A Vaccine Trial for Low Grade Gliomas

A Phase II Study of Vaccinations With HLA-A2 Restricted Glioma Antigen Peptides in Combination With Poly-ICLC for Children With Recurrent Unresectable Low-Grade Gliomas (LGG)

The study will assess the immunogenicity, safety and preliminary clinical efficacy of the glioma associated antigen (GAA)/tetanus toxoid (TT) peptide vaccine and poly-ICLC in HLA-A2+ children with unresectable low-grade gliomas that have received at least two chemotherapy/biologic regimens. Radiation therapy counts as one biologic regimen, but patients may not have received radiation to the index lesion within 1 year of enrollment.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Low Grade Glioma
• Intervention / Treatment: Biological: Experimental: HLA-A2 Restricted Glioma Antigen-Peptides with Poly-ICLC

Detailed Description

Patients will be treated with subcutaneous injections of GAA/TT-vaccines starting on Week 0 and every 3 weeks thereafter for up to 8 cycles or until Off-treatment criteria are met (Section 4.6). I.m. poly-ICLC will be administered (30ug/kg i.m.) immediately following the vaccine. Poly-ICLC should be administered i.m. within 3 cm of the peptide-injection site.

To allow for flexibility with scheduling, the peptide vaccine and Poly-ICLC dose may be given within one week of the date that the vaccine and poly-ICLC administration are due.

Patients will be evaluated for any possible adverse event, regimen limiting toxicity (RLT) as well as clinical/radiological responses by clinical visits and MRI scanning. Follow-up MRIs will be performed (Weeks 6, 15 and 24).

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 25
• Phase: Phase 2

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Sharon DiBridge; Phone Number: 412-692-7070; Email: sharon.dibridge@chp.edu
• Study Contact Backup: Name: James Felker, MD; Phone Number: 412 692-5055

Study Locations

• United States
  • Pennsylvania
    • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, 15224
      • Recruiting
      • Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC
      • Contact: Sharon DiBridge; Phone Number: 412-692-7070; Email: sharon.dibridge@chp.edu

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 3 months to 19 years (Child, Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

Tumor Type

• Unresectable low-grade gliomas that have received at least two chemotherapy/biologic regimens. Radiation therapy counts as a biologic regimen. Patients may not have received radiation therapy to the index lesion within 1 year of enrollment. Patients may have tumor spread within the central nervous system (CNS).
• HLA-A2 positive based on flow cytometry.
• Patients must be clinically stable and off or on low-dose (no more than 0.1 mg/kg/day, max 4 mg/day Dexamethasone) corticosteroid for at least one week prior to study registration.
• Patients must be ≥ 12 months and < 22 years of age at the time of HLA-A2 screening.
• Patients must have a performance status of ≥ 70; (Karnofsky if > 16 years and Lansky if ≤ 16 years of age.
• Documented negative serum beta-human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) for female patients who are post-menarchal. Because the effect of the peptide-based vaccine and poly-ICLC on the fetus has not sufficiently been investigated, pregnant females will not be included in the study.
• Patients must be free of systemic infection requiring IV antibiotics at the time of registration. Patients must be off IV antibiotics for at least 7 days prior to registration.
• Patients with adequate organ function as measured by: Bone marrow: absolute neutrophil count (ANC) > 1,000/µ; Platelets > 100,000/µ (transfusion independent); absolute lymphocyte count of ≥ 500/µ; Hemoglobin >8 g/dl (may be transfused). Hepatic: bilirubin < 1.5x institutional normal for age; serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase (SGPT) < 3x institutional normal.
• Renal: Serum creatinine based on age or Creatinine clearance or radioisotope glomerular filtration rate (GFR) ≥ 70 ml/min/ml/min/1.73 m²
• Patients must have recovered from the toxic effects of prior therapy to grade 1 or better. Patients must be at least 3 weeks from the last dose of standard cytotoxic chemotherapy or myelosuppressive biological therapy and at least 1 week from the last dose of non-myelosuppressive biologic therapy.
• No overt cardiac, gastrointestinal, pulmonary or psychiatric disease.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Patients living outside of North America are not eligible.
• Patients may not have received radiation to the index lesion within 1 year of enrollment.

• Concurrent treatment or medications (must be off for at least 1 week) including:

  • Interferon (e.g. Intron-A®)
  • Allergy desensitization injections
  • Growth factors (e.g. Procrit®, Aranesp®, Neulasta®)
  • Interleukins (e.g. Proleukin®)
  • Any investigational therapeutic medication
• Patients must not have a history of, or currently active autoimmune disorders requiring cytotoxic or immunosuppressive therapy, or autoimmune disorders with visceral involvement.
• Use of immunosuppressives within four weeks prior to study entry or anticipated use of immunosuppressive agents. Dexamethasone, or other corticosteroid medications, if used in the peri-operative period must be tapered to no more than 0.1 mg/kg/day, max 4 mg/day dexamethasone for at least one week before study registration. Topical corticosteroids are acceptable.
• Because patients with immune deficiency are not expected to respond to this therapy, HIV-positive patients are excluded from the study.
• Patients who have received prior immunotherapy.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Intervention / Treatment

Experimental: HLA-A2 Restricted Glioma Antigen-Peptides with Poly-ICLC; All subjects will receive vaccine plus Poly-ICLC. Injections will be given every 3 week for a total of 8 vaccines.

Biological: Experimental: HLA-A2 Restricted Glioma Antigen-Peptides with Poly-ICLC; Poly-ICLC is administered intramuscularly (i.m.) using sterile technique, as supplied from the vial, and in the amount prescribed for the participant's weight. Patients should receive a dose of acetaminophen (15 mg/kg up to a max of 1000 mg) 30-60 minutes before each poly-ICLC administration. The poly-ICLC treatments will be administered immediately following the vaccine. Patients/parents will be asked to report any temperature elevations and side effects after each treatment.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Tumor shrinkage or stable disease	Participants who demonstrate radiological evidence of tumor shrinkage or stable disease without regimen-limiting toxicity (RLT) after the initial 8 vaccines will be eligible to receive additional vaccinations beginning week 24 and every 6 weeks thereafter for up to two years.	Week 24

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: James Felker
• Collaborators: National Cancer Institute (NCI); Connor's Cure
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: James Felker, MD, University of Pittsburgh

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: January 1, 2015
• Primary Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2024
• Study Completion (Estimated): August 31, 2025

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 3, 2015
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 5, 2015
• First Posted (Estimated): February 6, 2015

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimated): November 3, 2023
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: October 31, 2023
• Last Verified: October 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Neoplasms by Histologic Type; Neoplasms; Neoplasms, Glandular and Epithelial; Neoplasms, Neuroepithelial; Neuroectodermal Tumors; Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal; Neoplasms, Nerve Tissue; Glioma; Physiological Effects of Drugs; Immunologic Factors; Interferon Inducers; Poly ICLC
• Other Study ID Numbers: STUDY19060121; R01CA187219 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract); PRO13110086 (Other Identifier: Former identifier from University of Pittsburgh IRB)