Advancing Evidence Generation for Circulating Tumor DNA: Lessons Learned from A Multi-Assay Study of Baseline Circulating Tumor DNA Levels across Cancer Types and Stages.

Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) holds promise as a biomarker for predicting clinical responses to therapy in solid tumors, and multiple ctDNA assays are in development. However, the heterogeneity in ctDNA levels prior to treatment (baseline) across different cancer types and stages and across ctDNA assays has not been widely studied. Friends of Cancer Research formed a collaboration across multiple commercial ctDNA assay developers to assess baseline ctDNA levels across five cancer types in early- and late-stage disease. This retrospective study included eight commercial ctDNA assay developers providing summary-level de-identified data for patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), bladder, breast, prostate, and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma following a common analysis protocol. Baseline ctDNA levels across late-stage cancer types were similarly detected, highlighting the potential use of ctDNA as a biomarker in these cancer types. Variability was observed in ctDNA levels across assays in early-stage NSCLC, indicative of the contribution of assay analytical performance and methodology on variability. We identified key data elements, including assay characteristics and clinicopathological metadata, that need to be standardized for future meta-analyses across multiple assays. This work facilitates evidence generation opportunities to support the use of ctDNA as a biomarker for clinical response.

Accelerating the development of genetically engineered cellular therapies: a framework for extrapolating data across related products.

BACKGROUND: Significant advancements have been made in the field of cellular therapy as anti-cancer treatments, with the approval of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell therapies and the development of other genetically engineered cellular therapies. CAR-T cell therapies have demonstrated remarkable clinical outcomes in various hematological malignancies, establishing their potential to change the current cancer treatment paradigm. Due to the increasing importance of genetically engineered cellular therapies in the oncology treatment landscape, implementing strategies to expedite development and evidence generation for the next generation of cellular therapy products can have a positive impact on patients. METHODS: We outline a risk-based methodology and assessment aid for the data extrapolation approach across related genetically engineered cellular therapy products. This systematic data extrapolation approach has applicability beyond CAR-T cells and can influence clinical development strategies for a variety of immune therapies such as T cell receptor (TCR) or genetically engineered and other cell-based therapies (e.g., tumor infiltrating lymphocytes, natural killer cells and macrophages). RESULTS: By analyzing commonalities in manufacturing processes, clinical trial designs, and regulatory considerations, key learnings were identified. These insights support optimization of the development and regulatory approval of novel cellular therapies. CONCLUSIONS: The field of cellular therapy holds immense promise in safely and effectively treating cancer. The ability to extrapolate data across related products presents opportunities to streamline the development process and accelerate the delivery of novel therapies to patients.

An Analysis of Dosing-Related Postmarketing Requirements for Novel Oncology Drugs Approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2012-2022.

The FDA's Oncology Center of Excellence's (OCE) launch of Project Optimus signals increased focus on dose optimization approaches in oncology drug development, particularly toward optimization in the premarket setting. Although sponsors continue to adapt premarket study designs and approaches to align with FDA's expectations for dose optimization, including consideration of the optimal dosage(s), there are still instances where questions remain at the time of approval about whether the approved doses or schedules are optimal. In these cases, FDA can exercise regulatory flexibility by issuing postmarketing requirements (PMR) and avoid delaying patient access to promising therapies. This landscape analysis demonstrates that over the past decade (2012-2022), FDA frequently used PMRs to answer additional questions about dosing for novel oncology approvals. We found more than half of drugs (78/132, 59.1%) had a dosing PMR and observed a recent increase in PMRs intended to evaluate whether a lower dose could be more optimal. These results suggest there are opportunities to adapt premarket dose optimization strategies and leverage innovative development tools to ensure timely identification of the optimal dose.

The Friends of Cancer Research Real-World Data Collaboration Pilot 2.0: Methodological Recommendations from Oncology Case Studies.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the potential collective opportunities and challenges of transforming real-world data (RWD) to real-world evidence for clinical effectiveness by focusing on aligning analytic definitions of oncology end points. Patients treated with a qualifying therapy for advanced non-small cell lung cancer in the frontline setting meeting broad eligibility criteria were included to reflect the real-world population. Although a trend toward improved outcomes in patients receiving PD-(L)1 therapy over standard chemotherapy was observed in RWD analyses, the magnitude and consistency of treatment effect was more heterogeneous than previously observed in controlled clinical trials. The study design and analysis process highlighted the identification of pertinent methodological issues and potential innovative approaches that could inform the development of high-quality RWD studies.

The Value of Addressing Patient Preferences.

Recent scientific progress is, in some cases, leading to transformative new medicines for diseases that previously had marginal or even no treatment options. This offers great promise for people affected by these diseases, but it has also placed stress on the health care system in terms of the growing cost associated with some new interventions. Effort has been taken to create tools to help patients and health care providers assess the value of new medical innovations. These tools may also provide the basis for assessing the price associated with new medical products. Given the growing expenditures in health care, value frameworks present an opportunity to evaluate new therapeutic options in the context of other treatments and potentially lead to a more economically sustainable health care system. In summary, the contribution to meaningful improvements in health outcomes is the primary focus of any assessment of the value of a new intervention. A component of such evaluations, however, should factor in timely access to new products that address an unmet medical need, as well as the magnitude of that beneficial impact. To achieve these goals, value assessment tools should allow for flexibility in clinical end points and trial designs, incorporate patient preferences, and continually evolve as new evidence, practice patterns, and medical progress advance.

Lung Master Protocol (Lung-MAP)-A Biomarker-Driven Protocol for Accelerating Development of Therapies for Squamous Cell Lung Cancer: SWOG S1400.

The Lung Master Protocol (Lung-MAP, S1400) is a groundbreaking clinical trial designed to advance the efficient development of targeted therapies for squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the lung. There are no approved targeted therapies specific to advanced lung SCC, although The Cancer Genome Atlas project and similar studies have detected a significant number of somatic gene mutations/amplifications in lung SCC, some of which are targetable by investigational agents. However, the frequency of these changes is low (5%-20%), making recruitment and study conduct challenging in the traditional clinical trial setting. Here, we describe our approach to development of a biomarker-driven phase II/II multisubstudy "Master Protocol," using a common platform (next-generation DNA sequencing) to identify actionable molecular abnormalities, followed by randomization to the relevant targeted therapy versus standard of care.

Considerations for the successful co-development of targeted cancer therapies and companion diagnostics.

As diagnostic tests become increasingly important for optimizing the use of drugs to treat cancers, the co-development of a targeted therapy and its companion diagnostic test is becoming more prevalent and necessary. In July 2011, the US Food and Drug Administration released a draft guidance that gave the agency's formal definition of companion diagnostics and introduced a drug-diagnostic co-development process for gaining regulatory approval. Here, we identify areas of drug-diagnostic co-development that were either not covered by the guidance or that would benefit from increased granularity, including how to determine when clinical studies should be limited to biomarker-positive patients, defining the diagnostically selected patient population in which to use a companion diagnostic, and defining and clinically validating a biomarker signature for assays that use more than one biomarker. We propose potential approaches that sponsors could use to deal with these challenges and provide strategies to help guide the future co-development of drugs and diagnostics.

Developing standards for breakthrough therapy designation in oncology.

In July 2012, Congress passed the Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act (FDASIA). The Advancing Breakthrough Therapies for Patients Act was incorporated into a Title of FDASIA to expedite clinical development of new, potential "breakthrough" drugs or treatments that show dramatic responses in early-phase studies. Using this regulatory pathway, once a promising new drug candidate is designated as a "Breakthrough Therapy", the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and sponsor would collaborate to determine the best path forward to abbreviate the traditional three-phase approach to drug development. The breakthrough legislation requires that an FDA guidance be drafted that details specific requirements of the bill to aid FDA in implementing requirements of the Act. In this article, we have proposed criteria to define a product as a Breakthrough Therapy, and discussed critical components of the development process that would require flexibility in order to enable expedited development of a Breakthrough Therapy.

Use of multiple endpoints and approval paths depicts a decade of FDA oncology drug approvals.

This study explores the historic use of different endpoints to support regular and accelerated approval of cancer drugs between 2002 and 2012. In the past 10 years, two thirds of oncology regular approvals were based on endpoints other than overall survival. More than three quarters of accelerated approvals were based on response rates. The accelerated approval program has been heavily used over this time period, with one third of all approved oncology indications receiving accelerated approval. At times, critics have characterized the agency as rigid and unpredictable. This research describes the degree of regulatory flexibility that U.S. Food and Drug Administration and drug sponsors have used over the past decade in the development of new treatments for cancer.

Reducing the toxicity of cancer therapy: recognizing needs, taking action.

Our understanding of the biology of cancer and the application of this knowledge to cancer treatment has greatly outpaced what we know of the biology underlying the symptoms and toxic effects that therapies produce. These adverse effects of therapy cause substantial discomfort and distress to patients and their families, limit treatment tolerability and can persist indefinitely in post-treatment survivorship. Despite these concerns, little research effort is targeted at documenting the nature of these effects. Similarly, limited efforts are being made in the drug-development arena to identify or develop treatments that might prevent or reduce toxicities. A panel of clinicians and researchers as well as representatives from advocacy groups, federal agencies and the pharmaceutical industry was convened to identify gaps in cancer treatment toxicity research and to provide direction for future action. With an emphasis on coordinating multidisciplinary efforts, this panel has presented a strategy to increase funding for the field and develop a coherent research agenda.

Despite criticism of the FDA review process, new cancer drugs reach patients sooner in the United States than in Europe.

The US Food and Drug Administration is often criticized as inefficient compared to its European counterpart, the European Medicines Agency. This criticism is especially common in the field of oncology, where severely ill patients have few therapeutic options. We conducted a direct drug-to-drug comparison of the two regulatory agencies' approvals of new oncology drugs. We found that contrary to public assertions, the median time for approval for new cancer medicines in the United States was just six months--and that these new anticancer medicines are typically available in the United States before they are in Europe. Our findings reinforce the need for strong financial and public support of the Food and Drug Administration, so that such medicines can continue to be made available speedily to patients in need.