Safety Analysis of Brentuximab Vedotin from the Phase III AETHERA Trial in Hodgkin Lymphoma in the Post-Transplant Consolidation Setting.

The phase III AETHERA trial demonstrated the efficacy of brentuximab vedotin (BV) as consolidation therapy in patients with classical Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) at high risk of relapse or progression after autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (auto-HSCT; hazard ratio, .57; P < .001). The objective of this analysis is to provide further detail on the most common and clinically important treatment-emergent adverse events (AEs) in the AETHERA BV arm including their occurrence and management. AEs of clinical importance occurring in patients who participated in AETHERA (BV + best supportive care [BSC], n = 165; placebo + BSC, n = 164) were evaluated for time to onset, manageability through dose modification, and resolution. As previously reported, peripheral neuropathy (PN; 67%), infections (60%), and neutropenia (35%) were the most common BV-associated treatment-emergent AEs. Neutropenia was managed with dose delays and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor; no dose reductions or discontinuations were required. Most PN cases (57%) were managed with dose delays and reductions. The median time to PN onset was 13.7 weeks (range, .1 to 47.4). After the end of treatment, PN continued to resolve; symptom resolution was similar to that in the placebo arm at 3 years, demonstrating reversibility. BV had no significant impact on pre-existing PN. Patients with PN-related dose modifications had progression-free survival (PFS) comparable with patients without. Other less common but serious AEs, including pulmonary toxicities, hepatotoxicity, and cardiotoxicity, were rare in both arms and were managed with BV dose modifications or discontinuations. Secondary malignancies were rare and reported in patients with comorbidities or other risk factors. Consolidation therapy with BV for patients with HL at high risk of relapse after auto-HSCT is associated with sustained PFS. The most common AEs in the BV arm were manageable and reversible. Awareness of these AEs and management approaches will enable healthcare providers and patients to plan the safest and most effective treatment plan.

Five-year outcomes for frontline brentuximab vedotin with CHP for CD30-expressing peripheral T-cell lymphomas.

This phase 1 study evaluated frontline brentuximab vedotin in combination with cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, and prednisone (BV+CHP; 6 cycles, then up to 10 cycles of brentuximab vedotin monotherapy) in 26 patients with CD30+ peripheral T-cell lymphoma, including 19 with systemic anaplastic large cell lymphoma. All patients (100%) achieved an objective response, with a complete remission (CR) rate of 92%; none received a consolidative stem cell transplant. After a median observation period of 59.6 months (range, 4.6-66.0) from first dose, neither the median progression-free survival (PFS) nor the median overall survival (OS) was reached. No progression or death was observed beyond 35 months. The estimated 5-year PFS and OS rates were 52% and 80%, respectively. Eighteen of 19 patients (95%) with treatment-emergent peripheral neuropathy (PN) reported resolution or improvement of symptoms. Thirteen patients (50%) remained in remission at the end of the study, with PFS ranging from 37.8+ to 66.0+ months. Eight of these 13 patients received the maximum 16 cycles of study treatment. These final results demonstrate durable remissions in 50% of patients treated with frontline BV+CHP, suggesting a potentially curative treatment option for some patients. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT01309789.

Brentuximab vedotin activity in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma with CD30 undetectable by visual assessment of conventional immunohistochemistry.

This phase 2 study evaluated brentuximab vedotin monotherapy in CD30-expressing DLBCL; after several patients with little to no CD30 achieved a complete remission (CR), the study evaluated treatment of DLBCL with undetectable CD30 (CD30u) by local visual immunohistochemistry (vIHC). Sixteen of 52 CD30u DLBCL patients (31%) had an objective response (6 CRs [12%]). Median progression-free survival (PFS) was 1.4 months (range, 0.4-15.6) and median overall survival (OS) was 7.5 months (range, 0.7-18.6+). Subsequent CD30 expression quantitated by computer-assisted digital image analysis (cIHC) showed that 11 of 16 CD30u DLBCL responders had ≥1% CD30. Correlative analyses of CD30u and CD30-expressing DLBCL combined demonstrated that ≥1% CD30 expression by cIHC resulted in a trend toward a higher response rate and significantly longer median PFS and OS. A minimum CD30 expression threshold appears to be required for antitumor activity in DLBCL; however, other factors also likely contribute to activity. (NCT01421667).

Fabrication of porous, drug-releasing, biodegradable, polymer scaffolds for sustained drug release.

Two different approaches were used to fabricate porous scaffolds, and their in vitro drug releasing characteristics were examined. In the first method, a poly(L-lactic acid) (PLLA) solution and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) + acetaminophen solution was homogenized. The emulsion was then blended with a PLLA solution in chloroform. The resultant emulsion was freeze-dried to form porous scaffolds. Various combinations were obtained by varying homogenizer speed and blender speed, and by varying the concentration of PVA and acetaminophen solutions. The in vitro drug-release study was performed for 6 days in a phosphate buffer. The influence of structure, porosity, and drug concentration of the scaffolds on drug-release rate was examined using design of experiments. In the second approach, scaffolds were prepared in layered constructs, with either a three-layered or five-layered structure. The PVA + acetaminophen solution was blended with PLLA solution using a blender. The drug-release study was performed for 19 days. The effect of drug concentration, blender speed, and the thickness of the layers on drug-release rate was examined.