Itacitinib Pre-modulation in DLBCL Receiving CAR T Cell Therapy

March 30, 2026 updated by: H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute

A Phase 2, Single-Arm, Open-Label Study Using Itacitinib as Pre-Modulation in Patients With Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL) Receiving CAR-T-Cell Therapy

The purpose of the study is to assess the safety and efficacy of once daily itacitinib oral administration in participants with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) who will receive CAR-T cell therapy with axicabtagene ciloleucel (axi-cel).

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

This is a phase 2, single-arm, open-label study to assess the safety and efficacy of once daily itacitinib oral administration in patients with diffuse large B-Cell lymphoma (DLBCL) who will receive CAR-T-cell therapy with axicabtagene ciloleucel (Axi-cel) and have been found to have high levels of systemic inflammation. Approximately n=27 adult males and females, 18 years or older, who will receive treatment for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) at the Moffitt Cancer Center with a ferritin level greater than 400 ng/ml and C-reactive protein (CRP) level greater than 2 mg/dl (20 mg/l) at screening will be enrolled. Study regimen will consist of itacitinib 200 mg PO QD beginning at time of apheresis approximately 4-6 weeks prior to CAR-T-cell therapy and will continue until Day 30 (30 Days Post-CAR-T-cell therapy). The exact number of days between apheresis and CAR T cell infusion may vary based on CAR T cell manufacturing turnaround. A single infusion of axi-cel therapy will be administered on Day 0. Investigators hypothesize that pre-modulation with itacitinib started approximately 4 weeks prior to CAR-T-cell therapy with axi-cel will improve patient outcomes in those patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) who express high levels of systemic inflammation.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
27

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Phase 2

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Florida
      • Tampa, Florida, United States, 33617
        • Recruiting
        • Moffitt Cancer Center
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Rawan Faramand, MD
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Aleksandr Lazaryan, MD, MPH, PhD
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Hien Liu, MD
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Julio Chavez, MD, MS
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Bijal Shah, MD, MS
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Michael Jain, MD, PhD
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Frederick Locke, MD
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Taiga Nishihori, MD
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Farhad Khimani, MD
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Javier Pinilla, MD, PhD
        • Contact:

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Patients with a histologically confirmed diagnosis of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) who plan to receive treatment at the Moffitt Cancer Center/
  • Adult males or females who are 18 years of age or older at time of signing informed consent.
  • Must have ability to comprehend and the willingness to sign written informed consent for study participation.
  • Eligible to receive CAR-T cell therapy (axicabtagene ciloleucel) for DLBCL and histological variants.
  • Patients must have a serum ferritin level above 400 mg/mL and C-reactive protein level above 2 mg/dL (20 mg/L) at screening.
  • ECOG performance status 0 to 2.
  • The effects of Itacitinib on the developing human fetus are unknown. For this reason and because Janus kinase (JAK)1-selective inhibitors as well as other therapeutic agents used in this trial are known to be teratogenic, women of child-bearing potential and men must agree to use adequate contraception (hormonal or barrier method of birth control; abstinence) prior to study entry and for the duration of study participation as outlined in criteria below: (a) Men must agree to take appropriate precautions to avoid fathering children (with at least 99% certainty) from screening through safety follow up and must refrain from donating sperm during this period. Permitted methods that are at least 99% effective in preventing pregnancy should be communicated to the participants in their understanding confirmed.(b) Women of childbearing potential must have a negative serum pregnancy test at screening and before the first dose of Day 1 and must agree to take appropriate precautions to avoid pregnancy (with at least 99% certainty) from screening through safety follow up. Permitted methods that are at least 99% effective in preventing pregnancy should be communicated to the participants and their understanding confirmed. (c) Women of non-childbearing potential (ie, surgically sterile with a hysterectomy and/or bilateral oophorectomy OR >= 12 months of amenorrhea) are eligible.
  • Patients must be ineligible for stem cell transplant at screening on the basis of active lymphoma.
  • Patients must meet laboratory parameters at screening as defined in protocol

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients who are currently receiving or who have received any investigational study agent ≤4 weeks prior to screening visit are ineligible.
  • Prior treatment with chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy.
  • Participants with clinically significant or uncontrolled cardiac disease, including unstable angina, acute myocardial infarction within 6 months from screening, New York Health Association III or IV heart failure, and circulatory collapse requiring vasopressor or inotropic support
  • Participants with arrhythmias that are not stable on a medical management program within 2 weeks of screening are also excluded.
  • Participants with arrhythmias that are not stable on a medical management program within 2 weeks of screening are also excluded.
  • Evidence of active uncontrolled/untreated infection (viral, bacterial, fungal, opportunistic) of any origin.
  • Participants with a known history or prior diagnosis of immunologic or inflammatory/autoimmune disease affecting the CNS, and unrelated to their disease under study or previous treatment.
  • Known positive Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) status.
  • Participants with evidence of active and/or chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, HBV viral load must be undetectable on suppressive therapy, if indicated.
  • Participants with a history of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, HCV must have been treated and cured.
  • Participants who require the concurrent use of chronic systemic steroids or immunosuppressant medications. Steroids should not be given within 5 days prior to leukapheresis. Concomitant bridging steroids (section 6.6) are allowed after leukapheresis.
  • Known hypersensitivity or severe reaction to itacitinib, similar compounds, or excipients or itacitinib.
  • Participants who have not recovered from adverse events (AEs) due to prior anti-cancer therapy (i.e., have residual toxicities > Grade 1), with the exception of stable Grade 2 peripheral neuropathy and/or any grade alopecia.
  • Pregnant or nursing (breast-feeding) women are excluded from this study because there is an unknown but potential risk to using itacitinib in pregnant or nursing women.
  • Any condition that would, in the investigator's judgement, interfere with full participation in the study, including administration of itacitinib and attending required study visits (if outpatient); pose a significant risk to the participant; or interfere with interpretation of study data.
  • Inability of the participant to swallow and retain oral medication.
  • Participants receiving any medications or substances that are strong inhibitors of CYP3A4 are ineligible. As part of the enrollment/informed consent procedures, the participant will be counseled on the risk of interactions with other agents and what to do if new medications need to be prescribed or if the participant is considering a new over-the-counter medicine or herbal product.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Pre-Modulation Treatment
Participants will receive itacitinib 200 mg PO QD beginning at time of apheresis approximately 4-6 weeks prior to CAR-T-cell therapy and will continue until Day 30 (30 Days Post-CAR-T-cell therapy)
Drug: Itacitinib
Participants start itacitinib 200 mg PO once daily within 1-4 days after apheresis while awaiting CAR-T-cell manufacturing, which is expected to take approximately from week -4 until day -7. Patients will remain on itacitinib 200 mg PO once daily from initiation until 30 days post-CAR-T-cell therapy (Day 30) including throughout lymphodepleting chemotherapy period (Days -5, -4, -3) and axi-cel infusion (Day 0) for a total of approximately 58 doses.
Biological: Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy
Yescarta is an autologous anti-CD19 CAR T cell therapy manufactured from the patient's own T cells, which have been extracted and then reprogrammed with CAR molecules to help the T cells recognize cancer cells. The reengineered T cells are infused back into the patient to attack the cancer.
Other Names:
  • Axi-cel
  • YESCARTA

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Progression Free Survival (PFS)
Time Frame: at 6 months
Progression Free Survival is defined as the time from start of treatment to the time of disease progression or death. Among patients treated with axi-cel who have a ferritin >400 ng/ml and CRP>2 mg/dl at the time of apheresis, the 6 month PFS was 25%. The primary endpoint of this study will be met if pre-modulation with itacitinib followed by axi-cel leads to a 6 month PFS of 45% or higher.
at 6 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Incidence of Severe Cytokine Release Syndrome (CRS)
Time Frame: Up to 3 months
Number of participants who experience severe (grade 3 or higher by ASTCT criteria) CRS in the first 30 days after CAR-T infusion.
Up to 3 months
Incidence of Severe Immune efflector cell Associated Neurotoxicity Syndrome (ICANS)
Time Frame: Up to 3 months
Number of participants who experience severe (grade 3 or higher by ASTCT criteria) ICANS in the first 30 days after CAR-T infusion per CTCAE 5.0.
Up to 3 months
Overall Response Rate
Time Frame: at 6 months
Overall Response Rate is defined as the rate of the best overall response as complete response (CR) or partial response (PR) by Lugano Response Criteria. Lugano Criteria are based on PET or bidimensional tumor measurements on computerized tomography (CT).
at 6 months
Overall Survival (OS)
Time Frame: up to 27months
Overall Survival (OS) will be measured from the initial date of treatment to the recorded date of death.
up to 27months
Progression Free Survival (PFS)
Time Frame: up to 27 months
Progression Free Survival is defined as the time from start of treatment to the time of disease progression or death. Among patients treated with axi-cel who have a ferritin >400 ng/ml and CRP>2 mg/dl at the time of apheresis, the 6 month PFS was 25%. The primary endpoint of this study will be met if pre-modulation with itacitinib followed by axi-cel leads to a 6 month PFS of 45% or higher.
up to 27 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Incyte Corporation

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Michael Jain, MD, PhD, Moffitt Cancer Center

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
May 19, 2023

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
June 20, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
January 1, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
February 24, 2023

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
February 24, 2023

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
March 7, 2023

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
March 31, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
March 30, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
March 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • MCC-21892

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Cookie Settings

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. For more details carefully read our Privacy and Cookies Policy. ...>>>You can change your preferences or withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the cookies from your website or computer as described in the policy. Please accept it and choose your preferences by ticking the corresponding boxes in the "Manage Settings" section below. Please carefully read our Terms of Service before you proceed with using any part of this website.
«Manage Settings