Tag Archive for: lymphoma

girl hugging stuffed animal

Developing next-generation T cells to fight cancer

girl hugging stuffed animal

In the last decade, researchers have witnessed significant advances in the immunotherapy field. Most recently, a study in Nature claimed a novel CAR T-cell therapy “cured” a patient.

In the last decade, researchers have witnessed significant advances in the immunotherapy field. Most recently, a study in Nature claimed a novel CAR T-cell therapy “cured” a patient. Given the landmark scientific achievement for patients with different types of leukemia and lymphoma, Children’s National Hospital experts chimed in on the technology they have developed beyond CAR T cells.

Catherine Bollard, M.D., M.B.Ch.B., director of the Center for Cancer and Immunology Research at Children’s National Hospital, discusses the implications of this research, how it relates to the work she’s doing at Children’s National and the future of T-cell therapies.

Q: What did the research published in Nature find?

A: It reported a decade-long experience with this novel T-cell therapy called CD19 CAR T cells. These were used to treat patients with a type of leukemia or lymphoma that expresses the CD19 on its surface. While the article reported the experience of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania, multiple groups throughout the country did similar trials that have used these unique CD19 CAR T cells to treat children and adults with these refractory blood cancers.

Q: What are your thoughts on the implications of this research?

A: We now have three FDA-approved commercial CD19 CAR T-cell products developed by several academic institutions. This is revolutionary for our patients who have B-cell leukemias and lymphomas. It’s incredibly exciting for our T-cell therapy field in general because this was the first time the FDA approved a T-cell therapy. What it means now is the field is extremely excited to develop similar effective therapies for other patients with cancer.

Q: How does this relate to your work at Children’s National?

A: While CAR T cells have made tremendous progress for patients with B-cell leukemias, lymphomas and other blood cancers, the CAR T-cell field has not made the same impact for adult and pediatric solid tumors. We think the field is going to expand the type of T-cell therapies we’re generating beyond just CAR T cells. That’s where the work we’re doing comes in – not only by developing new T cells that don’t need gene engineering but also T cells that can be used as a platform for next-generation engineering approaches. We think the technology we’ve developed at Children’s National will help make an impact, especially in the solid tumor space. I hope in the next 10 years, we’ll be having a conversation not just about CAR T cells, but about other types of T cells that are now making an impact for solid tumors.

Q: How are the CAR T cells you develop different than those in the Nature article?

A: We think our multi-antigen specific T cells are complimentary and could have more potency than conventional CAR T cells for solid tumors especially when used in combination. This is in part because they can identify multiple targets on a tumor cell. Tumor cells are very clever and try to hide from T-cell therapies by down regulating the target that the T cell is directed towards. However, our novel T-cell therapies get around that escape by targeting multiple targets in a single product, making it much harder for the cancer cell to hide from the immune attack by the T cells.

Additionally, we’re excited by our approach because not all of our products require gene engineering, unlike CAR T cells. We have effectively used our T cells to target viruses in the “off-the-shelf” setting and we’re now about to start a first human clinical trial at Children’s National using an off the shelf T-cell product for children with solid tumors. It makes the T-cell therapy more like an “off-the-shelf” drug therapy that will allow us to treat many more children and adults nationally, as well as we hope, internationally.

Hodgkin lymphoma cells

T-cell therapy alone or combined with nivolumab is safe and persistent in attacking Hodgkin’s lymphoma cells

Hodgkin lymphoma cells

Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a type of cancer that attacks part of the immune system and expresses tumor-associated antigens (TAA) that are potential targets for cellular therapies.

It is safe for patients with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL) to receive a novel tumor-associated antigen specific T-cell therapy (TAA-T) either alone or combined with a checkpoint inhibitor, nivolumab — a medication used to treat several types of cancer. The study, published in Blood Advances, further suggests that nivolumab aids in T-cell persistence and expansion to ultimately enhance anti-tumor activity. This offers a potential option for patients who do not have a durable remission with checkpoint inhibitors alone or are at a high risk of relapse after a transplant.

“The fact that this combination therapy is so safe was very encouraging for the treatment of patients with lymphomas,” said Catherine Bollard, M.D., M.B.Ch.B., director of the Center for Cancer and Immunology Research at Children’s National Hospital. “In addition, this data allows us to consider this combination immunotherapy for other patients, including those with solid tumors.”

HL is a type of cancer that attacks part of the immune system and expresses tumor-associated antigens (TAA) that are potential targets for cellular therapies. While it may affect children and adults, it is most common in those who are between 20 and 40 years old. The survival rate for this condition has improved due to scientific advances.

A new approach in cancer therapy is the use of “checkpoint inhibitors,” which are a class of drugs that block some of the inhibitory pathways of the immune system to unleash a powerful tumor killing immune response. Similarly, T-cell therapies have also shown to enhance anti-tumor immune response. Therefore, combining these novel immune therapies is an attractive and targeted alternative to conventional untargeted therapies – such as chemotherapy and radiation – which not only kill the tumor cells but also can kill healthy cells and tissues.

“In five to 10 years we can get rid of chemotherapy and radiation therapy and have an immunotherapy focused treatment for this disease,” said Dr. Bollard.

To determine the safety of infusing TAA-T with and without checkpoint inhibitors, eight patients were infused with TAA-specific T-cell products manufactured from their own blood. Two other patients received TAA-T generated from matched healthy donors as adjuvant therapy after hematopoietic stem cell transplant. According to Dave et al., the TAA-T infusions were safe and patients who received TAA-T as adjuvant therapy after transplant remained in continued remission for over two years.

Of the eight patients with active disease, one patient had a complete response, and seven had stable disease at three months, three of whom remained with stable disease during the first year.

“Treating Hodgkin’s lymphoma with cellular therapy has not yet achieved the same success that we have seen for other lymphoma subtypes,” said Keri Toner, M.D., attending physician at Children’s National. “This study brings us closer to overcoming some of the current barriers by developing methods to improve the persistence and function of the tumor-specific T-cells.”

This study builds upon the researchers’ latest findings in another study, which demonstrated that TAA-T manufactured from patients were safe and associated with prolonged time to progression in solid tumors.

“The addition of a checkpoint inhibitor like Nivolumab to the TAA-T treatment is a powerful next step, but previously, the safety of this combination was unknown,” said Patrick Hanley, Ph.D., chief and director of the Cellular Therapy Program at Children’s National, leader of the GMP laboratory and co-author of the study. “Now that we have demonstrated a safety profile, the next step will be to evaluate the efficacy of this combination in a larger subset of patients.”

Hodgkin lymphoma cells

Clinical Trial Spotlight: Can Nivolumab make cellular therapy more effective for treating relapsed lymphomas?

Hodgkin lymphoma cells

Each year, about 9,000 new patients are diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma, 10-15% of them children.

Each year, about 9,000 new patients are diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma, 10-15% of them children. Despite a relatively high cure rate for children with Hodgkin lymphoma, there are many debilitating long-term side effects of the treatments currently used. Additionally, 15-20% of children have a relapse and only half of them experience a long-term cure. Diffuse large B cell Lymphomas are another type of aggressive lymphoma that are difficult to cure, especially when they do not respond to upfront chemotherapy (refractory). Patients who experience relapse have to undergo more intensive chemotherapy followed by autologous stem cell transplantation and yet often times their lymphoma comes back.

Physicians at Children’s National Hospital, in partnership with the Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah School of Medicine, are enrolling patients in a clinical trial to test the safety of administering PD-1 inhibitor Nivolumab given prior to and following the infusions of the patients’ own TAA-T cells which have been trained to target tumor cells in the laboratory. Nivolumab is currently approved by the FDA for relapsed Hodgkin lymphoma. Nivolumab acts by unleashing the brakes put on by the lymphoma cells, and by doing so, Nivolumab allows the immune system to overcome the tumor’s escape mechanism.

“We believe that if our T cells are deemed safe when given in combination with already approved drugs, we may be able to impact multiple lives and reduce long-term toxicities from conventional chemotherapies,” said Hema Dave, M.D., an oncologist at Children’s National. “We’re hopeful that combination immunotherapies will produce more durable responses than when immunotherapies are given alone as a single agent and, additionally, that they will reduce the use of cytotoxic chemotherapy.”

The investigators will collect blood from the patients to isolate peripheral blood mononuclear cells. They will then make special cells called dendritic cells to stimulate the T cells. Then they will add special mixtures of tumor proteins WT1, PRAME and Survivin and provide a cytokine milieu favorable to T cell expansion/activation, inducing selective expansion of T cells targeted to kill tumor cells. This process trains the T cells to recognize the tumor proteins and become specialized TAA-T cells. The cells will be grown and frozen until ready for use. While the T cells are growing, the patients will be given Nivolumab.

“We’re really trying to test if priming the patients with Nivolumab will make their T cells more effective when they get infused,” says Dr. Dave. “The Nivolumab will help prepare the immune system. Then, when we infuse the T cells, our hope is that the environment is primed for the T cells to expand, grow and work to attack the cancer. If we can prime the immune system and make it more conducive for the T cells, then maybe they will have a better chance to get to the lymphoma cells and thus have a more sustained response.”

Patients will then receive two infusions of the TAA-T cells and be monitored for side effects. The anticipated enrollment is 18 patients over the next 2-3 years. If there is a positive response in patients enrolled in this safety trial, it could expand to test for efficacy of the novel combination immunotherapy.

Phase 1 Study Utilizing Tumor Associated Antigen Specific T Cells (TAA-T) with PD1 Inhibitor Nivolumab for Relapsed/Refractory Lymphoma

  • PI: Hema Dave, M.D.
  • Status: Recruiting

For more information about this trial, contact:

Hema Dave, M.D.
202-476-6397
hkdave@childrensnational.org

Fahmida Hoq, MBBS, MS
202-476-3634
fhoq@childrensnational.org

Click here to view Open Phase 1 and 2 Cancer Clinical Trials at Children’s National.

The Children’s National Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders is committed to providing the best care for pediatric patients. Our experts play an active role in innovative clinical trials to advance pediatric cancer care. We offer access to novel trials and therapies, some of which are only available here at Children’s National. With research interests covering nearly every aspect of pediatric cancer care, our work is making great advancements in childhood cancer.

2019 at a glance: Oncology at Children’s National

Oncology at Children's National

Advances in T-cell immunotherapy at ISCT

Healthy Human T Cell

T-cell immunotherapy, which has the potential to deliver safer, more effective treatments for cancer and life-threatening infections, is considered one of the most promising cell therapies today. Each year, medical experts from around the world – including leaders in the field at Children’s National Health System – gather at the International Society for Cellular Therapy (ISCT) Conference to move the needle on cell therapy through several days of innovation, collaboration and presentations.

Dr. Catherine Bollard, Children’s National chief of allergy and immunology and current president of ISCT, kicked off the week with a presentation on how specific approaches and strategies have contributed to the success of T-cell immunotherapy, a ground-breaking therapy in this fast-moving field.

Later in the week, Dr. Kirsten Williams, a blood and marrow transplant specialist, presented encouraging new findings, demonstrating that T-cell therapy could be an effective treatment for leukemia and lymphoma patients who relapse after undergoing a bone marrow transplant. Results from her phase 1 study showed that four out of nine patients achieved complete remission. Other medical options for the patients involved – those who relapsed between 2 and 12 months post-transplant – are very limited. Looking to the future, this developing therapy, while still in early stages, could be a promising solution.

Other highlights include:

  • Both Allistair Abraham, blood and marrow transplantation specialist, and Dr. Michael Keller, immunologist, presented oral abstracts, the former titled “Successful Engraftment but High Viral Reactivation After Reduced Intensity Unrelated Umbilical Cord Blood Transplantation for Sickle Cell Disease” and the latter “Adoptive T Cell Immunotherapy Restores Targeted Antiviral Immunity in Immunodeficient Patients.
  • Patrick Hanley engaged attendees with his talk, “Challenges of Incorporating T-Cell Potency Assays in Early Phase Clinical Trials,” and his poster presentation “Cost Effectiveness of Manufacturing Antigen-Specific T-Cells in an Academic GMP Facility.” He also co-chaired a session titled “Early Stage Professionals Session 1 – Advanced Strategic Innovations for Cell and Gene Therapies.”
  • To round out this impressive group, Shabnum Piyush Patel gave a talk on genetically modifying HIV-specific T-cells to enhance their anti-viral capacity; the team plans to use these HIV-specific T-cells post-transplant in HIV-positive patients with hematologic malignancies to control their viral rebound.

This exciting team is leading the way in immunology and immunotherapy, as evidenced by the work they shared at the ISCT conference and their ongoing commitment to improving treatments and outcomes for patients at Children’s National and across the country. To learn more about the team, visit the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders site.

cord blood

T-cell therapy success for relapsing blood cancer

cord blood

A unique immunotherapeutic approach that expands the pool of donor-derived lymphocytes (T-cells) that react and target three key tumor-associated antigens (TAA) is demonstrating success at reducing or eliminating acute leukemias and lymphomas when these cancers have relapsed following hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT).

“There’s currently a less than 10 percent chance of survival for a child who relapses leukemia or lymphoma after a bone marrow transplant—in part because these patients are in a fragile medical condition and can’t tolerate additional intense therapy,” says Kirsten Williams, M.D., a blood and marrow transplant specialist in the Division of Hematology at Children’s National Health System, and principal investigator of the Research of Expanded multi-antigen Specifically Oriented Lymphocytes for the treatment of VEry High Risk Hematopoietic Malignancies (RESOLVE) clinical trial.

The unique manufactured donor-derived lymphocytes used in this multi-institutional Phase 1 dose-ranging study are receptive to multiple tumor-associated antigens within the cell, including WT1, PRAME, and Survivin, which have been found to be over-expressed in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), acute myeloid leukemia (AML), B-cell AML/MDS, B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), and Hodgkins lymphoma. Modifying the lymphocytes for several antigens, rather than a single target, broadens the ability of the T-cells to accurately target and eradicate cancerous cells.

Preliminary results demonstrate a 78 percent response rate to treatment, and a 44 percent rate of total remission for participating patients. To date, nine evaluable patients with refractory and relapsed AML/MDS, B-cell ALL, or Hodgkins lymphoma have received 1-3 infusions of the expanded T-cells, and of those, seven have responded to the treatment, showing reduction in cancer cells after infusion with little or no toxicity. All of these patients had relapse of their cancer after hematopoietic cell transplantation. The study continues to recruit eligible patients, with the goal of publishing the full study results within the next 12 months.

“Our preliminary data also shows that this new approach has few if any side effects for the patient, in part because the infused T-cells target antigens that are found only in cancer cells and not found in healthy tissues,” Dr. Williams notes.

The approach used to expand existing donor-derived TAA-lymphocytes, rather than using unselected T cells or genetically modified T-cells as in other trials, also seems to reduce the incidence of post infusion graft versus host disease and other severe inflammatory side effects. Those side effects typically occur when the infused lymphocytes recognize healthy tissues as foreign and reject them or when the immune system reacts to the modified elements of the lymphocytes, she adds.

“These results are exciting because they may present a truly viable option for the 30 to 40 percent of children who will relapse post-transplant,” Dr. Williams concludes. “Many of the patients who participated were given two options: palliative care or this trial. To see significant success and fewer side effects gives us, and families with children facing relapsing leukemia, some hope for this new treatment.”

Dr. Williams discussed the early outcomes of the RESOLVE trial during an oral presentation at the American Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation meeting on February 22, 2017.

“The early indicators are very promising for this patient population,” says Catherine Bollard, M.D., M.B.Ch.B., Chief of the Division of Allergy and Immunology, Director of the Program for Cell Enhancement and Technologies for Immunotherapy (CETI) at Children’s National, and senior author of the study. “If we can achieve this, and continue to see good responses with few side effects, it’s possible these methods could become a viable alternative to HSCT for patients with no donor match or who aren’t likely to tolerate transplant.”

This is one of the first immunotherapeutic approaches to successfully capitalize on the natural ability of human T-cells to kill cancer, though previous research has shown significant success for this approach in reducing the deadly impact of several viruses, including Epstein-Barr virus, adenovirus, and cytomegalovirus, post HSCT. These new findings have led to the development of additional clinical trials to investigate applications of this method of TAA-lymphocyte manufacture and infusion for pre-HSCT MDS/AML, B-cell ALL, Hodgkins Lymphoma, and even some solid tumors.

Training t-cells, essential players in the immune system, to fight a trio of viruses

Children's is the only U.S. pediatric hospital that manufactures specialized T-cells from native cord blood

What’s Known
Following treatment, patients with leukemia, lymphoma, and other cancers may receive a transplant in order to restore their body’s natural ability to fight infection and, sometimes, such transplants are a component of leukemia treatment. (Leukemia is the second most common blood cancer, after lymphoma, and its incidence rate has increased by 0.2 percent annually from 2002 to 2011.) A stem cell or cord blood transplant restores the body’s ability to produce infection-fighting white blood cells. After such transplants, however, patients can face heightened risk of developing a life-threatening infection with such viruses as adenovirus, cytomegalovirus, or Epstein-Barr virus.

What’s New
A head-to-head comparison of two strategies to thwart such viral infections shows that both approaches leverage the power of multivirus-specific, donor-derived T-cells (mCTL), which are highly skilled at recognizing foreign invaders. The research team, made up of nine scientists and clinicians affiliated with Children’s National Health System, grew personalized T-cells from peripheral blood (PB) of adult donors who were seropositive for CMV and also coaxed T-cells to grow from naïve cord blood (CB). PB-derived cells have long memories of past battles; naïve CB-derived cells need additional training to acquire such skills. From 35 to 384 days after their stem cell or cord blood transplant, 13 patients were infused with PB mCTL and 12 patients were infused with CB mCTL. Within four weeks, patients experienced up to a 160-fold increase in virus-specific T-cells, which coincided with their response to therapy. Overall response rate was 81 percent.

Questions for Future Research
Q: Could T-cells be personalized to attack other viruses that infect patients post-transplant, such as human parainfluenza virus and BK polyomavirus, providing the potential to target five viruses in a single infusion?
Q: Could the proteins that are used to train T-cells to attack certain viruses also be used to create a personalized approach to tumor suppression?

Source: “A Phase 1 Perspective: Multivirus-Specific T Cells From Both Cord Blood and Bone Marrow Transplant Donors.” Hanley, P., M. D. Keller, M. Martin Manso, C. Martinez, K. Leung, C.R. Cruz, C. Barese, S. McCormack, M. Luo, R.A. Krance, D. Jacobsohn, C. Rooney, H. Heslop, E.J. Shpall, and C. Bollard. Presented during the International Society for Cellular Therapy 2016 Annual Meeting, Singapore. May 26, 2016.