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246 citation(s) found for "Ballman, Karla".

Reply to: Was Futility in RADICAL Robust to Analytic Specification?
McKay, Rana R , Ballman, Karla , Choueiri, Toni K

Mayo Clinic

Journal of Clinical Oncology | October 27, 2026 | Volume: No volume available | Issue: No issue available | Pages: No page available

10.1200/jco-26-02352 | PMID 42945497 Get It

A Phase 2 Study of Berzosertib in Combination with Carboplatin compared to Docetaxel with Carboplatin in Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer
Choudhury, Atish D. , Zhong, Caiwei , Xie, Wanling , Kochupurakkal, Bose , Wu, Peter I-Fan , Riaz, Irbaz Bin , Liu, Ruolin , Yang, David D. , Folefac, Edmund , Lee, Daniel , McKay, Rana R. , Pace, Amanda F. , Adalsteinsson, Viktor A. , Kunos, Charles A., Gore, Steven D. , Das, Biswajit , Taplin, Mary‐Ellen , Kochupurakkal, Bose S , Parikh, Mamta , Einstein, David J , Kessler, Elizabeth , Mayer, Tina , McKay, Rana R , Pace, Amanda , Mouw, Kent W , Chen, Li , Adalsteinsson, Viktor A , Van Allen, Eliezer M , Kunos, Charles , Gore, Steven D , Das, Biswasjit , D'Andrea, Alan , Taplin, Mary-Ellen , Shapiro, Geoffrey I , Choudhury, Atish D , Riaz, Irbaz B , Xie, Wanling , Wu, Peter I-Fan , Mouw, Kent W. , D’Andrea, Alan D. , Shapiro, Geoffrey I.

Mayo Clinic

Cancer Research Communications | August 24, 2026 | Volume: No volume available | Issue: No issue available | Pages: No page available

10.1158/2767-9764.crc-26-0488 | PMID 42636061 Get It

Abstract Purpose: Inhibitors of the Ataxia telangiectasia and Rad3-related (ATR) protein kinase, a critical component of the DNA damage repair response, have synergistic anti-cancer activity with platinum compounds in preclinical models. We therefore conducted a Phase 2 study of the ATR inhibitor berzosertib+carboplatin vs. docetaxel+carboplatin in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. Patients and Methods: Patients previously treated with at least one androgen receptor pathway inhibitor and taxane underwent mandatory biopsy and were randomized 1:1 to receive Arm A (docetaxel 60 mg/m2+carboplatin AUC4 day 1; or carboplatin AUC5 if not a docetaxel candidate) or Arm B (berzosertib 90 mg/m2 days 2,9+carboplatin AUC5 day 1) every 21 days. The primary endpoint was overall response rate (ORR; ≥50% PSA decline or radiographic response). Results: Of 73 randomized patients, 65 received protocol treatment: 34 on Arm A (26 docetaxel+carboplatin; 8 carboplatin alone) and 31 on Arm B. Thirteen patients (38%) in Arm A and 20 (65%) in Arm B had ≥Grade 3 treatment-related adverse events (TrAEs). ORR was 15% in Arm A (5/34; 5/26[19%] with docetaxel+carboplatin) and 0% in Arm B (0/31). At interim analysis after 65 of planned 130 patients were treated, enrollment was halted due to futility. Homologous recombination repair deficiency status from tissue and blood did not correlate with clinical outcomes, but ATM-deficiency or high levels of phoshpo-KAP1 detected in tissue was associated with clinical benefit across both arms of the trial. Conclusions: Berzosertib+carboplatin demonstrated lower ORR and more frequent ≥grade 3 TrAEs compared to docetaxel+carboplatin in this heavily pre-treated, biomarker-unselected population. NCT03517969
Prognostic and Predictive Effect of Age in Molecularly Defined Lower-Grade Gliomas
Minniti, Giuseppe, Brown, Paul D. , Vogelbaum, Michael A. , Ballman, Karla V. , Mercurio, Ann, Siegelin, Markus D., Tuohy, Kyle , Mansouri, Alireza , Simonelli, Matteo, DeStephano, David, Shuryak, Igor , Roy, Soumyajit , Hervey-Jumper, Shawn L., Horowitz, David P. , Sisti, Michael B. , Bruce, Jeffrey N. , Canoll, Peter, Neugut, Alfred I. , Iwamoto, Fabio M., Cheng, Simon K. , Kachnic, Lisa A. , Kinslow, Connor J , Brown, Paul D , Vogelbaum, Michael A , Ballman, Karla , Mercurio, Ann , Tuohy, Kyle , Mansouri, Alireza , Touat, Mehdi , Dehais, Caroline , Dipasquale, Angelo , Grinband, Jack , Yu, James B , Walch, Henry , Parker, Mitchell I , Shuryak, Igor , Roy, Soumyajit , Gallitto, Matthew , Horowitz, David P , McKhann, Guy M , Bruce, Jeffrey N , Ostrom, Quinn T , Neugut, Alfred I , Pike, Luke R G , Cheng, Simon K , Kachnic, Lisa A , Mehta, Minesh P , Wang, Tony J C , Minniti, Giuseppe , Siegelin, Markus D. , Kocakavuk, Emre , Ducray, François , Simonelli, Matteo , Yu, James B. , Hervey‐Jumper, Shawn L. , McKhann, Guy M. , Canoll, Peter , Ostrom, Quinn T. , Iwamoto, Fabio M., Mehta, Minesh P. , Wang, Tony J. C.

Mayo Clinic

Journal of Clinical Oncology | August 12, 2026 | Volume: No volume available | Issue: No issue available | Pages: No page available

10.1200/jco-25-01846 | PMID 42585601 Get It

PURPOSE Age ≥40 years is regarded as a high-risk feature and an indication for adjuvant chemoradiotherapy for patients with lower-grade glioma in clinical practice guidelines. It is unclear whether age remains a relevant prognostic factor for contemporary definitions of lower-grade gliomas in the molecular era. METHODS The Prospective Gliomas Research (PROGRES) database contains individual patient-level data from 11 prospective clinical trials or observational registries of histologically defined lower-grade 2-3 oligodendroglioma or astrocytoma. We determined the association of age (18-39 years v ≥40 years) with progression-free survival (PFS) stratified by isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 or 2 ( IDH1/2 ) status, using log-rank tests and Cox regression models. We validated our findings in a separate multi-institutional retrospective cohort (Retrospective Glioma Research [REGRES] database). RESULTS We identified 1,619 and 1,292 eligible patients in the PROGRES and REGRES cohorts, respectively. IDH -wildtype tumors were more common in patients 40 years and older (38% v 5%, odds ratio: 11.3 [95% CI, 6.5 to 19.7]). Age was associated with PFS in IDH -wildtype (5-year PFS for ≥40 v 18-39 years: 6% v 24%, hazard ratio [HR], 1.74 [95% CI, 1.21 to 2.50]) but not in IDH -mutant glioma (60% v 59%, HR, 0.89 [95% CI, 0.76 to 1.05], P interaction < .001). In IDH -wildtype tumors, older age predicted aggressive molecular features, including TERT promoter mutation (65% v 28%), EGFR amplification (41% v 15%), and chromosome +7/–10 alteration (57% v 25%). In a pooled analysis of four clinical trials, age was not predictive of a benefit from chemoradiotherapy versus radiotherapy alone for IDH -mutant glioma. CONCLUSION In the absence of additional clinical or molecular risk factors, age alone should not be considered an indication for administration or deferral of adjuvant treatment. Practice guidelines should be revised to reflect contemporary prognostic factors in the molecular era.
Combination of Radiation Therapy and Irreversible Electroporation for Intermediate-Risk Prostate Cancer (RTIRE): A Phase 1 Trial
Mcclure, Timothy D. , Ballman, Karla V. , Diven, Marshall, Osborne, Joseph R. , O’Dwyer, Elisabeth , Piscopo, Jennifer, Khani, Francesca , Marciscano, Ariel, Awamlh, Bashir Al Hussein Al , Wang, Shu , Ballman, Karla , Osborne, Joseph R , Al Hussein Al Awamlh, Bashir , Barbieri, Christopher , Nagar, Himanshu , Diven, Marshall A., Marciscano, Ariel E.

Mayo Clinic

Radiology | July 28, 2026 | Volume: 320 | Issue: 1 | Pages: No page available

10.1148/radiol.250848 | PMID 42517770 Get It

Treatment of participants with intermediate-risk prostate cancer with focal irreversible electroporation and radiation therapy was technically feasible and showed acceptable patient-reported outcomes and no severe adverse events over 1 year.
Phase II Randomized Trial of Radium-223 Dichloride and Cabozantinib in Patients With Renal Cell Carcinoma With Bone Metastases: RADICAL (Alliance A031801)
McKay, Rana R. , Ballman, Karla V. , Atherton, Pamela J. , Ajmera, Archana , Baghdadi, Tareq Al, Baumann, Brian C. , Beltran, Himisha , Berg, Stephanie , Chen, Ronald C. , Choudhury, Atish D. , Jacene, Heather A. , Kilari, Deepak , Kwok, Young , Swami, Umang , Tan, Alan , Yang, Yuanquan , Zhang, Tian , Galsky, Matthew D. , George, Daniel J. , Baghdadi, Tareq Al , Cole, Suzanne , Jacene, Heather A , Lang, Joshua M , Kilari, Deepak , Kwok, Young , McGregor, Bradley , Morris, Michael J , Parikh, Mamta , Swami, Umang , Tan, Alan , Yang, Yuanquan A , Zhang, Tian , Galsky, Matthew D , Rosenberg, Jonathan E , George, Daniel J , Choueiri, Toni K , Baumann, Brian C , Choudhury, Atish D , Chen, Ronald , Ballman, Karla , Berg, Stephanie A , Cole, Suzanne , Lang, Joshua M. , McGregor, Bradley A. , Morris, Michael J. , Choueiri, Toni K.

Mayo Clinic

Journal of Clinical Oncology | July 27, 2026 | Volume: 44 | Issue: 24 | Pages: 2341-2352

10.1200/jco-26-01135 | PMID 42507969 Get It

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.
Long-term follow-up from the OMNIVORE trial: response-adaptive nivolumab and ipilimumab in advanced renal cell carcinoma
McKay, Rana R. , Serzan, Michael, Xie, Wanling, Braun, David A. , Wei, Xiao X. , Kyriakopoulos, Christos E. , Zakharia, Yousef , Maughan, Benjamin L. , Rose, Tracy, Mcdermott, David F, Braun, David , Wei, Xiao , Kyriakopoulos, Christos E , Zakharia, Yousef , Choueiri, Toni K , Xie, Wanling , McGregor, Bradley A. , Stadler, Walter M. , McDermott, David F. , Choueiri, Toni K.

Mayo Clinic

Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer | July 1, 2026 | Volume: 14 | Issue: 7 | Pages: e015501

10.1136/jitc-2026-015501 | PMID 42386345 Get It

Background Immune checkpoint inhibitor-based combinations represent the standard of care for advanced renal cell carcinoma. The OMNIVORE trial investigated a response-adaptive strategy, including treatment discontinuation in early nivolumab responders (Arm A) and salvage ipilimumab addition in non-responders (Arm B). Here we report outcomes with extended follow-up. Methods OMNIVORE was a phase II response-adaptive trial in which patients received induction nivolumab monotherapy. Patients achieving a confirmed complete or partial response discontinued nivolumab and entered observation (Arm A), while patients with stable disease or progressive disease received two doses of ipilimumab added to ongoing nivolumab (Arm B). This analysis characterizes long-term overall survival across the full study cohort and durability of response among patients who discontinued nivolumab following an early objective response. Results Of 83 patients who initiated treatment, 12 (14%) were allocated to Arm A and 57 (69%) to Arm B, with a median follow-up among living patients of 59.4 months (range 29.1–85.4 months) in Arm A and 31.4 months (range 4.6–62.6 months) in Arm B. The 3-year overall survival rate from nivolumab initiation was 64% (95% CI 51% to 74%) in the overall cohort, 83% (95% CI 48% to 96%) in Arm A, and 63% (95% CI 47% to 76%) in Arm B. Of the 12 Arm A patients, 6 (50%) remained off nivolumab at 1 year following treatment discontinuation, of whom 5 maintained responses beyond 43 months off therapy, with all remaining alive at last known follow-up, with overall survival ranging from 48.8 to 85.4 months from nivolumab initiation. Of the six patients who resumed treatment, only one achieved a durable complete response remaining on treatment at 83.2 months from nivolumab initiation. All 57 Arm B patients discontinued treatment with a median treatment duration of 3.7 months (range 1–24.8 months) and a median progression-free survival from nivolumab plus ipilimumab initiation of 4.6 months (95% CI 2.7 to 6.5 months). Conclusions With extended follow-up, a meaningful subset of patients achieving an early objective response to nivolumab maintained prolonged treatment-free survival following a short course of treatment. Salvage ipilimumab in nivolumab non-responders demonstrated limited benefit, reinforcing that upfront concurrent dual checkpoint blockade remains the preferred approach. Trial registration number NCT03203473 .
SARC041: A phase 3 randomized double-blind study of abemaciclib versus placebo in patients with advanced dedifferentiated liposarcoma.
Riedel, Richard F. , Riedel, Richard F , Dickson, Mark A. , Ballman, Karla V. , Weiss, Mia C. , Attia, Steven , Pollack, Seth M. , Choy, Edwin , Wagner, Andrew J. , Wilky, Breelyn A , Davis, Lara E. , Koff, Andrew, Tap, William D.

Mayo Clinic

Journal of Clinical Oncology | June 3, 2026 | Volume: 44 | Issue: 17_suppl | Pages: No page available

10.1200/jco.2026.44.17_suppl.lba2 Get It

LBA2 Background: Dedifferentiated liposarcoma (DDLS) remains a difficult disease to treat with limited systemic therapy options. Approved drugs offer modest benefit such as trabectedin (median progression-free survival [mPFS] 2.2 months [m]) or eribulin (mPFS 2.0m). The Cyclin-dependent kinase 4 (CDK4) oncogene is ubiquitously amplified in DDLS and is a rational therapeutic target. In single-arm phase 2 studies, treatment with selective CDK4 inhibitors resulted in mPFS 4.2m with palbociclib and mPFS 7.7m with abemaciclib. We hypothesized that treatment with abemaciclib would improve PFS compared to placebo in patients with recurrent or metastatic DDLS. Methods: SARC041 was a phase 3 randomized double-blind study of abemaciclib versus placebo. The study was open at 9 academic medical centers in the USA. Eligible patients (pts) had recurrent or metastatic DDLS (purely well-differentiated liposarcoma excluded), progression of disease by RECIST 1.1 in the 6 months prior to study entry, any number of prior systemic therapies, and adequate organ function and performance status. Pts were stratified by prior lines of therapy (0 vs 1 or more) and randomized 1:1 between abemaciclib 200 mg PO twice a day or matching placebo. Scans were every 6 weeks (every 12 weeks after week 36) and pts with progression of disease on placebo could cross over to open label abemaciclib. The primary endpoint was PFS. The design provided 80% power with two-sided 10% significance level to detect a hazard ratio of 0.6 by log-rank test. Secondary endpoints were overall response rate (ORR), PFS and response rate after crossover, and overall survival (OS). Data cutoff was March 1, 2026. Results: In total, 108 pts were randomized to receive abemaciclib (n = 54) or placebo (n = 54). Demographic/baseline characteristics were generally similar across treatment arms. Abemaciclib demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in PFS at 9.67m vs placebo at 1.52m (hazard ratio [HR] 0.39; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.25–0.59; p < 0.001). ORR was 9.3% for abemaciclib vs 0% for placebo (p = 0.057). mOS was not reached with abemaciclib vs 25.45m with placebo (HR 0.55; 95% CI, 0.28–1.07; p = 0.077). mPFS after crossover from placebo to abemaciclib was 3.44m (95% CI 2.66, 6.84). ORR after crossover was 4.3% (95% CI 0.53%, 15%). mOS after crossover was 24.03m (95% CI: 11.7, NA). Grade 3 or higher adverse event rates were similar in both arms (p > 0.99). No new safety signals were observed. Conclusions: Abemaciclib demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in PFS vs placebo in pts with dedifferentiated liposarcoma, with an encouraging OS trend. These results support abemaciclib as a new treatment option for dedifferentiated liposarcoma. Clinical trial information: NCT04967521 .
SARC046: A phase II trial of nab-sirolimus in patients with progressing or symptomatic epithelioid hemangioendothelioma.
Wagner, Michael J. , Robinson, Denise, Movva, Sujana , Wilky, Breelyn A., Weiss, Mia C. , Bui, Nam, Overman, Lindsey , Okuno, Scott H. , Bui, Nam Q. , Bui, Nam , Ballman, Karla V. , Robinson, Denise, Coté, Gregory M. , Wilky, Breelyn A , Bui, Nam

Mayo Clinic

Journal of Clinical Oncology | May 28, 2026 | Volume: 44 | Issue: 16_suppl | Pages: No page available

10.1200/jco.2026.44.16_suppl.tps11592 Get It

TPS11592 Background: Epithelioid hemangioendothelioma (EHE) is an ultra-rare vascular sarcoma with about 120 cases diagnosed in the US per year. Although it is commonly considered an indolent disease, in its aggressive form clinical outcomes are poor. Molecularly, EHE is characterized by the presence of oncogenic fusions with HIPPO pathway effectors TAZ or YAP; TAZ-CAMTA1 or YAP-TFE3. YAP/TAZ are modulators of mTORC1 in preclinical models, suggesting that mTOR inhibition may be an effective treatment mechanism for EHE. Nab-sirolimus is albumin bound sirolimus, which achieves higher intratumoral accumulation compared to oral sirolimus and has demonstrated increased antitumor activity in preclinical cancer models compared to the oral mTOR inhibitors sirolimus and everolimus. This is an open label, multi-center, single arm, phase II clinical trial with a two-stage design, testing nab-sirolimus for progressing or symptomatic EHE. The primary objective is to determine ORR of nab-sirolimus in patients with EHE who require systemic treatment. We hypothesize that nab-sirolimus will have significant clinical efficacy for EHE as measured by the primary endpoint of objective response rate, as well as by secondary outcomes including progression free survival benefit over historical controls and by improvement in patient reported outcomes (PROs). If positive, this trial could lead to a new standard of care for treating EHE. Methods: This is a single arm, multi-center, phase 2 study with a two-stage design. Key inclusion criteria include histologically or cytologically confirmed EHE that is either progressing or clinically symptomatic, not a candidate for curative intent surgery, and requires systemic therapy in the opinion of the investigator, radiographically evaluable disease by RECIST v1.1, age ≥18 years, ECOG performance status ≤ 2, and adequate end organ function. With a Simon two-stage optimal design with one sided alpha 0.10, power 90%, assuming a historical control ORR 5% to detect an ORR of 20% (alternative hypothesis), 12 patients will be included in the first stage. If there is ≥ 1 response, an additional 25 patients will be enrolled to a total of 37 patients. ≥ 4 responses are needed for a significant result. The total planned accrual is 41 patients to account for unevaluable patients who may be enrolled, 10% above the required evaluable patients. Planned post hoc subgroup analyses will include outcomes by fusion type and presence of serosal effusions at the time of study enrollment. The trial is registered at clinicaltrials.gov NCT07104331. Clinical trial information: NCT07104331 .
SARC045: A phase 2 trial of tebentafusp in HLA-A*02:01–positive patients with advanced clear cell sarcoma.
Agulnik, Mark, D'Angelo, Sandra P., Napolitano, Andrea , Ballman, Karla V. , Pollack, Seth M. , D'Angelo, Sandra P

Mayo Clinic

Journal of Clinical Oncology | May 28, 2026 | Volume: 44 | Issue: 16_suppl | Pages: No page available

10.1200/jco.2026.44.16_suppl.tps11591 Get It

TPS11591 Background: Tebentafusp (Kimmtrak) is a first-in-class bispecific T-cell engager, specifically a T-cell receptor (TCR)-anti-CD3 fusion protein, approved for HLA-A*02:01+ metastatic or unresectable uveal melanoma. Tebentafusp binds to the HLA-A02:01/gp100 peptide complexes on the tumour cell surface, recruiting polyclonal T cells, via CD3, to release cytokines and cytolytic mediators against the tumour. Clear cell sarcoma (CCS) is an ultra-rare soft-tissue sarcoma subtype with poor prognosis and limited therapeutic options. On histopathology, CCS is characterised by the expression of melanocytic antigens, including gp100. Methods: This Phase 2 trial evaluates the efficacy of Tebentafusp in HLA-A*02:01 positive patients with advanced CCS. Twenty-three patients will be treated with weekly I.V. infusion of Tebentafusp at the recommended dose until evidence of clinical benefit or patient withdrawal from study. Baseline and on-treatment biopsies, as well as longitudinal peripheral blood samples will be collected for translational analyses. Prospective data will also be collected from an observational non-comparative cohort of up to 24 patients with advanced CCS not eligible for the study due to incompatible HLA. Enrolment to the study has commenced in October 2025 in the US, with two currently active sites (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and University of Southern California). One additional US site (Northwestern University) and one UK site (The Royal Marsden Hospital) are due to open. At the time of submission, 1 HLA-A*02:01 advanced CCS patient had started treatment with Tebentafusp. Clinical trial information: NCT06942442 .