McGregor, Bradley

PURPOSE Bone metastases (BM) occur in approximately 30% of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) and are associated with poor survival and symptomatic skeletal events (SSEs). Radium-223, an alpha-emitting bone-seeking radioisotope, and cabozantinib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, have demonstrated activity in BM. RADICAL (Alliance A031801; ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT04071223 ) evaluated cabozantinib ± radium-223 in mRCC with BM. METHODS This phase II trial enrolled patients with mRCC of any histology with ≥1 BM. Patients were randomly assigned 1:1 to cabozantinib ± radium-223, stratified by osteoclast-targeted therapy (OTT), prior therapy, opioid use, and International mRCC Database Consortium (IMDC) risk. The primary end point was SSE-free survival (SSE-FS). Secondary end points included safety, objective response rate (ORR), progression-free survival, and overall survival (OS). A target of 124 evaluable patients was planned, with a prespecified interim futility analysis at 50% of expected SSE-FS events; the trial would stop if the stratified hazard ratio (sHR) > 1.0. RESULTS The prespecified interim futility analysis was conducted after 90 patients were enrolled and crossed the futility boundary, leading to closure at 98 patients. The final analysis included all 98 patients. Median age was 63 years, 82.7% had clear cell histology, and 79.6% were using an OTT. IMDC risk was favorable (18.4%), intermediate (67.3%), and poor (14.3%). Median follow-up was 13.1 months. Median SSE-FS for cabozantinib with radium-223 versus cabozantinib was 16.7 versus 17.6 months (sHR, 1.46 [90% CI, 0.86 to 2.51]). Median OS was 28.3 versus 19.7 months (sHR, 1.40 [95% CI, 0.70 to 2.79]). ORR was 19.4% versus 25.0% ( P = .78). Grade ≥3 adverse events were similar across arms (69.6% v 75.5%). CONCLUSION Radium-223 did not improve SSE-FS when added to cabozantinib. The combination demonstrated a manageable safety profile.

Abstract Background S0221 investigated weekly vs every 2 weeks dosing of doxorubicin (A) and cyclophosphamide (C) followed by paclitaxel in patients with high-risk early breast cancer. After an interim analysis, random assignment to the 2 AC arms was stopped for futility, and the trial was modified to study only the paclitaxel schedules. Methods Between December 2003 and November 2010, a total of 2716 patients were randomly assigned in a 2 × 2 factorial design to 15 weeks of weekly A and daily C vs 6 cycles of every 2 weeks AC; and weekly paclitaxel for 12 weeks vs 6 cycles of every 2 weeks paclitaxel. Between January 2011 and January 2012, an additional 578 patients were assigned to 4 cycles of every 2 weeks AC and randomly assigned to weekly vs every 2 weeks paclitaxel. Updated survival was assessed using log-rank tests and Cox regression models. We compared outcomes by breast cancer subtype as well. Results At a median follow-up of 12.1 years, there were no statistically significant differences among the 4 treatment arms in disease-free survival (DFS) (P = .91) or overall survival (P = .34) in the original protocol. Among the 578 patients assigned AC for 4 cycles and randomly assigned to paclitaxel weekly vs every 2 weeks paclitaxel, there were no overall differences in DFS (P = .32) or overall survival (P = .42). Conclusion As there were no statistically significant outcome differences in DFS or overall survival between the studied schedules of AC and paclitaxel with extended follow-up in the original or revised protocol, either paclitaxel schedule may be recommended, with selection based on toxicity, cost, or patient preference.

PURPOSE The COSMIC-021 study assessed the safety and efficacy of cabozantinib plus atezolizumab in advanced solid tumors. Presented here are results from the expansion cohorts with advanced urothelial carcinoma (UC). METHODS This phase Ib study (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03170960 ) enrolled patients with inoperable locally advanced/metastatic UC into four tumor cohorts: first-line cisplatin-eligible (cis-eligible), first-line cisplatin-ineligible (cis-ineligible), previous platinum-containing chemotherapy (previous chemotherapy-treated), and previous immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI)–treated. Patients received oral cabozantinib 40 mg once daily and intravenous atezolizumab 1,200 mg once every 3 weeks. The primary end point was objective response rate (ORR), as assessed by the investigator per RECIST v1.1 every 6 weeks for 12 months and every 12 weeks thereafter; the secondary end point was safety. RESULTS A total of 121 patients (previous ICI-treated cohort, n = 31, and each of the other cohorts, n = 30) received study treatment from March 2018 to November 2021. The ORR (95% CI) was 30% (15 to 49) for cis-eligible, 20% (8 to 39) for cis-ineligible, 27% (12 to 46) for previous chemotherapy-treated, and 10% (2 to 26) for previous ICI-treated cohorts. The median progression-free survival (95% CI) was 5.5 (1.6 to 11.6), 5.6 (3.1 to 11.1), 5.4 (1.6 to 7.6), and 3.0 (1.8 to 5.5) months, respectively. Grade 3 or 4 treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs) were experienced by 43%, 67%, 57%, and 45% of patients, respectively. TRAEs led to discontinuation of all treatment components in 17%, 13%, 3%, and 19%, respectively. No grade 5 TRAEs were reported in any cohort. CONCLUSION The novel combination of cabozantinib plus atezolizumab exhibited clinical activity in advanced UC that is cis-eligible, cis-ineligible, or previously treated with platinum-containing chemotherapy; clinical activity in previous ICI-treated UC was modest. The toxicity profile was consistent with that previously reported for the combination.

Abstract Purpose: To evaluate the association between neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and efficacy of avelumab plus axitinib or sunitinib. Experimental Design: Adult patients with untreated advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC) with a clear-cell component, ≥1 measurable lesions, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0 or 1, fresh or archival tumor specimen, and adequate renal, cardiac, and hepatic function were included. Retrospective analyses of the association between baseline NLR and progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in the avelumab plus axitinib or sunitinib arms were performed using the first interim analysis of the phase 3 JAVELIN Renal 101 trial (NCT02684006). Multivariate Cox regression analyses of PFS and OS were conducted. Translational data were assessed to elucidate the underlying biology associated with differences in NLR. Results: Patients with below-median NLR had longer observed PFS with avelumab plus axitinib [stratified HR, 0.85; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.634–1.153] or sunitinib (HR, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.415–0.745). In the avelumab plus axitinib or sunitinib arms, respectively, median PFS was 13.8 and 11.2 months in patients with below-median NLR, and 13.3 and 5.6 months in patients with median-or-higher NLR. Below-median NLR was also associated with longer observed OS in the avelumab plus axitinib (HR, 0.51; 95% CI, 0.300–0.871) and sunitinib arms (HR, 0.30; 95% CI, 0.174–0.511). Tumor analyses showed an association between NLR and key biological characteristics, suggesting a role of NLR in underlying mechanisms influencing clinical outcome. Conclusions: Current data support NLR as a prognostic biomarker in patients with advanced RCC receiving avelumab plus axitinib or sunitinib.

PURPOSE COSMIC-021 is evaluating cabozantinib plus atezolizumab in patients with solid tumors. We report results from patients with advanced clear cell (cc) and non–clear cell (ncc) renal cell carcinoma (RCC). METHODS This phase Ib study ( NCT03170960 ) enrolled patients age ≥ 18 years with advanced RCC. A dose-escalation stage was followed by expansion cohorts. For cohort expansion, prior systemic therapy was not permitted for ccRCC but allowed for nccRCC. Patients received oral cabozantinib 40 mg once a day (ccRCC and nccRCC) or 60 mg once a day (ccRCC only) plus atezolizumab (1,200 mg intravenously, once every 3 weeks). The primary end point was investigator-assessed objective response rate (ORR) per RECIST v1.1; the secondary end point was safety. RESULTS A total of 102 patients were enrolled. Median follow-up was 25.8, 15.3, and 13.3 months for the 40-mg ccRCC, 60-mg ccRCC, and nccRCC groups, respectively. ORR was 53% (80% CI, 41 to 65) in the 40-mg ccRCC group (n = 34) and 58% (80% CI, 46 to 70) in the 60-mg ccRCC group (n = 36), 3% and 11%, respectively, with complete response; median progression-free survival (exploratory end point) was 19.5 and 15.1 months, respectively. In nccRCC (n = 32), ORR was 31% (80% CI, 20 to 44), all partial responses; median progression-free survival was 9.5 months. Grade 3 or 4 treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs) were reported by 71% of patients in the 40-mg ccRCC group, 67% in the 60-mg ccRCC group, and 38% in the nccRCC group; TRAEs leading to discontinuation of both agents occurred in 15%, 6%, and 3% of patients, respectively. There were no grade 5 TRAEs. CONCLUSION The novel combination of cabozantinib plus atezolizumab demonstrated encouraging clinical activity and acceptable tolerability in patients with advanced ccRCC and nccRCC. Disease control was observed across dose levels and histologic subtypes.