Hashmi, Hamza

Abstract In a retrospective analysis at 11 US medical centers, bridging therapy (BT) impact after receiving idecabtagene vicleucel was assessed in 214 patients. 79% received BT, including 12% Selinexor-containing, 45% alkylator-based, 15% proteasome inhibitor combinations, and 18% immunomodulatory drugs +/- monoclonal antibody combinations (IMiD +/- mAb combos). BT recipients had worse performance status, higher stage disease, ferritin and CRP pre-infusion. The overall response rate to BT was 12%, with no difference among BT subgroups. Safety profiles were similar, but Selinexor had a higher grade ≥2 ICANS incidence. Median progression-free survival (PFS) was 6.7 months in BT vs. 11.5 months in no-BT (p=0.007). Median PFS was longest with IMiD +/- mAb combos (12 months), comparable to no-BT, and significantly longer than other BT subgroups (p=0.01). Alkylator-based BT had inferior PFS compared to IMiD +/- mAb combos (p=0.03). Median overall survival (OS) for the BT was 13.8 months vs. not reached in no-BT (p=0.002). Alkylator-based BT had shorter OS compared to others (11.97 months vs. NR; p=0.001). Stepwise Cox regression showed alkylator-based BT and response

Introduction: Lymphodepletion (LD) chemotherapy is critical for the efficacy of CAR-T therapy by eradicating immunosuppressive cells, inducing costimulatory molecules, and promoting expansion and persistence of CAR-T cells. It also can contribute to an increased risk of infections, cytopenia, and other toxicities. We evaluated the utilization of varying LD regimens used in standard-of-care (SOC) autologous B-cell maturation antigen-directed (BCMA) CAR-T therapy with ide-cel or cilta-cel for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM) and the effect on outcomes and toxicity. Methods: Data were retrospectively collected from patients with RRMM who underwent LD and CAR-T cell infusion by December 31, 2022, from 13 US academic institutions with SOC ide-cel or cilta-cel. Response rates and other categorical variables, specifically LD regimen, were tested for association using Wilcoxon rank-sum (or Kruskal-Wallis for three or more groups) or Fisher's exact tests, respectively. Results: A total of 523 patients were infused at the time of data cut-off with 489 patients evaluable for safety and survival analyses; 368 (75%) were infused with ide-cel and 121 (25%) with cilta-cel. The median age was 65 years old (range 30-90) with 206 females (42%) and 283 males (58%), and 13% with ECOG performance status ≥ 2 at time of LD. Fludarabine and cyclophosphamide (Flu/Cy) LD was used in 422 patients while 67 patients received other LD regimens including bendamustine-based (n = 35, 52%), cladribine-based (n = 25, 37%) or cyclophosphamide alone (n = 7, 10%). The primary reason for use of Flu/Cy LD was institutional guidance or SOC in 378 patients (90%), while the primary reason for use of other LD regimens was due to the fludarabine shortage in 65 patients (97%) with 3% citing physician's choice or institutional guidance. No significant difference was identified among response outcomes, with those receiving Flu/Cy LD achieving an ORR of 84% compared to 81% with other LD regimens (p = 0.59) and no difference observed in rates of ≥ VGPR (66% Flu/Cy LD vs 60% other LD; p = 0.48). Of those evaluable for MRD at 1 and 3 months, the MRD negative rate at 10 -6 for those with Flu/Cy LD was 77% (n= 137) and 77% (n=113) and with other LD regimens was 66% (n=35) and 79% (n=28), respectively. At a median follow-up of 9.7 months, no statistically significant difference was noted in median progression free survival (mPFS) with Flu/Cy vs other LD regimens (9.3 mos vs NR) or overall survival (OS) (19.4 mos vs NR). When stratified by type of CAR-T therapy, treatment with bendamustine-based LD was associated with an inferior mPFS compared to those receiving Flu/Cy LD in patients treated with ide-cel (3.8 vs 8.5 mos; p=0.0056), though not by multivariate analysis. Univariate analysis of patients treated with ide-cel between Flu/Cy and bendamustine LD did not reveal any significant differences in age, gender, ECOG, R-ISS stage, extramedullary disease, high-risk cytogenetics or renal dysfunction (Cr < 45 ml/min). LD regimen was not a predictor for PFS on multivariable analyses amongst patients treated with ide-cel, while ECOG ≥ 3 (hazard ratio [HR]= 4.44, 95% confidence interval [CI]= 1.40, 14.08) and t(4,14) (HR= 2.02, 95% CI=1.14, 3.59) were associated with worse PFS. No difference in mPFS by LD regimen was observed in patients receiving cilta-cel, which was a smaller cohort (mPFS: Flu/Cy 11.7 mos, bendamustine-based NR, cladribine-based NR, cyclophosphamide NR). Rates of all grade CRS (81% vs 70%), Grade ≥ 3 CRS (3% vs 3%), all grade ICANS (19% vs 12%, and Grade ≥ 3 ICANS (4% vs 2%) were similar among those receiving Flu/Cy or other LD regimens, respectively. Patients receiving Flu/Cy LD were less likely to have any grade cytopenia at 1 month (33% vs 55%, p < 0.001) and 3 months (52% vs 69%, p < 0.001), with no observed difference in infection rate. Conclusions: The fludarabine shortage experienced in the US in late 2022 necessitated the use of alternative LD regimens with BCMA-directed CAR-T therapy with most centers relying on bendamustine- or cladribine-based regimens. Use of bendamustine-based LD was associated with inferior PFS in patients receiving ide-cel on univariate analysis, but not on multivariate analysis after adjusting for other prognostic factors. In summary, there is no clear difference in efficacy or safety between Flu/Cy and non-Flu/Cy LD in patients receiving BCMA-directed CAR-T therapy. *Authors contributed equally

Background: Autologous CAR-T therapy targeting CD19 is an effective treatment for relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma (LBCL). However, morbidity and mortality related to CAR-T toxicity remain significant concerns. This study aims to evaluate the patterns, risk factors, and implications of cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome (ICANS) following CD19-CAR-T therapy in LBCL. Methods: This retrospective analysis includes 1916 LBCL patients treated with CD19-CAR-T cell therapy (axicabtagene-ciloleucel [axi-cel] 75% and tisagenlecleucel 25%) between 2018 and 2020 and reported to the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research (CIBMTR). Patient demographics, baseline characteristics, treatment-related variables, and clinical outcomes were collected. The incidence, severity and timing of onset of CRS and ICANS (according to median time to onset) were analyzed, factors associated with these outcomes and their impact on overall survival as time dependent covariates were done using Cox Regression multivariate analyses. Results: The median age of the patients was 64 years, with a majority having a Karnofsky performance status (KPS) below 90% (61%) and not receiving bridging therapy (67%). CRS was observed in 75.1% of patients, with 9% experiencing severe CRS (grades ≥ 3). Similarly, 43% of patients experienced ICANS, with 20% having severe ICANS (grade ≥ 3). The median time to toxicity was shorter for CRS (4 days) compared to ICANS (7 days). Nearly all the patients who developed ICANS also experienced CRS (98%; ), and the correlation between these two events and respective severities are shown in the Figure 1a. In the multivariate analyses, factors associated with development of CRS were gender (women, Odds ratio [OR] 1.39, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.10- 1.76, p=0.006), high LDH at time of infusion (OR 1.56; 95% CI 1.22 - 2.00, p=0.002) and product (axi-cel OR 4.60, 95% CI 3.56 -5.81, p<0.001). Factors associated with the development of ICANS included age (> 65 years, OR 1.83; 1.50-2.24, p<0.001), KPS (<80%, OR 2.48; 1.88-3.27, p<0.001), disease status at infusion (treatment resistant disease, OR 1.98; 1.09-3.58, p=0.024; and untreated relapse OR 2.62, 1.35-5.10, p=0.004) and product (axi-cel, OR 5.85; 4.47-7.64, p<0.0001). Factors associated with severe and early onset CRS and ICANS are listed in the table below. The median follow-up of 14.2 months, the estimated 12-month overall survival, progression-free survival (PFS), and treatment-related mortality were 61.6% (95% CI: 59.4-63.9), 42.2% (39.9-44.5), and 4.3% (3.4-5.3), respectively. Overall CRS, early onset CRS and overall ICANS were not associated with higher mortality, however grade >3 CRS (HR 1.79; 1.41-2.28, p<0.001), grade >3 ICANS (hazard ratio [HR] 1.34; 95% CI 1.13-1.59, p=0.002) and early onset ICANS (<7 days, HR 1.23; 1.05-1.44, p=0.01) were associated with higher mortality. The impact of severe CRS on survival are shown in the landmark analysis at 30 days from infusion in the figure 1B. Conclusion: In the largest analysis of CD19-CAR-T cell therapy toxicities to date, we observed a high burden of CRS and ICANS among LBCL patients. The CAR T cell product type was consistently associated with higher incidence, shorter onset and higher severity of both toxicities. High LDH, older age and low performance score also influence the severity and onset of these outcomes. Additionally, patients who developed higher grades of CRS/ICANS and earlier onset ICANS had a higher mortality, stressing the need to develop novel strategies to mitigate the incidence and optimize management of these patients to improve their outcomes.

Background: Daratumumab-based combination with proteasome inhibitors (PI) and immunomodulatory drugs (IMiDs) have revolutionized the treatment outcomes of relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM). Several daratumumab-based triplet combinations have been approved for the management of RRMM, but outcomes of daratumumab-based triplets in patients with high-risk cytogenetics RRMM (HC-RRMM) are not well described in the literature. This study aimed to evaluate the clinical outcome of daratumumab-based regimens in patients with HC-RRMM who are daratumumab-naïve. Methods: A retrospective review of 110 patients with HC-RRMM who received daratumumab-containing regimens from 6/2016 through 2/2023 at the University of Kansas Medical Center, in collaboration with the U.S Myeloma Innovations Research Collaborative (USMIRC) was conducted. Daratumumab was combined with bortezomib/dexamethasone (DVd), carfilzomib/dexamethasone (DKd), and pomalidomide/dexamethasone (DPd) for treatment of RRMM. HC-RRMM was defined as patients with one or more cytogenetic abnormalities (on FISH panel) including -17/del(17p), t(4;14), t(14;16), t(14;20), or amplification of 1q. Responses to therapy including overall response rate (ORR), complete response or better (≥CR), and very good partial response (VGPR) were evaluated using the International Myeloma Working Group (IMWG) criteria. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize patient and disease characteristics, along with efficacy outcomes. Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were calculated by Kaplan-Meier methods. Results: Of the 110 patients with HC-RRMM, the median age was 66 years (range 43-84), 83 (75%) were Caucasian, 60 (54%) had IgG isotype, 41 (37%) had revised international staging system (R-ISS) stage III disease, 35 (32%) had extramedullary disease (EMD), 57 (52%) patients had one high-risk cytogenetic (HC) abnormality, 49 (44%) had 2 HC abnormalities, while four (4%) had 3 HC abnormalities. The median number of previous lines of therapy was 2 (1-4). Eighty-eight patients (80%) were lenalidomide refractory, while 53 patients (48%) had double refractory disease to both a PI and IMiD treatment. A total of 19 (17%), 27 (25%), and 64 (58%) patients received DVd, DKd, and DPd, respectively. The overall response rate (ORR) for the entire patient population was 73%, 45% had VGPR or better, and 35% achieved ≥CR. Median follow-up was 28 months (12.07-53.57), the median OS was 28 months (95% CI 23.2 - 43.9) and PFS was 8.03 months (95% CI 5.8 - 12.2) for all treatment groups. The median PFS for 1 HC vs ³ 2 HC was 14.8 vs 4.57 months (HR 1.72, 95%CI 1.17-2.72 p = 0.006), respectively. Similarly, median OS for 1 HC vs ³ 2 HC was 43.93 vs 22.47 months (HR 1.87, 95%CI 1.15-3.05, p = 0.011), respectively. (Figure 1). On multivariate analysis, R-ISS stage III, -17/del(17p), and the presence of more than one HC abnormality were associated with poor OS. The most common cause for treatment discontinuation was progressive disease, accounting for 73% of patients in the whole cohort. As for each daratumumab-based triplet, discontinuation due progression occurred in 78%, 48%, and 83% in DVd, DKd, and DPd, respectively. Other causes of discontinuation included > grade 3 neuropathy, which occurred in 16% of patients receiving DVd, and cardiac events, which occurred in 11% of patients receiving DKd. Treatment-related mortality occurred in 2% of patients in the whole cohort. At the time of evaluation, 14 patients remain on treatment. Conclusion: Advanced stage R-ISS disease at diagnosis, presence of -17/del(17p), and 2 or more HC abnormalities were associated with poor prognosis reflected by worse PFS and OS in HC-RRMM treated with daratumumab-based therapies. A larger cohort or a prospective study in patients with HC-RRMM is needed to compare long-term outcomes between daratumumab-based therapies (DKd, DVd, and DPd).

Abstract Idecabtagene vicleucel (ide-cel) was the first chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy to gain US Food and Drug Administration approval for patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM). The clinical outcomes of standard of care (SOC) ide-cel in racially and ethnically diverse populations have been understudied. This study pooled data from 207 patients with RRMM (28% patients of racial and ethnic minority groups) treated with SOC ide-cel across 11 institutions to examine racial and ethnic differences in the incidence of toxicities and adverse events, response to ide-cel, and survival. This study included 22 (11%) Hispanic, 36 (17%) non-Hispanic Black, and 149 (72%) non-Hispanic White patients with RRMM. Compared with Hispanic and non-Hispanic White patients, non-Hispanic Black patients had higher median levels of C-reactive protein (1.0, 0.8, and 3.5 mg/dL, respectively; P = .02) and baseline ferritin (362.0 vs 307.0 vs 680.5, respectively; P = .08) and were more likely to develop cytokine release syndrome (77%, 85%, and 97%, respectively; P = .04). Although best overall response rate was lower among Hispanic patients (59%) than among non-Hispanic Black (86%) and White patients (86%; P = .01), there were no racial and ethnic differences in progression-free or overall survival. We provide, to our knowledge, the first and largest investigation of clinical outcomes of SOC ide-cel by race and ethnicity. Despite differences in safety and response to ide-cel, our findings encourage the use of ide-cel in all patients with RRMM. These findings should be confirmed in larger samples of diverse patients with RRMM, with longer follow-up time.

8013 Background: Ide-cel is an FDA-approved treatment for RRMM patients (pts). However, there is limited data on how BT for disease control during its manufacturing process affects clinical outcomes. Methods: Eleven US academic centers contributed data to this analysis without involvement from the manufacturer. By 5/1/2022, 235 pts had undergone leukapheresis, with 214 infused with a median follow up of 9 months (mos). BT was given between leukapheresis and CAR-T infusion. Results: In this analysis, 79% of pts (n = 170) received BT, which included alkylator-based in 35.5%, steroid and/or IMiD/Ab combos (IMiD combos) in 14%, PI combinations (PI combos) in 12%, and selinexor in 10%. BT recipients had higher ECOG PS 2-4, R-ISS 2-3, ferritin, and CRP before lymphodepleting (LD) chemo, however, no difference among BT subgroups. No difference in prior lines of therapy or penta-refractory between BT and No BT (NBT) groups or BT subgroups. Median cycle of the BT was 1 (1-7), with overall response rate (ORR) of 12%, with no difference among BT subgroups. Incidence and severity of CRS and ICANs were comparable in BT and NBT. However, pts who received BT had a longer median hospital stay compared to NBT, particularly in the alkylator/selinexor subgroups. There were no significant difference in cytopenias at day 90 post CAR-T between the BT and NBT or BT subgroups. For the 73% (n = 157) evaluable for day 90 response, there was no difference in the complete or ORR between the BT and NBT groups (41% vs. 52%; p = .2 and 84% vs. 87.5%, p = .8, respectively). Median PFS was worse at 8.1 mos in BT vs 11.5 mos in NBT (p = .03). Among BT subgroups, PFS was the longest with IMiD combos with median PFS not reached (NR), comparable to NBT, and was significantly longer than all other BT subgroups (p = 0.01). The median OS was 13.8 mos with BT and NR in NBT (p = .002). In BT subgroup analysis, alkylators had a shorter OS, although, this was not significant (p = .06). There was no significant difference in PFS and OS in relationship to response to BT (p = .6 and p = .9, respectively). Conclusions: Pts without BT had longer PFS and OS post ide-cel, likely reflective of less aggressive disease. Those who received BT with steroid/IMiD and Ab combos had similar PFS as NBT. However, BT choice is complicated by disease severity and should be evaluated per patient circumstances. [Table: see text]

Despite advances in treatment, outcomes remain poor for patients with penta-relapsed refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM). In this retrospective analysis, we evaluated the survival outcomes of penta-RRMM patients treated with (BCMA)- directed therapy (BDT). We identified 78 patients with penta-RRMM. Median age was 65 years, 29 (37%) had R-ISS stage III disease, 63 (81%) had high-risk cytogenetics, and 45 (58%) had extra-medullary disease. Median LOT prior to penta-refractory state was 5 (3–12). Amongst penta-RRMM, 43 (55%) were treated with BDT, 35 (45%) were not treated with BDT. Type of BDT received included belantamab mafadotin 15 (35%), Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell therapy 9 (21%), BCMA monoclonal antibody 6 (14%), and Bispecific T-cell engager 2 (5%). Eleven (25%) patients received more than one BDT. No significant differences were identified between baseline characteristics for the two groups. Patients treated with a BDT had better median overall survival, 17 vs. 6 months, HR 0.3 p-value < 0.001. Poor performance status, white race, and high-risk cytogenetics were associated with worse outcomes, whereas using a BDT was associated with better outcomes. Patients with penta-refractory MM have poor outcomes. Our retrospective analysis showed a significant survival benefit using BDT when compared to non-BDT for patients with penta-RRMM.