DC Vaccine in Pancreatic Cancer

Pilot Study of Mature Dendritic Cell Vaccination Against Mutated KRAS in Patients With Resectable Pancreatic Cancer

This research study is designed to evaluate the effects of a dendritic cell (kind of white blood cell) vaccine for pancreatic cancer.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: mDC3/8-KRAS Vaccine

Detailed Description

This is a single arm open label trial that will assess the safety and tolerability of mature dendritic cell (mDC3/8) vaccine (primer and booster) in subjects with resected pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

Eligible patients that provide written informed consent will undergo apheresis to collect blood mononuclear cells for vaccine production approximately 1 week prior to vaccine infusion. Each study subject will receive cyclophosphamide 300mg/m^2 intravenously 3 to 4 days prior to the vaccine dose to deplete regulatory T cells. For each vaccine dose, all subjects will receive autologous dendritic cells pulsed with mutant KRAS peptides corresponding to the subject's specific tumor mutation and human leukocyte antigen type. On Day 1, the subject will receive the primer vaccine dose; this will be followed by one booster vaccine dose approximately 8 weeks later. Peripheral blood will be taken weekly, and a second apheresis procedure will be performed at the end of study to monitor the immune response to the vaccine. Information will be gathered from usual clinic visits for approximately 1 year following the End of Treatment Study Visit to evaluate for disease recurrence.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 29
• Phase: Phase 1

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Pennsylvania
    • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, 19104
      • University of Pennsylvania

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Pathologically-confirmed KRAS(G12D-), KRAS(G12V-), KRAS(G12R-) or KRAS(G12C-mutated) pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma who are at high risk of relapse and have no evidence of disease.
• Expression of one or more of the following HLA class I alleles: HLA-A02, HLA-A03, HLA-A11, HLA-B07 and HLA-C08.
• Male or female, age 18+
• ECOG performance status 0-1
• Certain required laboratory values, performed within 14 days prior to consent
• Subjects of reproductive potential must agree to use a medically accepted birth control method during the trial and for at least two months following the trial.
• Provide written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

• Prior treatment with more than two lines of cytotoxic chemotherapy. Radiotherapy is not considered a line of therapy.
• Prior malignancy (except non-melanoma skin cancer) within 3 years.
• Pregnant or nursing women.
• Concurrent treatment with systemic immunosuppressants, including corticosteroids (e.g prednisone), calcineurin inhibitors (e.g tacrolimus, cyclosporine), antiproliferative agents (e.g mycophenolate mofetil, azathioprine) within 2 weeks of eligibility confirmation. Local (inhaled or topical) steroids or replacement dose prednisone (≤ 10 mg daily) are permitted.
• Known chronic viral infections including hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV.
• Known allergy to eggs.
• Prior history of uveitis or autoimmune inflammatory eye disease.
• Uncontrolled intercurrent illness.
• Any condition that, in the opinion of the investigator, would interfere with evaluation of the investigational product or interpretation of subject safety or study results.

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: All subjects; All subjects will receive the vaccine and be followed per the schedule of procedures.	Drug: mDC3/8-KRAS Vaccine; Mature dendritic cell (mDC3/8) vaccine (primer and booster) in subjects with resected pancreatic adenocarcinoma

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Safety and side effects of vaccine per CTCAE 4.0	At time of consent through 30 days after the subject's last DC vaccine

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Immune response measuring increased numbers of peptide specific T cells as calculated by the peptide-MHC multimer assay.	Day 1 through week 12
Disease Free Survival	30 days following second vaccine through study completion approximately 12 months after the first DC vaccine

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Pennsylvania
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Mark O'Hara, MD, University of Pennsylvania

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): November 20, 2018
• Primary Completion (Actual): February 12, 2024
• Study Completion (Actual): February 12, 2024

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 9, 2018
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 9, 2018
• First Posted (Actual): July 19, 2018

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): June 29, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 25, 2025
• Last Verified: June 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Cancer vaccine; Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma; Dendritic cell vaccine; Mutant KRAS
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Neoplasms; Neoplasms by Histologic Type; Neoplasms, Glandular and Epithelial; Carcinoma; Adenocarcinoma
• Other Study ID Numbers: UPCC 04218

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
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No