone E. , Malik, Shahbaz A. , Shaughnessy, Paul , Mountjoy, Luke , Hoeg, Rasmus T. , Oliai, Caspian , Gupta, Vishal , Koura, Divya, Kumaran, Muthu V., Schwartz, Marc S. , Tracy, Sean , O'Dwyer, Kristen M., Moore, Jozal , Bobillo, María Silvina Odstrcil , Frey, Noelle, Connor, Matthew P. , Ladha, Abdullah , Yaghmour, George , Gatell, Vivian Irrizary, Pullarkat, Vinod , Merchant, Akil, Muffly, Lori , Muffly, Lori , Muhsen, Ibrahim N. , Advani, Anjali S. , Roloff, Gregory W. , Grunwald, Michael R. , Kota, Vamsi , Sasine, Joshua , Aldoss, Ibrahim , Othman, Tamer , Vasu, Sumithira , Reshef, Ran , Luskin, Marlise R , Chen, Evan , Lin, Chenyu , Cassaday, Ryan D. , Tsai, Stephanie B., Hilal, Talal , Faramand, Rawan , Bezerra, Evandro D. , Leonard, Jessica T , Majhail, Navneet S. , Battiwalla, Minoo , Mathews, John, Oliai, Caspian H , Dykes, Kaitlyn C. , Logan, Aaron C , Stock, Wendy , Schwartz, Marc, Bachanová, Veronika , O'Dwyer, Kristin , Lee, Catherine J , Frey, Noelle, Jamy, Omer , Daunov, Michael , Jackson, Clayton, Gatell, Vivian Irizarry , Oluwole, Olalekan O. , Dholaria, Bhagirathbhai , Shah, Bijal , Hill, LaQuisa C.

Blood | December 6, 2024 | Volume: 144 | Issue: Supplement 1 | Pages: 523-523

10.1182/blood-2024-210682 Get It

Introduction: Brexucabtagene Autoleucel (brexu-cel) is the first CD19-targeting chimeric antigen receptor (CD19.CAR) T-cell therapy approved for the treatment of relapsed/refractory (r/r) B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) in adult (≥18 yo) patients (pts) based on results from the ZUMA-3 trial. However, data on the safety and efficacy of CAR-T cells in older pts (≥60 yo) remains limited, with only 8 pts >65 yo enrolled in the ZUMA-3 trial. We evaluated the treatment characteristics and outcomes with use of brexu-cel amongst patients ≥60 yo in the Real-World Outcomes Collaborative for CAR-T in ALL (ROCCA) consortium database. Methodology: ROCCA is a consortium of over 30 U.S.-based institutions with a database of adult pts with B-ALL who received brexu-cel as standard of care therapy. We identified pts ≥60 yo and further stratified them into two cohorts: 60-69 yo and ≥70 yo. Outcomes of interest included OS, PFS, ORR, and toxicities (CRS and ICANS). Both OS and PFS were calculated from the day of brexu-cel infusion. Response assessment occurred on day +28, and MRD evaluation was per institutional practices. CRS and ICANS were graded according to the American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy criteria. Results: Of 280 brexu-cel recipients in the ROCCA database, 73 (26%) were ≥60 yo, of which 58 (79%) were between 60-69 yo and 15 (21%) were ≥70 yo. Among pts ≥60 yo, the median age at infusion was 65 (range 60-81). Pts were heavily pretreated with a median of 3 prior lines of therapy (range 2-9). Prior therapies included: allogeneic HSCT (38%), inotuzumab ozogamicin (41%), and blinatumomab (62%). Forty pts (55%) had Ph-negative B-ALL, 24 (33%) had Ph+ B-ALL and 9 (12%) had Ph-like B-ALL. When grouped by HCT-CI equal to 0, 1-2 or ≥3, a higher proportion of pts ≥60 yo had HCT-CI ≥3 (19% vs. 7% in <60 yo; p=0.004). Pre-apheresis, 33 pts (45%) had active disease (>5% marrow blasts or extramedullary disease), 34 (47%) were in CR (of whom 14 were MRD-negative) and 6 had unknown disease status. Following brexu-cel, 43 (59%) achieved MRD-negative CR, 20 (27%) had MRD + or CR with unknown MRD status, 6 (8%) had refractory disease and 5 had no disease evaluation available. The ORR was similar between pts 60-69 and ≥70 yo (MRD-negative CR rate: 58% vs 61%, r/r to brexu-cel: 9% vs 6%) and was comparable to pts <60 yo (MRD-negative CR 66%; r/r disease of 9%). The rate of all grade ICANS was higher in pts ≥70 (77%) than in pts 60-69 (47%) or pts <60 (49%), with grade 1-2 ICANS occurring at a significantly higher rate in pts ≥70 (44% vs. 20% in 60-69 and 20% in <60, p=0.049). Grade 3-4 ICANS were similar between the groups: 33%, 27% and 29% in the ≥70, 60-69, and <60 groups, respectively. Conversely, rates of CRS were similar across age groups (80-84%). There was no statistically significant difference in the rate of grade 3-4 CRS which was 17% in pts ≥70, 4% in pts 60-69, and 11% in pts <60 yo. With a median follow-up of 332 days (range 8-936 days) from infusion, pts ≥60 yo had a median PFS of 395 days compared to 547 days in pts <60 yo. Median PFS was lower in the ³70 yo (231 days) compared to 677 in the 60-69 yo cohort. No statistically significant difference was found between the <60 and ≥60groups in 6- and 12-month PFS rates (6 months PFS: 66% vs 64%, p=0.77 and 12 months PFS: 57% vs 57%, p=1.00). When pts ≥60 yo were stratified by age, pts ≥70 yo had similar 6-month PFS compared to other age groups but significantly lower 12-month PFS (38%; vs. 64% in pts 60-69and 57% in pts <60, p=0.001). Median OS was not reached in any of the age groups, and there was no statistically significant difference in 6-month OS (72% in ≥ 70 vs. 82% in the 60-69 vs. 82% in <60, p=0.14) or 12-months OS (61% in ≥ 70 vs. 69% in 60-69 vs. 73% in <60, p=0.18). Conclusion: This is the largest study to date of older B-ALL pts receiving CAR-T cells. We observed that older pts, particularly those aged 60-69, have similar outcomes to younger pts. However, pts ≥70 yo had lower median and 12-month PFS when compared to younger patients. Additionally, pts ≥70 yo had higher rates of grades 1-2 ICANS. An important limitation of this analysis is the potential selection bias among clinicians when selecting older patients for this treatment. Longer follow-up, including inclusion of additional pts ≥70 yo is needed to confirm these results, and further studies are needed to identify the optimal approach for use of CAR T-cell therapy in patients in this age group.
Derivation and External Validation of a Venous Thromboembolism Risk Prediction Model in Patients with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Receiving Asparaginase Therapy
Anderson, Daniela , Gangaraju, Radhika , Sedhom, Wafik, O'Dwyer, Kristen M., Muthiah, Chandrasekar, Liedtke, Michaela , Shimony, Shai , Robinson, Renana , Dinner, Shira, Biemond, Bart J. , Seymour, Kimberly, Goldberg, Leah, Kapadia, Anjani , Levavi, Hannah , Bar‐Natan, Michal , Bansal, Karan, Gerrits, Anke M, Luger, Selina M. , Shomali, William , Shimony, Shai , Hamulyák, Eva N. , Wang, Tzu‐Fei , O'Dwyer, Kristin , Carney, Brian J. , Badar, Talha , Sanfilippo, Kristen , Derkach, Andriy , Biemond, Bart J. , Nemirovsky, David , Hyfte, Grace Van , Carrier, Marc , Fulcher, Jill , Gerrits, Anke M, Murthy, Guru Subramanian Guru , Luskin, Marlise R , Wolach, Ofir , Zwicker, Jeffrey I , Stock, Wendy , Leader, Avi

Blood | December 6, 2024 | Volume: 144 | Issue: Supplement 1 | Pages: 1250-1250

10.1182/blood-2024-201997 Get It

Background: Patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) receiving L-asparaginase (ASP) based induction therapy have a high risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). Studies investigating universal thromboprophylaxis strategies have yielded sub-optimal results. Risk prediction models are needed to identify high-risk patients who would be candidates for intensification of thromboprophylaxis, and lower risk patients who are unlikely to benefit. Aims: Derive and externally validate a risk prediction model for VTE in patients with ALL receiving ASP therapy. Methods: We conducted a multicenter, international, cohort study of patients with newly-diagnosed ALL receiving ASP-based induction therapy (≥18yrs). The derivation and external validation cohorts included 306 and 97 patients without VTE prior to ASP therapy, respectively. Patients on therapeutic anticoagulation at index were excluded. Patients were followed from date of first ASP dose for 100 days post ALL diagnosis or until VTE, therapeutic anticoagulation or death. Candidate predictors were documented at ALL diagnosis and included demographics, disease and treatment characteristics, VTE history, comorbidities, thromboprophylaxis, complete blood count, fibrinogen and d-dimer. D-dimer was only analyzed within the 7 derivation cohort centers who routinely tested this at ALL diagnosis with <20% missing values. Primary outcome was VTE at any site (centrally confirmed). Secondary outcomes included major bleeding by ISTH criteria. Cause-specific Cox proportional hazard regression was performed to identify VTE risk factors in the derivation cohort while treating death as a competing event. Variables with p-value <0.1 on univariable analysis were included in a multivariable model and subsequently used in the risk model if p-value <0.05. Lastly, the derived VTE risk prediction model was tested in the external validation cohort for association with time to VTE using cause-specific Cox proportional hazard model. All analyses were stratified by center and use of low molecular weight heparin prophylaxis (at any dose on the date of first ASP dose). Results: The cumulative incidence of VTE in the derivation cohort was 17% at 30 days (95% confidence interval [CI] 13% - 21%) and 22% at 90 days (95% CI 17% - 27%). The multivariable model included hyperlipidemia (hazard ratio [HR] 1.35; 95% CI 0.56 - 3.27), body mass index ≥ 25 kg/m² (HR 1.49; 95% CI 0.75 - 2.95), platelet count ≥ 25 x 10⁹/L (HR 1.42; 95% CI 0.67 - 3.00), increasing hemoglobin per 1 g/dL (HR 1.17; 95% CI 1.03 - 1.32) and d-dimer ≥ 1 µg FEU/mL (HR 2.68; 95% CI 1.08 - 6.66). Hemoglobin as a continuous variable and d-dimer ≥ 1 µg FEU/mL were included in the final model and used to create a risk score which was weighted by estimated log-HR sum of these risk factors. The lowest risk quartile (risk score below 2.1) successfully differentiated between a lower 30-day cumulative VTE incidence (4%, 95% CI 0.72% - 12%) compared with the other quartiles (20%, 95% CI 14% - 27%; HR 4.40, 95% CI 1.54 - 12.5) which were defined as high risk (score ≥2.1). The risk score's negative predictive value (NPV) for VTE at 30 days was 96% and positive predictive value (PPV) was 20%. The validation cohort (n=97 from 3 external cohorts with routine d-dimer measurement) included 16 (16.5%) patients in the low-risk group and 81 (83.5%) in the high-risk group, with a 30-day VTE incidence of 6.3% (95% CI 0% - 17%) and 21% (95% CI 12% - 30%), respectively (HR 6.22; 95% CI 0.85 - 45.8; p = 0.073)). The NPV (93.7%) and PPV (21%) were comparable to the derivation cohort. The 30-day incidence of major bleeding was 0% (95% CI NR - NR) in low-risk patients (HR 1.36; 95% CI 0.27 - 6.77) and 2.0% (95% CI 0.55% - 5.4%) in the high-risk group. Conclusion: Patients with ALL receiving ASP induction therapy have a 17% VTE risk at 30 days. We derived and externally validated a VTE risk prediction model based upon d-dimer and hemoglobin. This model successfully identifies at least 16.5% of patients with ALL who have a low VTE risk after ASP treatment. Using this model, novel prevention strategies which may be associated with cost and risk could now be tailored to patients with higher risk. Prospective studies are needed to validate the model's performance and role in VTE risk management.
Outcomes After Brexucabtagene Autoleucel Administered as a Standard Therapy for Adults With Relapsed/Refractory B-Cell ALL
Aldoss, Ibrahim , Kopmar, Noam E. , Lin, Chenyu , Dekker, Simone E. , Gupta, Vishal, O’Connor, Timothy E. , Jeyakumar, Nikeshan , Muhsen, Ibrahim N. , Valtis, Yannis K. , Zhang, Amy , Miller, Kate , Ahmed, Mohamed , Schwartz, Marc S. , Tracy, Sean , Mukherjee, Akash , Ladha, Abdullah , Guzowski, Caitlin, Hoeg, Rasmus T. , Moore, Jozal , Connor, Matthew P. , Hill, LaQuisa C. , Tsai, Stephanie B., Sasine, Joshua , Solh, Melhem , Koura, Divya, Veeraputhiran, Muthu, Park, Jae H. , Bachanová, Veronika , Galal, Ahmed , Pullarkat, Vinod , Muffly, Lori , Oliai, Caspian , Yaghmour, George , Sutherland, Katherine, Zambrano, Héctor, Bradshaw, Danielle , Kubiak, Michal , Mountjoy, Luke , Malik, Shahbaz A. , Shaughnessy, Paul , Stefan, Maryann, O'Dwyer, Kristen M., Blunk, Betsy, Bishop, Michael R. , Aldoss, Ibrahim , Kopmar, Noam E , Lin, Chenyu , Gupta, Vishal K , Muhsen, Ibrahim N , Valtis, Yannis , Miller, Katharine , Chen, Evan , Mercadal, Santiago , Tracy, Sean I , Dholaria, Bhagirathbhai R , Battiwalla, Minoo , Logan, Aaron C , Ladha, Abdullah , Hilal, Talal , Connor, Matthew , Hill, LaQuisa C , Sasine, Joshua , Solh, Melham M , Kota, Vamsi , Frey, Noelle V , Park, Jae H , Luskin, Marlise R , Stock, Wendy , Cassaday, Ryan D , Muffly, Lori , Bachanova, Veronika , Roloff, Gregory W. , Ahmed, Naveed, Dykes, Kaitlyn C. , Schwartz, Marc, Dholaria, Bhagirathbhai , Battiwalla, Minoo , Hilal, Talal , Tsai, Stephanie B., Kota, Vamsi , Leonard, Jessica T , Frey, Noelle V. , Stock, Wendy , Cassaday, Ryan D. , Shah, Bijal , Faramand, Rawan , Oliai, Caspian H , Majhail, Navneet S. , Mathews, John Abraham , Advani, Anjali S. , O'Dwyer, Kristin , Lee, Catherine J , Bishop, Michael Russell

Journal of Clinical Oncology | October 17, 2024 | Volume: 43 | Issue: 5 | Pages: 558-566

10.1200/jco.24.00321 Get It

PURPOSE On the basis of the results of the ZUMA-3 trial, brexucabtagene autoleucel (brexu-cel), a CD19-directed chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, gained US Food and Drug Administration approval in October 2021 for adults with relapsed/refractory (R/R) B-cell ALL (B-ALL). We report outcomes of patients treated with brexu-cel as a standard therapy. METHODS We developed a collaboration across 31 US centers to study adults with B-ALL who received brexu-cel outside the context of a clinical trial. Data were collected retrospectively from October 2021 to October 2023. Toxicities were graded per American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy guidelines for cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and immune effector cell–associated neurotoxicity syndrome (ICANS). RESULTS At the time of data lock, 204 patients had undergone apheresis and 189 were infused. Median follow-up time was 11.4 months. Forty-two percent of patients received brexu-cel in morphologic remission and would have been ineligible for participation in ZUMA-3. After brexu-cel, 151 achieved complete remission (CR), of which 79% were measurable residual disease (MRD) negative remissions. Median progression-free survival (PFS) was 9.5 months and median overall survival was not reached. Grade 3-4 CRS or ICANS occurred in 11% and 31%, respectively. In multivariable analysis, patients receiving consolidative hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT; hazard ratio, 0.34 [95% CI, 0.14 to 0.85]) after brexu-cel had superior PFS compared with those who did not receive any consolidation or maintenance therapy. CONCLUSION Similar to ZUMA-3, high rates of MRD-negative CR were observed after brexu-cel treatment for R/R B-ALL. The use of HCT as consolidation after brexu-cel resulted in improved PFS.
Impact of Prior Response to Blinatumomab on Outcomes of Brexucabtagene Autoleucel (Brexu-cel) in Adult Patients with Relapsed or Refractory (r/r) B-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (B-ALL): Results from the Real-World Outcomes Collaborative of CAR-T in Ad
Gupta, Vishal, Muffly, Lori , Kopmar, Noam E. , Dekker, Simone E. , Jeyakumar, Nikeshan , O’Connor, Timothy E. , Zhang, Amy , Miller, Katharine, Ahmed, Mohamed , Bradshaw, Danielle , Schwartz, Marc S. , Tracy, Sean , Kubiak, Michal , Mukherjee, Akash , Mountjoy, Luke , Malik, Shabaz, Shaughnessy, Paul , Ladha, Abdullah , Yaghmour, George , Stefan, Maryann, Guzowski, Caitlin, Hoeg, Rasmus T. , Moore, Jozal , O'Dwyer, Kristen M., Tsai, Stephanie B., Koura, Divya, Veeraputhiran, Muthu, Blunk, Betsy, Galal, Ahmed , Pullarkat, Vinod , Oliai, Caspian , Muffly, Lori , Roloff, Gregory W. , Aldoss, Ibrahim , Lin, Chenyu , Dykes, Kaitlyn C. , Mercadal, Santiago , Schwartz, Marc, Dholaria, Bhagirathbhai , Majhail, Navneet S. , Battiwalla, Minoo , Mathews, John, Logan, Aaron C , Advani, Anjali S. , Hilal, Talal , O'Dwyer, Kristin , Tsai, Stephanie B., Sasine, Joshua , Lee, Catherine J , Kota, Vamsi , Leonard, Jessica T , Stock, Wendy , Cassaday, Ryan D. , Shah, Bijal , Faramand, Rawan , Oliai, Caspian H

Blood | December 1, 2023 | Volume: 142 | Issue: Supplement 1 | Pages: 2119-2119

10.1182/blood-2023-182915 Get It

Introduction: Brexucabtagene autoleucel (brexu-cel) is an autologous anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy approved for adults with relapsed or refractory (r/r) B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL). Blinatumomab is a CD19-directed bispecific T-cell engager that is also approved for r/r B-ALL, and often used as early salvage therapy. Data in the pediatric/AYA population suggest that patients who did not respond to blinatumomab may have inferior outcomes to CD19-directed CAR-T products compared to those who have achieved a response to blinatumomab or were blinatumomab-naïve (Myers et al. J Clin Oncol 2022). In this study, we evaluate the response to blinatumomab and subsequent response to brexu-cel in adults with r/r B-ALL. Methods: Retrospective data were collected from 25 centers across the U.S. as part of the real-world outcomes collaborative study of CAR-T in B-ALL (ROCCA). Consecutive patients treated with brexu-cel from 2021 to 2023 were categorized by blinatumomab exposure status. Those exposed were separated into “blinatumomab responders” (B-R), defined as patients achieving a CR/CRi in response to any number of cycles of blinatumomab, and “non-responders” (B-NR). Each cohort was compared for outcomes of interest. The primary outcome was CR/CRi rate at day 28 following brexu-cel administration. Secondary outcomes were duration of response (DOR), progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS). Survival outcomes were calculated from day of brexu-cel infusion and were not censored for allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation or maintenance therapy. All living patients were censored at data cutoff on June 30, 2023. Survival comparisons were made by log rank test. Results: Among 152 patients who received brexu-cel, the median follow-up time was 8.4 months. Eighty-eight (57%) of 152 r/r B-ALL brexu-cel recipients had received blinatumomab prior to apheresis. The median number of pre-apheresis blinatumomab cycles was 2 (range 1-12). The baseline characteristics of B-R, B-NR, and blinatumomab-naïve (B-NV) patients were similar, including pre-apheresis disease burden and receipt of maintenance therapy following brexu-cel infusion (Table 1). Seventy percent (N= 62) of the blinatumomab-exposed patients were B-R, while 30% (N=26) were B-NR. Rates of CR/CRi at day 28 following brexu-cel infusion were similar between B-R, B-NR, and B-NV patients (79% vs 84% vs 78%, respectively). Most of these remissions were negative for measurable residual disease (MRD), with similar MRD negativity rates in the three groups (table 2). 1-year DOR and PFS were significantly higher in the B-NV group compared to B-R or B-NR (77% vs 49% vs 50%, p<.0001; 60% vs 37% vs 30%, p<.0001). B-NV and B-R had better 1-year survival compared to B-NR (71% vs 65% vs 32%, p<.0001). There were more CD19-negative relapses following brexu-cel in B-NR (29%) and B-R (18%) compared to B-NV patients (8%), although this was not statistically significant. Conclusions: Brexu-cel induced deep responses in a majority of adults with r/r B-ALL, irrespective of prior exposure or response to blinatumomab. Similar to data published by the pediatric CAR-T cell groups, our data draw speculation that adult patients who did not respond to blinatumomab experience shorter overall survival following brexu-cel compared to those who responded to or did not receive blinatumomab. This should be confirmed in a larger, prospective clinical trial. Because this analysis could not account for patients who achieved durable remission after blinatumomab, these differences may not reflect superiority of sequencing brexu-cel before blinatumomab. The higher number of CD19-negative relapses in the blinatumomab-exposed cohort add to the interest in pursuing strategies to address antigen escape following CAR-T cell therapy directed against a previously targeted antigen.
Bridging Therapy in Adults with Relapsed/Refractory B-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Receiving Standard of Care Brexucabtagene Autoleucel: Results from the Real-World Outcomes Collaborative of CAR T in Adult ALL (ROCCA)
Tsai, Stephanie B., Zhang, Amy , Kopmar, Noam E. , Dekker, Simone E. , Jeyakumar, Nikeshan , Gupta, Vishal, O’Connor, Timothy E. , Ahmed, Mohamed , Zambrano, Héctor, Bradshaw, Danielle , Tracy, Sean , Kubiak, Michal , Solh, Melhem , Schwartz, Marc S. , Mukherjee, Akash , Shaughnessy, Paul , Mountjoy, Luke , Malik, Shahbaz A. , Ladha, Abdullah , Stefan, M, Guzowski, Caitlin, Hoeg, Rasmus T. , Moore, Jozal , O'Dwyer, Kristen M., Koura, Divya, Veeraputhiran, Muthu, Blunk, Betsy, Oliai, Caspian , Pullarkat, Vinod , Miller, Katharine, Muffly, Lori , Galal, Ahmed , Muffly, Lori , Lin, Chenyu , Tsai, Stephanie B., Roloff, Gregory W. , Aldoss, Ibrahim , Dykes, Kaitlyn C. , Dholaria, Bhagirathbhai , Logan, Aaron C , Mercadal, Santiago , Schwartz, Marc, Battiwalla, Minoo , Majhail, Navneet S. , Mathews, John Abraham , Advani, Anjali S. , Stefan, Maryann, Hilal, Talal , O'Dwyer, Kristin , Sasine, Joshua , Lee, Catherine J , Kota, Vamsi , Leonard, Jessica T , Oliai, Caspian H , Bachanová, Veronika , Stock, Wendy , Cassaday, Ryan D. , Shah, Bijal , Faramand, Rawan

Blood | December 1, 2023 | Volume: 142 | Issue: Supplement 1 | Pages: 3502-3502

10.1182/blood-2023-182380 Get It

Introduction: Brexucabtagene autoleucel (brexu-cel) is an autologous anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy approved for adults with relapsed/refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (R/R B-ALL). Bridging therapy, defined as anti-leukemia therapy given between apheresis and lymphodepleting chemotherapy, was permitted on the pivotal ZUMA-3 trial. The optimal bridging therapy is unknown in this setting. Here we report patient and disease characteristics in those receiving bridging therapies prior to brexu-cel and the impact of bridging on clinical outcomes in a large multicenter cohort. Methods and Results: ROCCA includes 25 US institutions contributing retrospective data from 152 B-ALL patients treated with standard of care brexu-cel between 2021-2023. Ninety-nine patients (65%) received bridging therapy, while 53 patients (35%) received no bridging therapy. Bridging therapy consisted of cytotoxic chemotherapy ( n=65, 66%), immunotherapy ( n=26, 26%; 23 inotuzumab, 3 blinatumomab), tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) ( n=20, 20%; 16 ponatinib), steroids only ( n=10, 10%), and intrathecal chemotherapy ( n=22, 22%). The median age of the cohort was 46 (IQR 32-61). Patients were heavily pre-treated with a median of 4 prior lines of therapy. The median days from apheresis to infusion was 33 (IQR 26-42). 119 patients had known pre-apheresis blast counts; the bridging group had higher pre-apheresis blast burden, with 21 of 76 patients (28%) having ≥ 50% blasts compared to only 5 of 43 patients (12%) in the no bridging group ( p=0.02). In addition, more patients who received bridging had pre-apheresis extramedullary disease (32% vs. 15%, p=0.02). All other baseline characteristics were similar between the two groups (Table 1). Fifty-four (54%) patients had response assessment after bridging therapy and prior to brexu-cel infusion. In patients who received inotuzumab for pre-apheresis active disease, defined as ≥ 5% blasts, 6 of 13 (46%) who had post-bridging assessment achieved a complete response (CR; 5 measurable residual disease (MRD)+, 1 MRD-), with a mean proportional reduction in blast burden of 46% from baseline. In contrast, after chemotherapy bridging, only 2 of 16 patients (13%) with pre-apheresis active disease had a CR. Patients receiving chemotherapy bridging had a mean proportional increase in blast burden of 4.4%. In recipients of TKI bridging, 2 of 4 patients (50%) with pre-apheresis active disease had a CR. Compared to no bridging, patients in the bridging group had similar rates of grade 3 or 4 CRS (9% bridging vs. 8% no bridging, p=0.73) and grade 3 or 4 ICANS (34% vs. 26%, p=0.32). In univariate analysis, there was no statistically significant difference in day 28 response with 63 patients (72%) achieving MRD- complete response in the bridging group as compared to 36 patients (78%) in the no bridging group ( p=0.60). Non-relapse mortality was similar between the two groups (17% bridging vs. 9% no bridging, p=0.20). Overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were superior in the no bridging group: 1-year OS 74.7% vs 56.8% (log-rank p=0.04), and 1-year PFS 57.3% vs 41.7% (log-rank p=0.04). In a multivariate analysis stratified by bridging and pre-apheresis disease burden, patients with pre-apheresis blasts ≥ 5% and bridging had worse survival than ≥ 5% blasts and no bridging: 1-year OS 45.3% vs. 87.5% and 1-year PFS 27.7% vs. 64.3% (Figure 1). However, patients with < 5% blasts had similar survival regardless of bridging. Conclusions: In our real-world analysis, adults with R/R B-ALL receiving bridging therapy had a higher disease burden at baseline. Despite greater baseline disease, there were no significant differences in toxicity and day 28 response in those receiving bridging therapy vs. not. While survival was inferior in patients with pre-apheresis active disease who received bridging, this may be confounded by the degree of tumor burden. In patients with < 5% blasts pre-apheresis, bridging did not impact survival. Furthermore, inotuzumab bridging demonstrated the most significant disease debulking. However, the comparisons in this study are limited by the variability in practice for post-bridging disease reassessment and the small proportion of patients with active disease who did not receive bridging. A more uniform approach to peri-CAR disease assessment would enable more robust study of optimal bridging strategies.
Updated Outcomes from the Historical Control Study SCHOLAR-3 Contextualizing ZUMA-3 Results of Brexucabtagene Autoleucel (KTE-X19) in Adult Patients with Relapsed or Refractory B-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (R/R B-ALL)
Oluwole, Olalekan O. , Leguay, Thibaut , Bishop, Michael R. , Topp, Max S. , Tzachanis, Dimitrios , O'Dwyer, Kristen M., Arellano, Martha , Lin, Yi , Baer, Maria R. , Schiller, Gary J. , Park, Jae H. , Abedi, Mehrdad , Stiff, Patrick J. , Jeyakumar, Deepa , Dong, Jinghui , Adhikary, Sabina , Zhou, Lang , Schuberth, Petra, Faghmous, Imi, Masouleh, Behzad Kharabi, Oluwole, Olalekan O , Shah, Bijal , Ghobadi, Armin , Logan, Aaron C , Boissel, Nicolas , Cassaday, Ryan D. , Bishop, Michael Russell , O'Dwyer, Kristin , Subklewe, Marion , Abedi, Mehrdad, Minnema, Monique C , Wierda, William G. , DeAngelo, Daniel J. , Zhou, Lang, Houot, Roch

Blood | November 28, 2022 | Volume: 140 | Issue: Supplement 1 | Pages: 3158-3161

10.1182/blood-2022-158248 Get It

Two-year follow-up of KTE-X19, an anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, in adult patients (Pts) with relapsed/refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (R/R B-ALL) in ZUMA-3.
Forcade, Édouard , Bishop, Michael, Topp, Max S. , Tzachanis, Dimitrios , O'Dwyer, Kristen M., Arellano, Martha , Baer, Maria R. , Schiller, Gary J. , Zhou, Lang , Schuberth, Petra, Adhikary, Sabina , Masouleh, Behzad Kharabi, Shah, Bijal , Ghobadi, Armin , Oluwole, Olalekan O. , Logan, Aaron C , Boissel, Nicolas , Cassaday, Ryan D. , O'Dwyer, Kristin , Lin, Yi , Zhou, Lang, Houot, Roch

Journal of Clinical Oncology | June 6, 2022 | Volume: 40 | Issue: 16_suppl | Pages: 7010-7010

10.1200/jco.2022.40.16_suppl.7010 Get It

7010 Background: Brexucabtagene autoleucel (KTE-X19) is an autologous anti-CD19 CAR T-cell therapy approved in the US to treat adult R/R B-ALL based on the ZUMA-3 study. The overall complete remission (CR) rate (CR + CR with incomplete hematologic recovery [CRi]) was 71% (95% CI, 57-82) after 16.4 mo median follow-up (N = 55; Shah et al. Lancet 2021). Here, we report updated outcomes with longer follow-up in these pts and in a larger pooled analysis of Phase (Ph) 1 and 2 pts who received the pivotal dose of KTE-X19. Methods: Eligible adults (≥18 years) had R/R B-ALL and received a single infusion of KTE-X19 at the pivotal dose (1×106 CAR T cells/kg) following leukapheresis and conditioning chemotherapy. The primary endpoint was CR/CRi rate by central review. Results: As of 23 July 2021, median follow-up was 26.8 mo (range, 20.7-32.6) for treated Ph 2 pts (N = 55). The CR/CRi rate per central review was 71% (95% CI, 57-82; 56% CR; 15% CRi). Eleven pts (20%; 8 CR and 2 CRi) proceeded to subsequent allogeneic stem cell transplant (alloSCT). Median duration of remission (DOR) censored at subsequent alloSCT was 14.6 mo (9.4-not estimable [NE]); not censored: 18.6 mo (9.6-NE); 6/39 responders (15%) had ongoing responses at data cutoff. Median (95% CI) relapse-free survival (RFS) was 11.6 mo (2.7-20.5) censored at subsequent alloSCT and 11.7 mo (2.8-20.5) not censored at subsequent alloSCT; 18-mo RFS rates (95% CI) were 35% (20.5-50.6) and 42% (28.0-55.0), respectively. Median (95% CI) overall survival (OS) was 25.4 mo (16.2-NE) among all KTE-X19-treated pts and not reached (25.4-NE) in pts with CR (n = 31). For Ph 1/2 pts (N = 78) who received the pivotal KTE-X19 dose (median follow-up: 29.7 mo; range 20.7-58.3), the CR/CRi rate by independent review was 73% (95% CI, 62-82). Medians (95% CI) for DOR, RFS, and OS were 18.6 mo (9.6-NE), 11.7 mo (6.1-20.5), and 25.4 mo (16.2-NE), respectively. A subgroup analysis revealed that in pts aged 18-39 (n = 36), 40-59 (n = 27), and ≥60 (n = 15) years, the CR/CRi rates (95% CI) were 69% (52-84), 70% (50-86), and 87% (60-98); 24-mo OS rates (95% CI) were 48% (30-64), 54% (33-71), and 57% (28-78), respectively. In pts with pre-KTE-X19 infusion marrow blast percentages > 25 to ≤50 (n = 12), > 50 to ≤75 (n = 14), and > 75 to 100 (n = 30), CR/CRi rates (95% CI) were 83% (52-98), 86% (57-98), and 57% (37-75); 24-mo OS rates (95% CI) were 58% (27-80), 55% (26-77) and 37% (19-55), respectively. There were no new safety signals; the proportion of treated Ph 2 pts with Gr ≥3 treatment emergent adverse events was unchanged since prior data cutoff. One pt had an ongoing neurologic event of Gr 1 finger numbness. Conclusions: With longer follow-up and an expanded data set by independent review, outcomes remain durable in adults with R/R B-ALL, most of whom were heavily pretreated, with median OS not yet reached in pts with CR. Long-term safety was favorable. Clinical trial information: NCT02614066.