Single-Cell Immune Competency Signatures Associate with Survival in Phase II GVAX and CRS-207 Randomized Studies in Patients with Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer.

The identification of biomarkers for patient stratification is fundamental to precision medicine efforts in oncology. Here, we identified two baseline, circulating immune cell subsets associated with overall survival in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer who were enrolled in two phase II randomized studies of GVAX pancreas and CRS-207 immunotherapy. Single-cell mass cytometry was used to simultaneously measure 38 cell surface or intracellular markers in peripheral blood mononuclear cells obtained from a phase IIa patient subcohort (N = 38). CITRUS, an algorithm for identification of stratifying subpopulations in multidimensional cytometry datasets, was used to identify single-cell signatures associated with clinical outcome. Patients with a higher abundance of CD8+CD45RO-CCR7-CD57+ cells and a lower abundance of CD14+CD33+CD85j+ cells had improved overall survival [median overall survival, range (days) 271, 43-1,247] compared with patients with a lower abundance of CD8+CD45RO-CCR7-CD57+ cells and higher abundance of CD14+CD33+CD85j+ cells (77, 24-1,247 days; P = 0.0442). The results from this prospective-retrospective biomarker analysis were validated by flow cytometry in 200 patients with pancreatic cancer enrolled in a phase IIb study (P = 0.0047). The identified immune correlates provide potential prognostic or predictive signatures that could be employed for patient stratification.

Results from a Phase IIb, Randomized, Multicenter Study of GVAX Pancreas and CRS-207 Compared with Chemotherapy in Adults with Previously Treated Metastatic Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma (ECLIPSE Study).

PURPOSE: Limited options exist for patients with advanced pancreatic cancer progressing after 1 or more lines of therapy. A phase II study in patients with previously treated metastatic pancreatic cancer showed that combining GVAX pancreas (granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor-secreting allogeneic pancreatic tumor cells) with cyclophosphamide (Cy) and CRS-207 (live, attenuated Listeria monocytogenes expressing mesothelin) resulted in median overall survival (OS) of 6.1 months, which compares favorably with historical OS achieved with chemotherapy. In the current study, we compared Cy/GVAX + CRS-207, CRS-207 alone, and standard chemotherapy in a three-arm, randomized, controlled phase IIb trial. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients with previously treated metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma were randomized 1:1:1 to receive Cy/GVAX + CRS-207 (arm A), CRS-207 (arm B), or physician's choice of single-agent chemotherapy (arm C). The primary cohort included patients who had failed ≥2 prior lines of therapy, including gemcitabine. The primary objective compared OS between arms A and C in the primary cohort. The second-line cohort included patients who had received 1 prior line of therapy. Additional objectives included OS between all treatment arms, safety, and tumor responses. RESULTS: The study did not meet its primary efficacy endpoint. At the final study analysis, median OS [95% confidence interval (CI)] in the primary cohort (N = 213) was 3.7 (2.9-5.3), 5.4 (4.2-6.4), and 4.6 (4.2-5.7) months in arms A, B, and C, respectively, showing no significant difference between arm A and arm C [P = not significant (NS), HR = 1.17; 95% CI, 0.84-1.64]. The most frequently reported adverse events in all treatment groups were chills, pyrexia, fatigue, and nausea. No treatment-related deaths occurred. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of Cy/GVAX + CRS-207 did not improve survival over chemotherapy. (ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT02004262)See related commentary by Salas-Benito et al., p. 5435.

Clinical Response of Live-Attenuated, Listeria monocytogenes Expressing Mesothelin (CRS-207) with Chemotherapy in Patients with Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma.

PURPOSE: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is an aggressive cancer associated with poor prognosis. CRS-207 is a live-attenuated Listeria monocytogenes engineered to express mesothelin, a tumor-associated antigen highly expressed in MPM. CRS-207 induces antitumor immune responses and increases susceptibility of neoplastic cells to immune-mediated killing. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients with unresectable MPM, ECOG 0 or 1, and adequate organ and pulmonary function were enrolled in this multicenter, open-label phase Ib study. They received two priming infusions of 1 × 109 CFU CRS-207, followed by pemetrexed/cisplatin chemotherapy, and CRS-207 booster infusions. Primary objectives were safety and induction of immune response. Secondary/exploratory objectives included tumor response, progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), immune subset analysis, and gene-expression profiling of tumor. RESULTS: Of 35 evaluable patients, 89% (31/35) had disease control with one complete response (3%), 19 partial responses (54%), and 10 stable disease (29%). The estimated median duration of response was 5.0 months (95% CI, 3.9-11.5). The median PFS and OS were 7.5 (95% CI, 7.0-9.9) and 14.7 (95% CI, 11.2-21.9) months, respectively. Tumor size reduction was observed post-CRS-207 infusion prior to chemotherapy in 11 of 35 (31%) patients. No unexpected treatment-related serious adverse events or deaths were observed. IHC analysis of pre- and post-CRS-207 treatment tumor biopsies revealed possible reinvigoration and proliferation of T cells, increased infiltration of dendritic and natural killer cells, increased CD8:Treg ratio, and a shift from immunosuppressive M2-like to proinflammatory M1-like macrophages following CRS-207 administration. CONCLUSIONS: Combination of CRS-207 and chemotherapy induced significant changes in the local tumor microenvironment and objective tumor responses in a majority of treated patients.

Safety and survival with GVAX pancreas prime and Listeria Monocytogenes-expressing mesothelin (CRS-207) boost vaccines for metastatic pancreatic cancer.

PURPOSE: GVAX pancreas, granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor-secreting allogeneic pancreatic tumor cells, induces T-cell immunity to cancer antigens, including mesothelin. GVAX is administered with low-dose cyclophosphamide (Cy) to inhibit regulatory T cells. CRS-207, live-attenuated Listeria monocytogenes-expressing mesothelin, induces innate and adaptive immunity. On the basis of preclinical synergy, we tested prime/boost vaccination with GVAX and CRS-207 in pancreatic adenocarcinoma. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Previously treated patients with metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma were randomly assigned at a ratio of 2:1 to two doses of Cy/GVAX followed by four doses of CRS-207 (arm A) or six doses of Cy/GVAX (arm B) every 3 weeks. Stable patients were offered additional courses. The primary end point was overall survival (OS) between arms. Secondary end points were safety and clinical response. RESULTS: A total of 90 patients were treated (arm A, n = 61; arm B, n = 29); 97% had received prior chemotherapy; 51% had received ≥ two regimens for metastatic disease. Mean number of doses (± standard deviation) administered in arms A and B were 5.5 ± 4.5 and 3.7 ± 2.2, respectively. The most frequent grade 3 to 4 related toxicities were transient fevers, lymphopenia, elevated liver enzymes, and fatigue. OS was 6.1 months in arm A versus 3.9 months in arm B (hazard ratio [HR], 0.59; P = .02). In a prespecified per-protocol analysis of patients who received at least three doses (two doses of Cy/GVAX plus one of CRS-207 or three of Cy/GVAX), OS was 9.7 versus 4.6 months (arm A v B; HR, 0.53; P = .02). Enhanced mesothelin-specific CD8 T-cell responses were associated with longer OS, regardless of treatment arm. CONCLUSION: Heterologous prime/boost with Cy/GVAX and CRS-207 extended survival for patients with pancreatic cancer, with minimal toxicity.

A live-attenuated Listeria vaccine (ANZ-100) and a live-attenuated Listeria vaccine expressing mesothelin (CRS-207) for advanced cancers: phase I studies of safety and immune induction.

PURPOSE: Listeria monocytogenes (Lm)-based vaccines stimulate both innate and adaptive immunity. ANZ-100 is a live-attenuated Lm strain (Lm ΔactA/ΔinlB). Uptake by phagocytes in the liver results in local inflammatory responses and activation and recruitment of natural killer (NK) and T cells, in association with increased survival of mice bearing hepatic metastases. The Lm ΔactA/ΔinlB strain, engineered to express human mesothelin (CRS-207), a tumor-associated antigen expressed by a variety of tumors, induces mesothelin-specific T-cell responses against mesothelin-expressing murine tumors. These two phase I studies test ANZ-100 and CRS-207 in subjects with liver metastases and mesothelin-expressing cancers, respectively. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: A single intravenous injection of ANZ-100 was evaluated in a dose escalation study in subjects with liver metastases. Nine subjects received 1 × 10(6), 3 × 10(7), or 3 × 10(8) colony-forming units (cfu). CRS-207 was evaluated in a dose-escalation study in subjects with mesothelioma, lung, pancreatic, or ovarian cancers. Seventeen subjects received up to 4 doses of 1 × 10(8), 3 × 10(8), 1 × 10(9), or 1 × 10(10) cfu. RESULTS: A single infusion of ANZ-100 was well tolerated to the maximum planned dose. Adverse events included transient laboratory abnormalities and symptoms associated with cytokine release. Multiple infusions of CRS-207 were well tolerated up to 1 × 10(9) cfu, the determined maximum tolerated dose. Immune activation was observed for both ANZ-100 and CRS-207 as measured by serum cytokine/chemokine levels and NK cell activation. In the CRS-207 study, listeriolysin O and mesothelin-specific T-cell responses were detected and 37% of subjects lived ≥15 months. CONCLUSIONS: ANZ-100 and CRS-207 administration was safe and resulted in immune activation.