A phase 2, multicentre, open-label trial (ACE-LY-003) of acalabrutinib in patients with relapsed or refractory marginal zone lymphoma.

Acalabrutinib, a Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor, demonstrated greater selectivity and improved safety versus ibrutinib in a head-to-head trial in relapsed/refractory (R/R) chronic lymphocytic leukaemia. In the R/R marginal zone lymphoma (MZL) cohort (phase 2) of a phase 1b/2 trial (NCT02180711), 43 patients with MZL and at least one prior therapy received acalabrutinib 100 mg twice daily until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity [median age 69 years (range 42-84); median one (1-4) prior systemic regimens]. Median follow-up was 13.3 months (range 0.5-45.5). Among 40 patients evaluable for response, investigator-assessed overall response rate was 53% [95% confidence interval (CI) 36%-69%] with five (13%) complete responses. Tumour reduction occurred in 40 (93%) of the treated patients. Median time to response was 2.9 months (median duration of response not estimable). Estimated median progression-free survival (PFS) was 27.4 months (12-month PFS rate, 67%). Five patients died (disease progression, n = 4; septic shock, n = 1). Seventeen patients (40%) had grade 3 or higher adverse events (AEs), most commonly neutropenia (14%), anaemia, dyspnoea (7% each), fatigue and thrombocytopenia (5% each). Hypertension occurred in 5%; atrial fibrillation/flutter and major haemorrhage were not reported. AEs led to treatment discontinuation in three (7%) patients. Acalabrutinib was active and well tolerated in patients with R/R MZL.

Hematological Side Effects of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: The Example of Immune-Related Thrombocytopenia.

Immune-related hematological adverse events are amongst the rare but potentially life-threatening complications of immune checkpoint inhibitors. The spectrum of these toxicities is broadening as the number of patients exposed to these agents is increasing. Yet, they are still relatively unknown to many clinicians, possibly due to a lack of specific diagnostic criteria, which poses a challenge for their recognition and proper reporting, and partly due to their low incidence, often too low to be noted in most clinical trial publications. Since early detection and prompt intervention are crucial to prevent fatal consequences, it is of outmost importance that medical staff and patients be aware of these potential toxicities and learn to recognize and treat them adequately. This publication outlines strategies and offers guidance on the detection, diagnosis, risk assessment, monitoring and management of immune-related thrombocytopenia, a relatively common example of immune-related hematological toxicity of immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Are laboratory parameter (biomarker) values similar to the healthy volunteer reference range in all patient populations?

BACKGROUND: Liver biomarkers alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and bilirubin in patients with hepatitis are above the healthy volunteer reference range (HVRR) at baseline (prior to receiving the clinical trial medication). Discussions continue as how to best distinguish drug-induced liver injury in patients with abnormal baseline values participating in clinical trials. This study investigated if other baseline routine clinical safety biomarkers (lab parameters) are different from the HVRR. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Clinical trial data (TransCelerate dataset) from placebo and standard of care treated patients were compared to the HVRR using a 10% threshold above or below the HVRR to classify a lab parameter in a patient population as potentially different from the HVRR at baseline. The TransCelerate dataset, batch 4, contained data from patients with Alzheimer's, asthma, COPD, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hidradenitis, hypercholesterolemia, rheumatoid arthritis, schizophrenia, stroke, and ulcerative colitis. A subset of the 200 biomarkers in Trans-Celerate were evaluated in this pilot: glucose, platelet count, neutrophil count, ALT, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and bilirubin. RESULTS: Glucose was potentially higher than the HVRR in patients with diabetes, COPD, cardiovascular disease, hypercholesterolemia, and schizophrenia. At least one or more of the hematology and hepatic biomarkers were different from the HVRR in at least one patient population, except bilirubin. All the patient populations, except Alzheimer's and asthma, had at least one biomarker that was higher than the HVRR. SUMMARY: The routine biomarkers evaluated in this pilot study demonstrated that not all lab parameters in patient populations are similar to the HVRR. Further efforts are needed to determine which biomarkers are different from the HVRR and how to evaluate the biomarkers in patient populations for detecting drug-induced altered lab values in clinical trials.