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Summary Background We hypothesised that combining zanubrutinib with obinutuzumab and venetoclax (BOVen) as an initial therapy for chronic lymphocytic leukaemia and small lymphocytic lymphoma would lead to high rates of undetectable minimal residual disease (MRD), and we explored MRD as a biomarker for directing treatment duration. Methods This multicenter, investigator-initiated, single-arm, phase 2 trial took place at two two academic medical centres in the USA. Patients were eligible for the primary cohort if they had treatment-naive chronic lymphocytic leukaemia or small lymphocytic lymphoma, required therapy, and were at least 18 years of age with an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status up to 2. BOVen was administered in 28 day cycles (oral zanubrutinib at 160 mg twice per day starting in cycle 1 on day 1; intravenous obinutuzumab at 1000 mg on day 1 [split over day 1 with 100 mg and day 2 with 900 mg for an absolute lymphocyte count >25 000 cells per μL or lymph nodes >5 cm in diameter], day 8, and day 15 of cycle 1, and day 1 of cycles 2–8; and oral venetoclax ramp up to 400 mg per day starting in cycle 3 on day 1) and discontinued after 8–24 cycles when prespecified undetectable MRD criteria were met in the peripheral blood and bone marrow. The primary endpoint was the proportion of patients that reached undetectable MRD in both the peripheral blood and bone marrow (flow cytometry cutoff less than one chronic lymphocytic leukaemia cell per 10 000 leukocytes [ clinicaltrials.gov ( NCT03824483 ). The primary cohort is closed to recruitment, and recruitment continues in the TP53-mutated mantle cell lymphoma cohort. Findings Between March 14, 2019, and Oct 10, 2019, 47 patients were screened for eligibility, and 39 patients were enrolled and treated. Median age was 62 years (IQR 52–70) with 30 (77%) of 39 male participants and nine (23%) of 39 female participants. 28 (72%) of 39 patients had unmutated immunoglobulin heavy-chain variable-region and five (13%) of 39 had 17p deletion or TP53 mutation. After a median follow-up of 25·8 months (IQR 24·0–27·3), 33 (89%) of 37 patients (95% CI 75–97) had undetectable MRD in both blood and bone marrow, meeting the prespecified undetectable MRD criteria to stop therapy after a median of ten cycles (IQR 8–12), which includes two cycles of zanubrutinib and obinutuzumab before starting venetoclax. After median surveillance after treatment of 15·8 months (IQR 13·0–18·6), 31 (94%) of 33 patients had undetectable MRD. The most common adverse events were thrombocytopenia (23 [59%] of 39), fatigue (21 [54%]), neutropenia (20 [51%]), and bruising (20 [51%]), and the most common adverse event at grade 3 or worse was neutropenia (seven [18%]) in the intention-to-treat population. One death occurred in a patient with intracranial haemorrhage on day 1 of cycle 1 after initiating intravenous heparin for pulmonary emboli. Interpretation BOVen was well tolerated and met its primary endpoint, with 33 (89%) of 37 previously untreated patients with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia or small lymphocytic lymphoma reaching undetectable MRD in both peripheral blood and bone marrow despite a median treatment duration of only 10 months, owing to our undetectable MRD-driven treatment discontinuation design. These data support further evaluation of the BOVen regimen in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia and small lymphocytic lymphoma with treatment duration guided by early MRD response kinetics. Funding Beigene, Genentech (Roche), Grais-Cutler Fund, Lymphoma Research Fund, Lymphoma Research Foundation, American Cancer Society, Farmer Family Foundation, and the National Instititutes of Health and National Cancer Institute.

Hepatosplenic T-cell lymphoma (HSTCL) is a rare subtype of T-cell lymphoma associated with an aggressive clinical course and a worse prognosis. HSTCL develops in the setting of chronic immune suppression or immune dysregulation in up to 20% of cases and is most often characterized by spleen, liver, and bone marrow involvement. Diagnosis and management of HSTCL pose significant challenges given the rarity of the disease along with the absence of lymphadenopathy and poor outcome with conventional chemotherapy regimens. These Guidelines Insights focus on the diagnosis and treatment of HSTCL as outlined in the NCCN Guidelines for T-Cell Lymphomas.

Mycosis fungoides (MF) is the most common subtype of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), and Sézary syndrome (SS) is a rare erythrodermic and leukemic subtype of CTCL characterized by significant blood involvement. Although early-stage disease can be effectively treated predominantly with skin-directed therapies, systemic therapy is often necessary for the treatment of advanced-stage disease. Systemic therapy options have evolved in recent years with the approval of novel agents such as romidepsin, brentuximab vedotin, and mogamulizumab. These NCCN Guidelines Insights discuss the diagnosis and management of MF and SS (with a focus on systemic therapy).

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a spectrum of disorders ranging from hepatic steatosis [excessive accumulation of triglycerides (TG)] to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, which can progress to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. The molecular pathogenesis of steatosis and progression to more severe NAFLD remains unclear. Obesity and aging, two principal risk factors for NAFLD, are associated with a hyperadrenergic state. β-Adrenergic responsiveness in liver increases in animal models of obesity and aging, and in both is linked to increased hepatic expression of β(2)-adrenergic receptors (β(2)-ARs). We previously showed that in aging rodents intracellular signaling from elevated hepatic levels of β(2)-ARs may contribute to liver steatosis. In this study we demonstrate that injection of formoterol, a highly selective β(2)-AR agonist, to mice acutely results in hepatic TG accumulation. Further, we have sought to define the intrahepatic mechanisms underlying β(2)-AR mediated steatosis by investigating changes in hepatic expression and cellular localization of enzymes, transcription factors, and coactivators involved in processes of lipid accrual and disposition—and also functional aspects thereof—in livers of formoterol-treated animals. Our results suggest that β(2)-AR activation by formoterol leads to increased hepatic TG synthesis and de novo lipogenesis, increased but incomplete β-oxidation of fatty acids with accumulation of potentially toxic long-chain acylcarnitine intermediates, and reduced TG secretion—all previously invoked as contributors to fatty liver disease. Experiments are ongoing to determine whether sustained activation of hepatic β(2)-AR signaling by formoterol might be utilized to model fatty liver changes occurring in hyperadrenergic states of obesity and aging, and thereby identify novel molecular targets for the prevention or treatment of NAFLD. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Results of our study suggest that β(2)-adrenergic receptor (β(2)-AR) activation by agonist formoterol leads to increased hepatic TG synthesis and de novo lipogenesis, incomplete β-oxidation of fatty acids with accumulation of long-chain acylcarnitine intermediates, and reduced TG secretion. These findings may, for the first time, implicate a role for β(2)-AR responsive dysregulation of hepatic lipid metabolism in the pathogenetic processes underlying NAFLD in hyperadrenergic states such as obesity and aging.

This is a phase II study of panobinostat, an oral pan-HDAC inhibitor, combined with rituximab in patients with relapsed diffuse large B cell lymphoma. Panobinostat was administered orally 3 times a week every other week on a 28-day cycle. Rituximab was administered weekly during the first cycle, then on Day 1 of cycles 2 to 6. Patients without disease progression after 6 cycles continued panobinostat monotherapy for up to 6 additional cycles in the absence of disease progression. Eighteen eligible subjects were enrolled, and 18 were evaluable for response. The overall response rate was 11% (90% CI [2%-34%]) with 2 subjects having a partial response. The duration of response in these subjects was 51 and 60 days. Five additional subjects had stable disease with 3 subjects having tumor reduction between 27 and 44%, not meeting criteria for partial response. One subject with stable disease remained on therapy a total of 12 cycles. The most common toxicities while on study were thrombocytopenia (14 patients, 78%); fatigue (11, 61%); anemia (10, 56%); diarrhea (8, 44%); and nausea, lymphopenia, anorexia, and hypophosphatemia (5 each, 28% of patients), the majority of which was grade 2 or less. These data indicate that the combination of panobinostat with rituximab is able to induce responses in a limited number of subjects with relapsed diffuse large B cell lymphoma.

Increased β-adrenergic receptor (β-AR)-mediated activation of adenylyl cyclase (AC) in rat liver during aging has been linked to age-related increases in hepatic glucose output and hepatosteatosis. In this study, we investigated the expression of β-ARs, individual receptor subtypes, and G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) regulatory proteins in livers from aging rats. Radioligand-binding studies demonstrated that β-AR density increased by greater than threefold in hepatocyte membranes from senescent (24-mo-old) compared with young adult (7-mo-old) rats and that this phenomenon was blocked by food restriction, which is known to retard aging processes in rodents. Competition-binding studies revealed a mixed population of β1- and β2-AR subtypes in liver membranes over the adult life span, with a trend for greater β2-AR density with age. Expression of both β-AR subtype mRNAs in rat liver increased with age, whereas β2- but not β1-AR protein levels declined in livers of old animals. Immunoreactive β2- but not β1-ARs were preferentially distributed in pericentral hepatic regions. Levels of GRK2/3 and β-arrestin 2 proteins, which are involved in downregulation of agonist-activated GPCRs, including β-ARs, increased during aging. Insofar as sympathetic tone increases with age, our findings suggest that, despite enhanced agonist-mediated downregulation of hepatic β-ARs preferentially affecting the β2-AR subtype, increased generation of both receptor subtypes during aging augments the pool of plasma membrane-bound β-ARs coupled to AC in hepatocytes. This study thus identifies one or both β-AR subtypes as possible therapeutic targets involved in aberrant hepatic processes of glucose and lipid metabolism during aging.

In vitro models for the investigation of renal vascular development are limited. We previously showed that isolated metanephric mesenchymal (MM) and ureteric bud (UB) cells grown in three-dimensional (3D) matrices formed organoids that consisted of primitive vascular structures surrounding a polarized epithelium. Here, we examined the potential of two principal effectors of vasculogenesis, vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A), and platelet-derived growth factor B chain (PDGF-BB), to stimulate MM cell differentiation. The results showed that MM cells possess angioblast characteristics by expressing phenotypic markers for endothelial and mesenchymal cells. UB cells synthesize VEGF-A and PDGF-BB proteins and RNA, whereas the MM cells express the respective cognate receptors, supporting their role in directional induction of vasculogenesis. VEGF-A stimulated proliferation of MM cells in monolayer and in 3D sponges but did not affect MM cell migration, organization, or vasculogenesis. However, PDGF-BB stimulated MM cell proliferation, migration, and vasculogenesis in monolayer and organization of the cells into primitive capillary-like assemblies in 3D sea sponge scaffolds in vitro. A role for PDGF-BB in vasculogenesis in the 3D MM/UB co-culture system was validated by direct interference with PDGF-BB or PDGF receptor-β cell interactions to implicate PDGF-BB as a primary effector of MM cell vasculogenesis. Thus, MM cells resemble early renal angioblasts that may provide an ideal platform for the investigation of renal vasculogenesis in vitro.

Cutaneous B-cell lymphomas (CBCLs) are a heterogeneous group of diseases that can have variable presentations, prognoses, and treatments. The proper identification of a CBCL hinges on proper histopathologic and clinical evaluation. Comprising 25% to 30% of the primary cutaneous lymphomas, incident cases of CBCL are rare. Given the variable natural history of the CBCL, proper classification is critical so that patients are treated appropriately. CBCLs can be divided into 2 main groups: indolent and aggressive. Indolent CBCLs include primary cutaneous follicle center lymphoma and primary cutaneous marginal zone lymphoma. These subtypes usually do not affect a patient's lifespan but can lead to substantial symptomatology, prompting the need for treatment. The aggressive subtypes of CBCL include diffuse large B-cell lymphoma leg type and intravascular large B-cell lymphoma. These are treated as systemic lymphomas, and their prognoses are not as good. In this article, we discuss the clinical features, differential diagnoses, histopathologic features, and treatment options for each of the 4 types of CBCL. The proper categorization of these diseases can allow physicians to properly treat a patient with CBCL, including the avoidance of unnecessary therapy.

Background: Venetoclax (Ven; BH3 mimetic) and Obinutuzumab (O; CD20 antibody) is an approved, fixed-duration regimen (one year) that induces undetectable minimum residual disease (uMRD) and durable remissions in treatment naïve patients (pts) with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL; Fischer NEJM 2019). In the CLARITY trial of venetoclax-ibrutinib (BTK inhibitor; BTKi) in relapsed or refractory CLL, peripheral blood (PB) MRD response kinetics predicted bone marrow (BM) uMRD and were associated with progression-free survival (Rawstron EHA 2020). We explored MRD as a biomarker to direct treatment duration in an investigator-initiated phase 2 trial of Zanubrutinib (BTKi) and O-Ven (BOVen). We hypothesize that early MRD kinetics will identify a defined cohort of pts with delayed BM MRD clearance, and early recurrent detectable MRD after discontinuation of treatment in pts attaining uMRD. Methods: In this multicenter, phase 2 trial (NCT03824483), eligible pts had previously untreated CLL requiring treatment (iwCLL), ECOG PS ≤2, absolute neutrophil count (ANC) ≥1,000/ul, platelets (PLT) ≥75,000/ul (ANC ≥0/ul, PLT ≥20,000/ul if due to CLL). Informed consent was obtained from all pts. BOVen was administered in 28-day (D) cycles (C): Zanubrutinib 160 mg by mouth (PO) twice daily starting D1; Obinutuzumab 1000 mg IV D1 (split D1-2 if lymphocyte count ≥25,000/ul or lymph node ≥5cm), D8, D15 of C1, and D1 of C2-8; Venetoclax ramp up initiated C3D1 (target 400 mg PO daily). MRD was evaluated by flow cytometry (MRD-FC) and immunosequencing (MRD-IS; Adaptive ClonoSEQ) with uMRD defined as ≤10 -4 for flow and ≤10 -5 for IS. Treatment consisted of 8-24 cycles with duration determined by prespecified MRD criteria. Beginning on C7D1 then every 2 cycles, pts with PB uMRD-FC had BM within 14 days. If BM uMRD, PB MRD was repeated after two additional cycles. Pts with confirmed uMRD-FC in PB and BM discontinued therapy and entered posttreatment surveillance. Response was assessed per iwCLL. Adverse events (AE) were assessed per CTCAE v5. MRD-IS failure free survival (FFS) was calculated from end-of-treatment (EOT) to the date of detectable MRD-IS (≥10 -5) using the Kaplan-Meier method. Results: The study accrued 39 pts (03/19-10/19): median age 59 years (23-73), 3:1 male predominance, 28/39 (72%) IGHV unmutated, 5/39 (12.8%) del(17p)/TP53M. All pts were evaluable for toxicity with 37 evaluable for efficacy. At a median follow up of 26+ months (mo; 4.5-30.5+), 95% (35/37) pts achieved uMRD-FC in PB, among whom 33 (94%) also achieved uMRD-IS. BM uMRD-FC was seen in 89% (33/37) at a median time of 8 mo (6-16), all of whom met prespecified MRD criteria and discontinued therapy after a median of 10 mo (8-18). Three pts discontinued therapy with persistent detectable BM MRD after 24 cycles. The most common AEs were neutropenia (51%), thrombocytopenia (44%), diarrhea (44%), infusion related reaction (41%) and bruising (41%). The most common grade ≥3 AE was neutropenia (15%). No laboratory or clinical TLS occurred (Howard definition). A ≥400-fold reduction in PB MRD-IS after 4 cycles (ΔMRD400) was selected using the Youden Index and was highly predictive of attaining BM uMRD in ≤8mo (sensitivity 88% [21/24], specificity 100% [11/11], PPV 100% [21/21], NPV 79% [11/14]. As a result, the median duration of therapy was shorter among patients who achieved ΔMRD400 (8 vs 13 mo). Of 33 pts who met prespecified uMRD criteria and stopped therapy, 31 (94%) remain uMRD-FC following a median 15 mo (0-20) from EOT, and 2 pts had recurrent MRD (1 with PD recaptured PB uMRD with retreatment). Of 33 pts who discontinued therapy after achieving the prespecified MRD endpoint, MRD-IS was evaluated every 3 months in 31 pts for a median of 12 mo (range, 3-18) from EOT. MRD-IS FFS was longer in pts who achieved ΔMRD400 (log rank p Conclusion: BOVen achieved frequent, durable uMRD. All pts completed therapy (median 10 mo treatment), including 89% (33/37) who met the prespecified PB/BM uMRD endpoint. With a median posttreatment follow-up of 15 mo, 31 (94%) remain uMRD-FC. ΔMRD400 identified a cohort of pts (40%) with delayed BM MRD clearance and earlier MRD recurrence, despite longer treatment duration. ΔMRD400 warrants further study as a predictive biomarker for treatment duration. Figure 1 Figure 1. Disclosures Soumerai: Seattle Genetics: Consultancy; AstraZeneca: Consultancy; BeiGene: Consultancy, Research Funding; BMS: Consultancy; Adaptive Biotechnologies: Consultancy, Research Funding; AbbVie: Consultancy; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy, Research Funding; BostonGene: Research Funding; GlaxoSmithKline: Research Funding. Mato: Janssen: Consultancy, Research Funding; LOXO: Consultancy, Research Funding; Johnson and Johnson: Consultancy, Research Funding; Acerta/AstraZeneca: Consultancy, Research Funding; DTRM BioPharma: Consultancy, Research Funding; Genmab: Research Funding; AstraZeneca: Consultancy; MSKCC: Current Employment; Genentech: Consultancy, Research Funding; Sunesis: Consultancy, Research Funding; Nurix: Research Funding; AbbVie: Consultancy, Research Funding; Adaptive Biotechnologies: Consultancy, Research Funding; Pharmacyclics LLC, an AbbVie Company: Consultancy, Research Funding; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy, Other: DSMB, Research Funding; BeiGene: Consultancy, Research Funding. Dogan: Seattle Genetics: Consultancy; Peer View: Honoraria; Takeda: Consultancy, Research Funding; Roche: Consultancy, Research Funding; Physicians' Education Resource: Honoraria; EUSA Pharma: Consultancy. Joffe: Epizyme: Consultancy; AstraZeneca: Consultancy. Hochberg: Leuko: Consultancy; Intervention Insights: Consultancy. Abramson: Bluebird Bio: Consultancy; Morphosys: Consultancy; Bristol-Myers Squibb Company: Consultancy, Research Funding; Kymera: Consultancy; BeiGene: Consultancy; Novartis: Consultancy; C4 Therapeutics: Consultancy; Genmab: Consultancy; EMD Serono: Consultancy; Kite Pharma: Consultancy; Incyte Corporation: Consultancy; Astra-Zeneca: Consultancy; Allogene Therapeutics: Consultancy; Seagen Inc.: Research Funding; AbbVie: Consultancy; Karyopharm: Consultancy; Genentech: Consultancy. Batlevi: TouchIME: Honoraria; BMS: Current holder of individual stocks in a privately-held company; Medscape: Honoraria; GLG Pharma: Consultancy; Dava Oncology: Honoraria; Kite Pharma: Consultancy; Juno/Celgene: Consultancy; ADC Therapeutics: Consultancy; Life Sciences: Consultancy; Moderna: Current holder of individual stocks in a privately-held company; Regeneron: Current holder of individual stocks in a privately-held company; Viatris: Current holder of individual stocks in a privately-held company; Pfizer: Current holder of individual stocks in a privately-held company; Karyopharm: Consultancy; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy; Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center: Current Employment; Seattle Genetics: Consultancy; Bayer: Research Funding; Xynomic: Research Funding; Roche/Genentech: Research Funding; Novartis: Research Funding; Epizyme: Research Funding; Janssen: Research Funding; Autolus: Research Funding. Matasar: Rocket Medical: Consultancy, Research Funding; Merck Sharp & Dohme: Current holder of individual stocks in a privately-held company; Juno Therapeutics: Consultancy; Merck: Consultancy; Genentech, Inc.: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Bayer: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; IGM Biosciences: Research Funding; GlaxoSmithKline: Honoraria, Research Funding; F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center: Current Employment; Teva: Consultancy; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy, Honoraria; Pharmacyclics: Honoraria, Research Funding; Janssen: Honoraria, Research Funding; Takeda: Consultancy, Honoraria; Seattle Genetics: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; ImmunoVaccine Technologies: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Daiichi Sankyo: Consultancy. Noy: Rafael Parhma: Research Funding; Morphosys: Consultancy; Targeted Oncology: Consultancy; Medscape: Consultancy; Pharmacyclics: Consultancy, Research Funding; Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria; Epizyme: Consultancy. Palomba: Ceramedix: Honoraria; Seres: Honoraria, Other: Stock, Patents & Royalties, Research Funding; Notch: Honoraria, Other: Stock; Novartis: Consultancy; Kite: Consultancy; PCYC: Consultancy; BeiGene: Consultancy; Lygenesis: Honoraria; Nektar: Honoraria; Juno: Patents & Royalties; Wolters Kluwer: Patents & Royalties; Rheos: Honoraria; Magenta: Honoraria; Pluto: Honoraria; WindMIL: Honoraria; Priothera: Honoraria. Kumar: Abbvie Pharmaceuticals: Research Funding; Pharmacyclics: Research Funding; Kite Pharmaceuticals: Other: advisory board , Research Funding; Celgene: Honoraria, Other: advisory board, Research Funding; Astra Zeneca: Honoraria, Other: Advisory Board, Research Funding; Adaptive Biotechnologies, Celgene, Abbvie Pharmaceticals, Pharmacyclics, Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding. Roeker: AbbVie, AstraZeneca, Janssen, LOXO, Pharmacyclics, TG Therapeutics, Vaniam Group, Verastem: Consultancy; Pfizer: Consultancy, Research Funding; Pharmacyclics: Consultancy; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy; Loxo Oncology: Consultancy; Abbot Laboratories: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Thompson: VJHemOnc: Honoraria; MJH Life Sciences: Honoraria; Curio Science: Honoraria. Roshal: Physicians' Education Resource: Other: Provision of services; Auron Therapeutics: Other: Ownership / Equity interests; Provision of services; Celgene: Other: Provision of services. Huang: BeiGene: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company, Current holder of individual stocks in a privately-held company, Current holder of stock options in a privately-held company, Divested equity in a private or publicly-traded company in the past 24 months, Other: Travel, Accommodations, Expenses; Protara Therapeutics: Current holder of individual stocks in a privately-held company, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: TRAVEL, ACCOMMODATIONS, EXPENSES (paid by any for-profit health care company). Biondo: Roche: Current holder of individual stocks in a privately-held company; Genentech, Inc.: Current Employment. Wu: Genentech, Inc.: Current Employment; Roche/GNE: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company, Current holder of individual stocks in a privately-held company, Current holder of stock options in a privately-held company. Jacob: Adaptive Biotechnologies: Current Employment. Abdel-Wahab: H3B Biomedicine: Consultancy, Research Funding; Foundation Medicine Inc: Consultancy; Merck: Consultancy; Prelude Therapeutics: Consultancy; LOXO Oncology: Consultancy, Research Funding; Lilly: Consultancy; AIChemy: Current holder of stock options in a privately-held company, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Envisagenics Inc.: Current holder of stock options in a privately-held company, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Zelenetz: Novartis: Honoraria; Genentech/Roche: Honoraria, Research Funding; BMS/Celgene/JUNO: Honoraria, Other; AstraZeneca: Honoraria; MethylGene: Research Funding; Pharmacyclics: Honoraria; Amgen: Honoraria; MEI Pharma: Honoraria, Research Funding; Gilead: Honoraria, Research Funding; Verastem: Honoraria; Beigene: Honoraria, Other, Research Funding; Abbvie: Honoraria, Research Funding; SecuraBio: Honoraria; Janssen: Honoraria; Gilead: Honoraria; MorphoSys: Honoraria; NCCN: Other; LFR: Other. OffLabel Disclosure: Zanubrutinib is administered off-label in combination with venetoclax and obinutuzumab for patients with CLL/SLL.

Introduction: Adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATLL) is a rare type of lymphoma that is often aggressive with poor survival. The majority of cases cluster in regions with high rates of endemic human T-lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) because chronic infection is necessary for the development of ATLL. ATLL is rare in the US, with most cases occurring in immigrants from endemic regions. Although treatment data exist from Japan, some of the agents evaluated are not available in the US. Because of limited prospective data in the US, there is no well-defined standard of care. Brentuximab vedotin (BV) is a CD30-targeting antibody-drug conjugate that has been shown to be effective even in lymphomas with very low CD30 expression (Jagadeesh, JCO, 2019). Studies have shown 36% to 50% of ATLL cases will express CD30. CD30 may be associated with worse survival in acute ATLL, making it an important therapeutic target. BV has been studied in combination with a CHP (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, prednisone) backbone for the treatment of CD30 expressing PTCL. ATLL patients were eligible for the study, but only 7 patients were enrolled (Horwitz, Lancet, 2019). BV-CHEP has been studied in CD30 expressing PTCL and was shown to be safe and effective (Herrera, Blood, 2019). No ATLL patients were enrolled prior to the preliminary report. We developed a prospective, multicenter pilot study evaluating BV in combination with cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, etoposide, and prednisone (BV-CHEP) for the treatment of ATLL. We report the interim safety and efficacy analysis of the first 8 patients treated on this study. Methods: Adult patients from 5 centers (UNC Chapel Hill, Boston Medical Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and Moffitt Cancer Center at Memorial Healthcare System) were enrolled from October 2017 until present. Newly diagnosed ATLL cases were eligible, including the acute, lymphomatous and chronic unfavorable subtypes. Patients did not have to express CD30 to be enrolled on the study. Patients could go on to frontline consolidation with allogeneic stem cell transplant per provider preference at any time after 2 cycles of BV-CHEP. Transplant-ineligible patients completed a total of 6 cycles of BV-CHEP and those who expressed CD30 were eligible for BV maintenance, whereas those without CD30 expression entered follow-up. Patients could receive prephase steroids and/or 1 cycle of CHOP-equivalent chemotherapy prior to enrollment. Prior antiviral therapy was allowed. Patients were treated with standard dosing every 21 days: BV 1.8 mg/kg on day 1, cyclophosphamide 750 mg/m2 on day 1, doxorubicin 50 mg/m2 on day 1, etoposide 100 mg/m2 days 1-3, and prednisone 100mg days 1-5. All patients received GCSF support. The primary endpoint was complete response (CR) by PET-CT after at least 2 cycles of therapy per adapted Lugano and ATLL criteria. Secondary endpoints were safety, overall response rate (ORR), progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Results: 8 patients were enrolled and were evaluable for interim safety and efficacy analysis. All patients were HTLV-1 positive; 4 of 8 (50%) were acute type and 4 of 8 were the lymphomatous type. 4 of 8 patients had CD30 expression. The median age was 56 (range 38 to 68) and 7 of 8 (87.5%) were female. 6 of 8 patients identified as Black (Antigua and Barbuda N=1, Haiti N=4, US N=1), 1 identified as Asian (Japan) and 1 patient identified as Hispanic (Colombia). All patients were advanced stage (7 of 8 stage IV; 1 stage III). Five of 8 patients completed at least 4 cycles of treatment (median 4 cycles; range 2 to 6). After at least 2 cycles of BV-CHEP, 4 of 8 patients achieved a CR (50%). An additional 2 patients achieved a PR, for an ORR of 75%. The median PFS was 196 days (Fig.1) and the median OS was not reached (Fig.2). When CD30 expressing patients (N=4) were compared to non-expressing patients (N=4), there was no significant difference in median PFS or OS. The regimen was well-tolerated with grade 3 mucositis occurring in 3 patients, grade 3 hypertension in 2 patients, and grade 3 rash in 1 patient. No patients had to come off study due to toxicity. Three patients received consolidation allogeneic transplant. No patients received maintenance BV. Conclusions: In this interim analysis, BV-CHEP chemotherapy was safe and effective in the treatment of aggressive ATLL. We look forward to reporting the final results once the study completes accrual. Figure 1 Figure 1. Disclosures Dittus: BeiGene: Other: Advisory Board; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; AstraZeneca: Research Funding; Genentech: Research Funding. Sandoval-Sus: SeaGen, Janssen, MassiveBio, TG: Other: Advisory Board; BMS: Other: Advisory Board, Speakers Bureau. Sloan: Stemline: Honoraria; Abbvie: Honoraria; Astra Zeneca: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Pharmacosmos: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. OffLabel Disclosure: Brentuximab vedotin will be used in CD30- ATLL patients.

BACKGROUND: Maintenance rituximab in MCL has improved survival and supports the exploration of maintenance with novel targeted agents. Ibrutinib is a BTK inhibitor approved for relapsed/refractory MCL. We report the final analysis of safety and efficacy of Ibrutinib maintenance (I-M) as monotherapy following chemo-immunotherapy induction for treatment-naive MCL in a multicenter phase II trial. METHODS: Pts with CR/PR to frontline chemo-immunotherapy (+/- autologous stem cell transplant (autoSCT)) received I-M 560 mg daily for up to 4 years. The primary endpoint was 3-year PFS rate. Secondary endpoints were to determine PR to CR conversions, median OS and the safety profile of I-M. Minimal residual disease (MRD) was measured using an NGS-MRD assay on peripheral blood (detection resolution of 1 cell per million; clonoSEQ®; Adaptive Biotechnologies) prior to and 1, 6 and 18-24 mo(s) after initiation of I-M. RESULTS: 36 pts were enrolled to complete accrual. Median age was 60 years (range 46-90). For induction, most pts were treated with BR (n=17, 47%) or a cytarabine-containing regimen (n=18, 50%). Eighteen (50%) pts underwent autoSCT. Thirty-four (94%) and 2 (6%) had CR and PR as best response to induction respectively, with 1 PR to CR conversion on I-M. At a median follow-up of 47 months, 10 (28%) pts completed a full I-M course, 7 (19%) remain on I-M, 15 (42%) discontinued I-M for treatment related adverse events (TRAEs) and 4 (11%) discontinued I-M for other reasons (PD x 1, secondary malignancies requiring treatment x 2, death cause unknown x 1). Three pts died during I-M, 2 deaths deemed unrelated to I-M (aspiration pneumonia, 2 nd malignancy) and 1 from unknown cause; 1 pt was lost to follow-up. Four pts were treated with rituximab maintenance after stopping I-M prematurely for toxicity without evidence of disease progression prior to or after change in therapy. At the time of data cut-off, MRD was assessed in 22 of 36 pts (available samples) at varying time points (Fig 1) with a dominant clone identified in all 22 pts. Pts were deemed MRD (-) if no sequences were detected at a threshold of 10 -6. Seventeen pts were MRD (-), 4 MRD indeterminate and 1 MRD (+) with radiographic CR after induction; the latter remained MRD (+) at 18 months with CR. All MRD indeterminate pts were MRD (-) when checked after 1 month on I-M. Six pts MRD (-) post-induction became MRD (+) during their I-M course. Of these pts, 2 reverted to MRD (-) with continued I-M; of the remaining 4 pts, 1 had PD and the others maintain stable clinical responses with ongoing I-M though MRD has not been rechecked. 3-year PFS and OS rates were 91% and 94% respectively (Figure 2A, B). PFS was improved in pts who received autoSCT prior to enrollment (Fig 2C, p=0.03) with a trend for improved OS (Figure 2D, p=0.057). MRD did not correlate with PFS (p=0.65) and OS (p=0.45) given few events. Atrial fibrillation/flutter occurred in 10 pts (28%; G1-2 n=7, 19%, G≥3 n = 3, 8%), 8 (22%) with new onset and 2 (6%) with worsening grade. HTN occurred in 20 pts (55%; G1-2 n=13, 33%, G≥3 n = 7, 22%), 15 (42%) with new onset and 5 (14%) with worsening grade. Incidences of both atrial fibrillation/flutter and HTN increased over time with ongoing I-M exposure (Table). Four pts had a 2 nd solid malignancy, 2 while on treatment and 2 after stopping I-M. TRAEs led to permanent dose reductions in 8 (22%) pts, 2 for neutropenia, 2 for fatigue, 2 for myalgias, 1 each for diarrhea and mucositis. Fifteen (42%) pts permanently discontinued I-M, most commonly for atrial fibrillation/flutter (n=8, 22%; n=5, 14% for G1-2). CONCLUSION: I-M 560 mg daily after response to frontline chemo-immunotherapy is feasible in MCL and results in durable PFS and OS. Toxicities including rates of high-grade atrial fibrillation/flutter and HTN are consistent with ibrutinib's known safety profile with increased incidence with longer exposure; discontinuation of I-M for atrial fibrillation/flutter in 22% of pts is higher than expected. Changes in NGS-MRD were noted in a small number of pts during maintenance. Extended follow-up and correlation of changes in MRD with PFS and OS are needed to determine clinical relevance of I-M and MRD status. Further studies evaluating maintenance with next generation BTK inhibitors as alternatives to ibrutinib should be explored to mitigate toxicity. Figure 1 Figure 1. Disclosures Karmali: Takeda: Research Funding; Genentech: Consultancy; Roche: Consultancy; Epizyme: Consultancy; Morphosys: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; BeiGene: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Janssen/Pharmacyclics: Consultancy; BMS/Celgene/Juno: Consultancy, Research Funding; AstraZeneca: Speakers Bureau; Karyopharm: Consultancy; Kite, a Gilead Company: Consultancy, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; EUSA: Consultancy. Abramson: Seagen Inc.: Research Funding; Allogene Therapeutics: Consultancy; Astra-Zeneca: Consultancy; Incyte Corporation: Consultancy; BeiGene: Consultancy; Kymera: Consultancy; Bluebird Bio: Consultancy; Genmab: Consultancy; EMD Serono: Consultancy; Bristol-Myers Squibb Company: Consultancy, Research Funding; Novartis: Consultancy; Kite Pharma: Consultancy; Morphosys: Consultancy; C4 Therapeutics: Consultancy; AbbVie: Consultancy; Karyopharm: Consultancy; Genentech: Consultancy. Stephens: JUNO: Research Funding; Abbvie: Consultancy; Adaptive: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Beigene: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Innate Pharma: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Novartis: Research Funding; AstraZeneca: Consultancy; CSL Behring: Consultancy; Celgene: Consultancy; Mingsight: Research Funding; Arqule: Research Funding; TG Therapeutics: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Epizyme: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Karyopharm: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding. Winter: Ariad/Takeda: Other: Husband: Data and Safety Monitoring Board; Actinium Pharma: Consultancy; BMS: Other: Husband: Data and Safety Monitoring Board; Gilead: Other: Husband: Consultancy; Janssen: Other: Husband: Consultancy; Epizyme: Other: Husband: Data and Safety Monitoring Board; Agios: Other: Husband: Consultancy; Novartis: Other: Husband: Consultancy, Data and Safety Monitoring Board; Merck: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Karyopharm (Curio Science): Honoraria. Ma: Juno: Research Funding; Beigene: Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; AstraZeneca: Honoraria, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Loxo: Research Funding; Janssen: Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Abbvie: Honoraria, Research Funding; TG Therapeutics: Research Funding; Pharmacyclics: Research Funding, Speakers Bureau. Petrich: Daiichi-Sankyo: Current Employment; Abbvie: Ended employment in the past 24 months. Hochberg: Leuko: Consultancy; Trapelo Health: Consultancy. Kuhr: Adaptive Biotechnologies: Current Employment. Lee: Adaptive Biotechnologies: Current Employment. Gordon: Zylem Biosciences: Patents & Royalties: Patents, No royalties; Bristol Myers Squibb: Honoraria, Research Funding. OffLabel Disclosure: We will report on the use of ibrutinib maintenance after front-line induction therapy in MCL.

This is an overview of the important considerations for hospitalized patients with primary cutaneous lymphoma (PCL). The evaluation and management of inpatients with a suspected or confirmed diagnosis of PCL are discussed. Additionally, attention is paid to the complications associated with therapy for PCL that might warrant inpatient care. There are many therapies that have demonstrated efficacy and safety in PCL patients. However, with new therapies also come serious complications associated with treatment. Furthermore, reviews and case studies have established the significant morbidity and mortality associated with the rapidly progressive clinical course of certain aggressive PCL variants. These findings have implications for the management of PCL patients. For patients with PCL, it is important to consider the characteristics of their disease and their selected therapeutic regimen as both have implications for patient care. Optimal management of a hospitalized PCL patient requires a multi-disciplinary team of physicians.

BACKGROUND: Ibrutinib is a BTK inhibitor approved for relapsed/refractory MCL. We evaluated the safety and efficacy of single-agent ibrutinib maintenance (I-M) following frontline chemo-immunotherapy for MCL in a multicenter phase II trial. Herein, we report preliminary results. METHODS: Patients (Pts) received I-M 560 mg daily for up to 4 years after complete/partial response (CR/PR) to frontline chemo-immunotherapy (+/- autoSCT). The 3-year PFS rate was the primary endpoint. Secondary endpoints were PR to CR conversions, median OS and toxicity. After identifying a trackable clone using archived tissue obtained at diagnosis, minimal residual disease (MRD) was measured using NGS (detection resolution of 1 cell per million; clonoSEQ®; Adaptive Biotechnologies) on peripheral blood at 4 time-points: baseline (after induction but prior to starting I-M) and then at 1, 6 and 18-24 mo(s) after initiation of I-M. RESULTS: 36 pts were enrolled between 7/2014-7/2018. Median age was 60 years (range 46-90). For induction, 17 (47%) received BR, 18 (50%) a cytarabine-containing regimen and 1 (3%) R-CHOP. Eighteen (50%) had autoSCT in CR1. Post-induction +/- autoSCT, 33 (92%) had a CR and 3 (8%) had a PR as best response respectively. One patient converted from PR to CR on I-M. Median f/u was 34.6 months. 5 (14%) pts completed the 4-year I-M course and 15 (42%) remain on I-M (median 31 cycles, range 2-52). Sixteen (44%) pts discontinued I-M early due to: treatment related adverse events (TRAEs; n=12), second malignancies considered unrelated to I-M (n=2), PD (n=1) and death of unknown cause (n=1). Three pts died, 2 deaths deemed unrelated to I-M (aspiration pneumonia, 2nd malignancy) and 1 from unknown cause; 1 pt was lost to follow-up. The most common grade ≥ 3 TRAEs during I-M were neutropenia, HTN, infection, bleeding and atrial fibrillation/flutter (Table 1). TRAEs led to permanent dose reductions in 9 (25%) pts, most commonly for neutropenia (n=3), and I-M discontinuation in 12 (33%), 6 for new onset atrial fibrillation/flutter, 1 each for myalgias, rash, pericardial effusion, mucositis, TIA, subdural hematoma/bleed. Notably, I-M was discontinued in the majority of pts with new onset atrial fibrillation/flutter though not typical of current practice. At the time of data cut-off, MRD was assessed in 21 of 36 pts at varying time points (Figure 1) with remaining samples not yet collected/analyzed. After induction but prior to I-M, 16 pts were confirmed MRD (-), 4 were MRD indeterminate and 1 was MRD (+). Four pts MRD (-) prior to I-M became MRD (+) with follow-up, 2 induced with hyperCVAD, 1 with BR and 1 with R-CHOP + autoSCT prior to I-M; 2 of these pts reverted back to MRD (-) status with ongoing I-M. Of the 2 pts with persistent MRD (+) disease, 1 had clinical progression and the other maintains radiographic CR. Post induction, all MRD indeterminate pts were MRD (-) when checked after 1 month on I-M. The pt who was MRD (+) after front-line treatment (Nordic regimen + autoSCT) remains MRD (+) after 30 cycles of I-M without clinical relapse. MRD correlations with PFS and OS have not yet been performed. CONCLUSION: I-M 560 mg daily is feasible in pts with MCL after response to frontline chemo-immunotherapy. Grade ≥ 3 rates of atrial fibrillation/flutter are consistent with ibrutinib's known safety profile. NGS-based assessments demonstrate that most pts are MRD negative after intensive induction. Longer follow-up and correlation of MRD with PFS and OS are needed to determine the clinical relevance of I-M and MRD status. Disclosures Karmali: BeiGene: Speakers Bureau; AstraZeneca: Speakers Bureau; Karyopharm: Honoraria; Takeda: Research Funding; BMS/Celgene/Juno: Honoraria, Other, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Gilead/Kite: Honoraria, Other, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau. Stephens:Arqule: Research Funding; Innate: Consultancy; Juno: Research Funding; Acerta: Research Funding; MingSight: Research Funding; Janssen: Consultancy; Karyopharm: Consultancy, Research Funding; Beigene: Consultancy; Pharmacyclics: Consultancy; Gilead: Research Funding; Verastem: Research Funding. Winter:Norvartis: Consultancy, Other: DSMB; Karyopharm: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: advisory board; Epizyme: Other: DSMB; Delta Fly Pharma: Consultancy; Amgen: Consultancy; CVS/Caremark: Consultancy; Ariad/Takeda: Consultancy; Merck: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: advisory board. Ma:Pharmacyclics, LLC, an AbbVie Company: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; BeiGene: Honoraria, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; AstraZeneca: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Novartis: Research Funding; Bioverativ: Consultancy, Honoraria; Gilead: Consultancy, Honoraria; Genentech: Consultancy, Honoraria; Juno: Research Funding; AbbVie: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Kite: Consultancy, Honoraria; TG Therapeutics: Research Funding. Petrich:AbbVie: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company; Daiichi-Sankyo: Current Employment. Hochberg:Intervention Insights: Consultancy; Leuko: Consultancy. Kuhr:Adaptive Biotechnologies: Current Employment. Gordon:Zylem Biosciences: Patents & Royalties: Patents, No Royalties. Pro:Verastem Oncology: Research Funding. OffLabel Disclosure: maintenance ibrutinib after frontline therapy in MCL

Doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (ABVD) with or without radiation is standard therapy for limited-stage Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) but carries risks of bleomycin-induced lung injury and radiation toxicity. Brentuximab vedotin is highly active in relapsed HL and was recently approved with doxorubicin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (AVD) for previously untreated stage III/IV HL. We evaluated brentuximab-AVD for nonbulky stage I/II HL in a multicenter phase 2 study. Patients received a lead-in cycle of brentuximab vedotin monotherapy on days 1 and 15, followed by an exploratory positron emission tomography/computed tomography scan. Patients then received brentuximab-AVD for 4 to 6 cycles based on interim positron emission tomography/computed tomography scanning after cycle 2. Thirty-four patients were enrolled with a median age of 36 years (range, 20-75 years). Risk was early favorable in 62% and unfavorable in 38%. The best complete response rate was 100%. At a median follow-up of 38 months, the progression-free survival and overall survival were 94% and 97%, respectively. The most common adverse events were peripheral sensory neuropathy (79%), neutropenia (76%), fatigue (74%), and nausea (71%). The most common grade 3/4 toxicities were neutropenia (62%), febrile neutropenia (35%), and peripheral sensory neuropathy (24%). One elderly patient died of neutropenic sepsis in the first brentuximab-AVD cycle. Brentuximab dose reductions were required in 38% of patients, most for peripheral neuropathy. In conclusion, brentuximab-AVD without bleomycin or radiation produced a high complete response rate, with most patients requiring only 4 total cycles of therapy. Because toxicity was higher than would be expected from AVD alone, this method may not be appropriate for early-stage patients with a highly favorable prognosis. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT01534078.

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells have emerged as a promising class of cell-based immunotherapy in refractory malignancies. Neurotoxicity represents a common and potentially life-threatening adverse effect of CAR T cells, and clinical experience is limited. Here, we describe the clinical presentation and management of 25 adult patients who presented with neurotoxic syndromes after CAR T-cell therapy at the Massachusetts General Hospital. This cohort includes 24 patients treated with CD19-directed CAR T cells for non-Hodgkin lymphoma (n = 23) and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (n = 1), and 1 patient treated with α-fetoprotein–directed CAR T cells for hepatocellular carcinoma (n = 1). Twelve of the 25 patients (48%) developed grade 1-2 neurotoxicity and 13 patients (52%) presented with grade 3-4 neurotoxicity. We found that lower platelet counts at time of CAR T-cell infusion were associated with more severe neurotoxicity (P = .030). Cytokine release syndrome occurred in 24 of 25 patients (96%). Serum levels of ferritin peaked with onset of neurologic symptoms, and higher ferritin levels were associated with higher neurotoxicity grade. Grade 3-4 neurotoxicity correlated negatively with overall survival (OS) (P = .013). Median OS of the entire cohort was 54.7 weeks. Eight patients (32%) with grade 3-4 neurotoxicity were deceased at database closure, whereas none died with neurotoxicity grade 1-2. High pretreatment lactate dehydrogenase was frequently encountered in lymphoma patients with grade 3-4 neurotoxicity and correlated negatively with progression-free survival (P = .048). We did not find evidence that steroid use ≥7 days altered the patient’s outcome when compared with

A 65-year-old man with end-stage renal disease and a history of syphilis presented with a leg injury and a diffuse pruritic rash. A recent serologic test had been positive for human T-lymphotropic virus type 1. A diagnostic procedure was performed.

Hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1 mediates hypoxia- and chronic kidney disease–induced fibrotic events. Here, we assessed whether HIF-1 blockade attenuates the manifestations of diabetic nephropathy in a type 1 diabetic animal model, OVE26. YC-1 [3-(5′-hydroxymethyl-2′-furyl)-1-benzyl indazole], an HIF-1 inhibitor, reduced whole kidney glomerular hypertrophy, mesangial matrix expansion, extracellular matrix accumulation, and urinary albumin excretion as well as NOX4 protein expression and NADPH-dependent reactive oxygen species production, while blood glucose levels remained unchanged. The role of NOX oxidases in HIF-1–mediated extracellular matrix accumulation was explored in vitro using glomerular mesangial cells. Through a series of genetic silencing and adenoviral overexpression studies, we have defined GLUT1 as a critical downstream target of HIF-1α mediating high glucose–induced matrix expression through the NADPH oxidase isoform, NOX4. Together, our data suggest that pharmacological inhibition of HIF-1 may improve clinical manifestations of diabetic nephropathy.

The CCN family of matricellular signaling proteins is emerging as a unique common link across multiple diseases and organs related to injury and repair. They are now being shown to play a central role in regulating the pathways to the initiation and resolution of normal wound healing and fibrosis in response to multiple forms of injury. Similarly, it is also emerging that they play a key role in regulating the establishment, growth, metastases and tissue regeneration in many forms of cancer via the interaction of cancer cells with the tumor stroma. Evidence has been recently provided that these proteins do not act independently but are co-regulated working in a yin/yang manner to alter the outcome of both normal physiological processes as well as pathology. The purpose of this review is to twofold. First, it will summarize work to date supporting CCN2 as a therapeutic target in the formation and progression of renal, skin, and other organ fibrosis, as well as cancer stroma formation. Second, it will highlight recent evidence for CCN3 as a counter-regulator and a potential therapeutic agent in these diseases with an exciting, novel potential to both treat and then restore tissue homeostasis in those afflicted by these devastating disorders.

Aim In clinical practice, there is a prevailing notion that photosensitivity mostly occurs in children with epilepsy (CWE) with idiopathic generalized epilepsy. We investigated the distribution of epilepsy types and etiology in photosensitive children and the associations with specific clinical and electroencephalogram (EEG) variables. Methods In this retrospective cohort study, clinical data were acquired from all children that showed photosensitivity during systematic intermittent photic stimulation (IPS), over a 10-year interval at a tertiary level Children's Hospital, Winnipeg. Patient demographics, EEG findings, and clinical data and symptoms during IPS were abstracted. Classification of diagnoses using the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) 2017 guidelines was done by an expert panel. Results Seventy-eight photosensitive children were identified. Forty (51.3%) had generalized epilepsy (idiopathic: 27, structural: 2, other: 11) compared with 19 (24.4%) focal (idiopathic: 1, structural: 2, other: 16), 8 (10.3%) combined focal and generalized (structural: 4, other: 4), and 11 (14.1%) unknown epilepsy (other: 11); (χ2 (3) = 32.1, p = .000). Self-sustaining or outlasting photoparoxysmal responses (PPRs) occurred in association with all epilepsy types; however, the EEGs of focal CWE without treatment comprised almost solely of PPRs which outlasted the stimulus (8/10), in contrast to only 8/17 of focal CWE with treatment and to 13/26 of generalized epilepsy without treatment. Most frequency intervals in individual patients were less under treatment: a decrease in standardized photosensitivity range (SPR) was seen in 5 CWE, an increase in 2, and no change in 1 during treatment. Both CWE with focal and generalized epilepsy showed abnormal activity on EEG during hyperventilation (40% vs 65.7%). Thirteen out of 14 CWE with clinical signs during IPS had independent spontaneous epileptiform discharges (SEDs) in the EEG recording. Conclusion Photosensitivity occurs in all types of epilepsy rather than in idiopathic generalized epilepsy alone. Surprisingly, there is a tendency for focal epilepsy to be associated with self-sustaining PPRs, especially when no treatment is used. Treatment tends to make the PPR more self-limiting and decrease the SPR. There is a tendency that clinical signs during IPS occur in EEGs in individuals with SEDs.

8006 Background: Venetoclax (Ven)-Obinutuzumab (O) is approved for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) achieving frequent undetectable minimum residual disease (uMRD; Fischer NEJM 2019). Ven-Ibrutinib is synergistic with frequent uMRD but with grade >3 neutropenia in 33-48% patients (pts; Tam ASH 2019; Jain NEJM 2019). Zanubrutinib (B) is a highly specific BTK inhibitor that demonstrated 100% occupancy in lymphoid tissues, so may be preferred to combine with OVen. We hypothesize that treatment (tx) with BOVen using an MRD driven discontinuation strategy will achieve frequent uMRD and durable responses. Methods: In this multicenter, investigator initiated phase 2 trial (NCT03824483), eligible pts had previously untreated CLL requiring tx per iwCLL, ECOG PS 1, PLT >75 (ANC >0, PLT >20 if due to CLL). BOVen was administered in 28D cycles: B 160 mg PO BID starting D1; O 1000 mg IV D1 or split D1-2, 8, 15 of C1, D1 of C2-8; Ven ramp up initiated C3D1 (target 400 mg QD). Tx duration was determined by a prespecified uMRD endpoint (min 8 cycles). MRD was assessed in peripheral blood (PB; flow cytometry, sensitivity >10−4) starting C7D1 then every 2 cycles. Once PB uMRD was determined and confirmed in bone marrow (BM), tx continued 2 additional cycles. Adverse events (AE) were assessed per CTCAE v5. Median (med) time to uMRD (primary endpoint) was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Results: The study accrued 39 pts (3-10/19): med age 59 years (23-73), 3:1 male, CLL IPI >4 26/39 (67%), unmutated IGHV 28/39 (72%), 17p del/ TP53 mutated 4/39 (10%), all pts were evaluable for toxicity with 37 evaluable for efficacy. At a med follow up of 8 months (mo; 3-10), 25/37 (68%) pts achieved PB uMRD. Med time to PB uMRD is 6 mo (4-8+). Another 8/37 (22%) had PB MRD < 0.1%. Of 25 with PB uMRD, 19 had BM uMRD with 10/19 completing 2 additional cycles and discontinued; 3 had BM MRD (all

Aging is associated with replacement of normal kidney parenchyma by fibrosis. Because hydrogen sulfide (H2S) ameliorates kidney fibrosis in disease models, we examined its status in the aging kidney. In the first study, we examined kidney cortical H2S metabolism and signaling pathways related to synthesis of proteins including matrix proteins in young and old male C57BL/6 mice. In old mice, increase in renal cortical content of matrix protein involved in fibrosis was associated with decreased H2S generation and AMPK activity, and activation of insulin receptor (IR)/IRS-2-Akt-mTORC1-mRNA translation signaling axis that can lead to increase in protein synthesis. In the second study, we randomized 18–19 month-old male C57BL/6 mice to receive 30 μmol/L sodium hydrosulfide (NaHS) in drinking water vs. water alone (control) for 5 months. Administration of NaHS increased plasma free sulfide levels. NaHS inhibited the increase in kidney cortical content of matrix proteins involved in fibrosis and ameliorated glomerulosclerosis. NaHS restored AMPK activity and inhibited activation of IR/IRS-2-Akt-mTORC1-mRNA translation axis. NaHS inhibited age-related increase in kidney cortical content of p21, IL-1β, and IL-6, components of the senescence-associated secretory phenotype. NaHS abolished increase in urinary albumin excretion seen in control mice and reduced serum cystatin C levels suggesting improved glomerular clearance function. We conclude that aging-induced changes in the kidney are associated with H2S deficiency. Administration of H2S ameliorates aging-induced kidney changes probably by inhibiting signaling pathways leading to matrix protein synthesis.

Natural killer (NK)/T-cell lymphomas are a rare and distinct subtype of non-Hodgkin's lymphomas. NK/T-cell lymphomas are predominantly extranodal and most of these are nasal type, often localized to the upper aerodigestive tract. Because extranodal NK/T-cell lymphomas (ENKL) are rare malignancies, randomized trials comparing different regimens have not been conducted to date and standard therapy has not yet been established for these patients. These NCCN Guidelines Insights discuss the recommendations for the diagnosis and management of patients with ENKL as outlined in the NCCN Guidelines for T-Cell Lymphomas.

We examined the effect of rapamycin on the life span of a mouse model of type 2 diabetes, db/db mice. At 4 months of age, male and female C57BLKSJ-lepr (db/db) mice (db/db) were placed on either a control diet, lacking rapamycin or a diet containing rapamycin and maintained on these diets over their life span. Rapamycin was found to reduce the life span of the db/db mice. The median survival of male db/db mice fed the control and rapamycin diets was 349 and 302 days, respectively, and the median survival of female db/db mice fed the control and rapamycin diets was 487 and 411 days, respectively. Adjusting for gender differences, rapamycin increased the mortality risk 1.7-fold in both male and female db/db mice. End-of-life pathological data showed that suppurative inflammation was the main cause of death in the db/db mice, which is enhanced slightly by rapamycin treatment.

Many patients with lymphoma relapse after autologous stem cell transplantation (AutoSCT). These patients are often considered for allogeneic stem cell transplantation (AlloSCT) if remission can be achieved. If a tandem approach was organized, some cases of relapse might be prevented. We conducted a phase II trial of tandem AutoSCT followed by reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC) AlloSCT for patients with high-risk lymphoma. High-dose chemotherapy was given with busulfan, cyclophosphamide, and etoposide. AlloSCT was composed of RIC with busulfan/fludarabine and tacrolimus, sirolimus, and methotrexate as graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prophylaxis. Donors were fully matched related or unrelated donors. AlloSCT was performed any time between 40 days and 6 months after AutoSCT. Forty-two patients were enrolled, and all patients underwent AutoSCT. RIC AlloSCT was performed in 29 patients. In the 29 patients who underwent tandem transplant, median time from AutoSCT to AlloSCT was 96 days (range, 48 to 169). The 6-month cumulative incidence of grades II to IV acute GVHD was 13.8% (90% confidence interval [CI], 5.3% to 26.3%). Cumulative incidence of chronic GVHD at 1 year was 37.9% (90% CI, 23.1% to 52.7%). Nonrelapse mortality at 2 years after AlloSCT was 11.1% (90% CI, 3.5% to 23.6%). At a median follow-up of 30 months (range, 17.1 to 51.5) for the entire group, the 2-year progression-free survival rate was 64% (90% CI, 50% to 75%) and the 2-year overall survival rate was 69% (90% CI, 43% to 85%). For the 29 patients who underwent tandem SCT, the 2-year progression-free survival rate was 72% (90% CI, 55% to 83%) and the 2-year OS rate was 89% (90% CI, 74% to 96%). Tandem AutoSCT–RIC AlloSCT appears to be safe and effective in patients with high-risk lymphoma. Prospective trials using such an approach in specific lymphoma subtypes are warranted.

A 41-year-old woman presented with decreased visual acuity in the left eye and diplopia. MRI of the head and orbits revealed abnormal soft tissue in the left sphenoid sinus and orbital apex, extending to the left cavernous sinus. A diagnostic procedure was performed.

Patients with limited-stage Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) undergo frequent posttreatment surveillance CT examinations, raising concerns about the cumulative magnitude of radiation exposure. The purpose of this study was to project radiation-induced cancer risks relative to competing risks of HL and account for the differential timing of each.We adapted a previously developed Markov model to project lifetime mortality risks and life expectancy losses due to HL versus radiation-induced cancers in HL patients undergoing surveillance CT. In the base case, we modeled 35-year-old men and women undergoing seven CT examinations of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis over 5 years. Radiation-induced cancer risks and deaths for 17 organ systems were modeled using an organ-specific approach, accounting for specific anatomy exposed at CT. Cohorts of 20-, 50-, and 65-year-old men and women were evaluated in secondary analyses. Markov chain Monte Carlo methods were used to estimate the uncertainty of radiation risk projections.For 35-year-old adults, we projected 3324/100,000 (men) and 3345/100,000 (women) deaths from recurrent lymphoma and 245/100,000 (men, 95% uncertainty interval [UI]: 121-369) and 317/100,000 (women, 95% UI: 202-432) radiation-induced cancer deaths. Discrepancies in life expectancy losses between HL (428 days in men, 482 days in women) and radiation-induced cancers (11.6 days in men, [95% UI: 5.7-17.5], 15.6 days in women [95% UI: 9.8-21.4]) were proportionately greater because of the delayed timing of radiation-induced cancers relative to recurrent HL. Deaths and life expectancy losses from radiation-induced cancers were highest in the youngest cohorts.Given the low rate of radiation-induced cancer deaths associated with CT surveillance, modest CT benefits would justify its use in patients with limited-stage HL.

Increase in protein synthesis contributes to kidney hypertrophy and matrix protein accumulation in diabetes. We have previously shown that high glucose-induced matrix protein synthesis is associated with inactivation of glycogen synthase kinase 3β (GSK3β) in renal cells and in the kidneys of diabetic mice. We tested whether activation of GSK3β by sodium nitroprusside (SNP) mitigates kidney injury in diabetes. Studies in kidney-proximal tubular epithelial cells showed that SNP abrogated high glucose-induced laminin increment by stimulating GSK3β and inhibiting Akt, mTORC1, and events in mRNA translation regulated by mTORC1 and ERK. NONOate, an NO donor, also activated GSK3β, indicating that NO may mediate SNP stimulation of GSK3β. SNP administered for 3 weeks to mice with streptozotocin-induced type 1 diabetes ameliorated kidney hypertrophy, accumulation of matrix proteins, and albuminuria without changing blood glucose levels. Signaling studies showed that diabetes caused inactivation of GSK3β by activation of Src, Pyk2, Akt, and ERK; GSK3β inhibition activated mTORC1 and downstream events in mRNA translation in the kidney cortex. These reactions were abrogated by SNP. We conclude that activation of GSK3β by SNP ameliorates kidney injury induced by diabetes.

Fibrosis is at the core of the high morbidity and mortality rates associated with the complications of diabetes and obesity, including diabetic nephropathy (DN), without any US Food and Drug Administration–approved drugs with this specific target. We recently provided the first evidence that the matricellular protein CCN3 (official symbol NOV) functions in a reciprocal manner, acting on the profibrotic family member CCN2 to inhibit fibrosis in a mesangial cell model of DN. Herein, we used the BT/BR ob/ob mouse as a best model of human obesity and DN progression to determine whether recombinant human CCN3 could be used therapeutically, and the mechanisms involved. Eight weeks of thrice-weekly i.p. injections (0.604 and 6.04 μg/kg of recombinant human CCN3) beginning in early-stage DN completely blocked and/or reversed the up-regulation of mRNA expression of kidney cortex fibrosis genes ( CCN2 , Col1a2 , TGF-β1 , and PAI-1 ) seen in placebo-treated diabetic mice. The treatment completely blocked glomerular fibrosis, as determined by altered mesangial expansion and deposition of laminin. Furthermore, it protected against, or reversed, podocyte loss and kidney function reduction (rise in plasma creatinine concentration); albuminuria was also greatly reduced. This study demonstrates the potential efficacy of recombinant human CCN3 treatment in DN and points to mechanisms operating at multiple levels or pathways, upstream (eg, protecting against cell injury) and downstream (eg, regulating CCN2 activity and extracellular matrix metabolism).

Background: MCL carries a poor overall prognosis despite high response rates to induction chemotherapy. Maintenance strategies have impacted survival in MCL but optimal strategies have yet to be defined. Despite profound activity of ibrutinib, a selective BTK inhibitor, in relapsed/refractory MCL, ibrutinib maintenance (I-M) following induction for treatment-naive MCL has not been explored. We report preliminary results of a multicenter phase II trial assessing efficacy and safety of I-M for MCL after frontline induction. Methods: Patients (pts) with MCL with complete or partial response (CR/PR) to frontline chemo-immunotherapy +/- autologous stem cell transplantation (autoSCT) received I-M 560 mg daily for up to 4 years. The primary objective was 3 year PFS rate with I-M. Secondary objectives were PR to CR conversions, median OS after 4 years and toxicity. Measurable residual disease (MRD) assessments using an NGS-MRD Assay (detection resolution of < 1 cell per million; Adaptive Biotechnologies) on peripheral blood and/or PBMCs were planned at 4 time points: prior to I-M initiation and at 1, 6 and 18-24 mo(s) after initiation of I-M. Results: Accrual is complete (n=36). Median age was 60 (range 46-90), 28 pts (78%) were males, 28 (78%) had advanced stage and 9 (25%) had extranodal disease. 18 (50%), 7 (19%) and 11 (31%) had low vs intermediate vs high risk MIPI respectively. For induction, 17 (47%) received bendamustine-rituximab (BR), 18 (50%) a cytarabine-based regimen, and 1 (3%) R-CHOP. 18 (50%) had autoSCT in CR1 prior to enrollment. 33 (92%) and 3 (8%) had CR and PR with induction respectively with 1 PR to CR conversion on I-M. Median follow-up from initiation of induction therapy was 33 mos. With a median follow-up of 24.5 mos from initiation of I-M, 1 pt had disease progression (PD) and 2 others died, 1 from hepatic cholangiocarcinoma 2 years after I-M discontinuation for toxicity (atrial fibrillation) and 1 from unknown cause. 20/36 (56%) pts remain on I-M (median 24 cycles, range 1-52). Sixteen pts discontinued ibrutinib, including 3 for completion of 4 years of I-M. Of the remaining 13 who discontinued, TRAEs accounted for 10 (77%) and the other 3 were for uterine cancer (n=1), PD (n=1), and death of unknown cause (n=1) (Table 1). Atrial fibrillation/atrial flutter accounted for 50% (n=5) of TRAEs that led to I-M discontinuation. 9 (25%) pts required permanent dose reductions for TRAEs with neutropenia (n=3), myalgias (n=2), and fatigue (n=2) being the most common. Collectively, TRAEs led to dose reductions/ interruptions/ discontinuations in 25 (69%) pts. At time of data cut-off, (July 2019), using a trackable dominant clone identified from tissue at diagnosis, MRD was assessed in 12 patients at varying time points (Figure 1). In these 12 pts, 6 were induced with BR, 5 with a cytarabine-based regimen, and 1 with R-CHOP and 5 were consolidated with autoSCT prior to enrollment. Prior to I-M initiation, 9 pts were MRD (-) and 3 had indeterminate MRD status. Indeterminate results corresponded with total cell counts below the level of detection and quantification with our assay. Those with indeterminate MRD status were confirmed to be MRD (-) with subsequent evaluation after 1 month of I-M. 3 of 12 (25%) pts became MRD (+) on I-M. The first reverted back to MRD (-) status and remains MRD (-) with clinical CR on > 3 years of I-M. The second pt was treated with hyperCVAD with PR prior to I-M. This patient required several dose interruptions for neutropenia just prior to MRD detection with clinical PD leading to discontinuation of therapy after 9 months of I-M. The third pt was treated with R-CHOP + autoSCT with PR prior to I-M and maintains a PR despite MRD conversion on > 2 years of I-M. Further analysis of dynamic changes in dominant and non-dominant clones associated with I-M is ongoing. Conclusions: I-M is feasible in MCL pts who respond to frontline chemo-immunotherapy +/- autoSCT with manageable toxicities consistent with the known safety profile of ibrutinib. Guidelines to discontinue I-M for atrial fibrillation were strictly upheld in this protocol though not typical of current practice. NGS can be used to assess MRD with induction and maintenance therapy and demonstrates that most pts are MRD negative after intensive induction. Longer follow-up, evaluation of dynamic changes in MRD, and PFS and OS data are needed to assess clinical relevance of I-M and importance of MRD status, and may support larger, controlled studies. Disclosures Karmali: Gilead/Kite; Juno/Celgene: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Takeda, BMS: Other: Research Funding to Institution; Astrazeneca: Speakers Bureau. Abramson:AbbVie Inc, Amgen Inc, Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, Celgene Corporation, EMD Serono Inc, Genentech, Gilead Sciences Inc, Janssen Biotech Inc, Juno Therapeutics, a Celgene Company, Karyopharm Therapeutics, Kite Pharma Inc, Merck, Novartis, Seattle Gen: Consultancy. Stephens:Karyopharm: Research Funding; Gilead: Research Funding; Acerta: Research Funding. Winter:Merck: Consultancy, Research Funding. Ma:Genentech: Consultancy; Gilead: Research Funding; Astra Zeneca: Consultancy, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Acerta: Research Funding; Abbvie: Research Funding; Incyte: Research Funding; Janssen: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Kite: Consultancy; Juno: Research Funding; Xeme: Research Funding; Pharmacyclics: Consultancy, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Beigene: Research Funding; Bioverativ: Consultancy; Novartis: Research Funding. Petrich:Abbvie: Employment, Equity Ownership. Kuhr:Adaptive Biotechnologies: Employment, Other: shareholder. Gordon:Zylem LLC: Other: co-founder; research in nanoparticles in cancer; Bayer: Other: Advisory Board; Juno/Celgene: Other: Advisory Board, Research Funding; Gilead: Other: Advisory Board. Pro:Takeda: Consultancy, Honoraria, Other: Travel Expenses; Celgene: Consultancy, Honoraria; Kyowa Hakka Kirin: Consultancy, Honoraria; Seattle Genetics: Consultancy, Honoraria, Other: Travel Expenses, Research Funding. OffLabel Disclosure: We will discuss results of our trial looking at ibrutinib maintenance in frontline MCL

Background REGN1979 is an anti-CD20 x anti-CD3 bispecific IgG4 antibody (Ab) modified to reduce Fc binding. Engaging both targets results in CD20-specific, local T-cell activation and cytotoxicity, a mechanism of action distinct from standard anti-CD20 Abs. Dose escalation is complete and a recommended Ph 2 dose has been determined. We report Ph 1 safety and efficacy results of REGN1979 in patients (pts) with R/R B-NHL previously treated with anti-CD20 Abs, including pts with progressive disease after anti-CD19 CAR T-cell (CAR T) therapy. Methods Primary objectives are to determine safety, tolerability, and occurrence of dose limiting toxicities (DLTs). Other objectives are to assess antitumor activity, pharmacokinetics (PK), and pharmacodynamics. Eligible pts with R/R B-NHL must have received prior CD20-directed therapy. Treatment consists of 12 weekly intravenous doses of REGN1979 followed by every 2-week dosing for 12 doses (36 weeks total). Results As of June 3, 2019, 96 pts (diffuse large cell B-cell lymphoma [DLBCL] [n=53], follicular lymphoma [FL] grade [Gr] 1-3a [n=25], mantle cell lymphoma [n=6], marginal zone lymphoma [n=6], or other [FL Gr 3b, FL unknown, FL ungraded, or Waldenström macroglobulinemia ] [n=6]) were treated with REGN1979 0.03-320 mg and received a median of 9 doses (range 1-24). Pts had a median of 3 prior lines of therapy (range 1-11); 12 pts with prior CAR T therapy were included in the safety analysis of which 6 were included in the efficacy analysis. Twenty-four pts remain on treatment; 18 completed treatment; 54 discontinued early (35 due to progressive disease [PD]). No pts with B-NHL experienced a DLT. The most common treatment-emergent adverse events (AEs) were pyrexia (n=74), CRS (n=55), chills (n=49), infections and infestations (n=47), fatigue (n=36), increased C-reactive protein (n=32), and anemia (n=32). Seven pts experienced Gr 3 CRS. The severity of CRS symptoms declined through optimized pre-medication even with REGN1979 dose escalation. Most common Gr 3 or 4 AEs were anemia (n=19), decreased lymphocytes/lymphopenia (n=19), infections and infestations (n=18), decreased neutrophils/neutropenia (n=17), and hypophosphatemia/decreased blood phosphorus (n=16). No pts had seizures or grade 4/5 neurologic AEs. Gr 3 neurologic AEs included depressed level of consciousness (unrelated), somnolence, and syncope (n=1 each). Neurological events were transient and none required permanent treatment termination. Five pts discontinued due to AEs: Gr 3 hemolysis; Gr 3 fatigue; Gr 2 and Gr 3 pneumonia; and Gr 3 neck abscess (1 each). Eleven pts died on study: PD (n=6), gastric perforation (n=1), cardiac arrest (n=1), lung infection (n=1), multi-organ failure (n=1), pneumonia (n=1). The Table and Figure show efficacy and duration of response for R/R DLBCL by dose level. Pts who had opportunity for response assessment at Week 12 were included in the analysis of response. Emerging data suggest increasing efficacy with higher doses in R/R DLBCL, with 5 of 8 pts treated at 80/160/320 mg achieving CR; at these doses 2 of 3 pts achieved CR after failure of CAR T therapy. Data also suggest increasing efficacy with increasing doses in R/R FL, but maximum efficacy appears to be achieved at lower doses than in DLBCL; in pts with FL Gr 1-3a treated at ≥5 mg, the ORR was 93% (13/14), and the CR rate was 71.4% (10/14). REGN1979 concentrations in serum increased linearly with dose during the first five weeks. Elevated levels of serum cytokines were observed, mostly in week 1, and no correlation was observed with clinical efficacy. Immunohistological analysis of malignant lymph node tissue demonstrated that pts with high and low CD20 expression achieved clinical response. Relapse among responders was seen with either maintenance or loss of CD20 expression, suggesting antigen-dependent and independent disease escape mechanisms. Conclusions/Summary Tolerability of REGN1979 has been demonstrated at doses up to the final dose level of 320 mg weekly, with no observed DLTs in pts with B-NHL. No pts discontinued due to neurologic AE. Activity was observed broadly in heavily pretreated R/R B-NHL pts treated with REGN1979. With increasing dose, more resistant tumors such as R/R DLBCL are showing benefit, even in pts with prior CAR T therapy failure. Based on these efficacy findings, a global Ph 2 study is underway to evaluate REGN1979 monotherapy in R/R FL Gr 1-3a, R/R DLBCL, and other R/R B-NHL subtypes. Disclosures Bannerji: AbbVie, Inc: Consultancy, travel support; Gilead: Other: travel support; Gilead: Other: travel support; Pharmacyclics: Other: travel support; Merck: Other: travel support, Patents & Royalties: IP rights; AbbVie, Inc: Consultancy; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Consultancy, Other: travel support, Research Funding; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Consultancy, Other: travel support, Research Funding; Celgene: Consultancy; Celgene: Consultancy; Merck: Other: travel support, Patents & Royalties: IP rights; Pharmacyclics: Other: travel support. Allan:Acerta Pharma: Consultancy; Sunesis Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; AbbVie, Inc: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Pharmacyclics LLC, an AbbVie company: Consultancy; Genentech: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Bayer: Consultancy; Verastem Oncology, Inc.: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria. Arnason:Celgene/Juno: Consultancy; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Consultancy. Brown:AstraZeneca: Consultancy; Acerta Pharma: Consultancy; Morphosys: Other: Data safety monitoring boards ; Sun Pharmaceuticals, Inc: Research Funding; Sun: Research Funding; Verastem: Consultancy, Research Funding; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy; Teva: Honoraria; Sunesis: Consultancy; Pharmacyclics: Consultancy; Pfizer: Consultancy; Janssen: Honoraria; Invectys: Other: other; Loxo: Consultancy, Research Funding; Novartis: Consultancy; Octapharma: Consultancy; Kite: Consultancy, Research Funding; Dynamo Therapeutics: Consultancy; Catapult Therapeutics: Consultancy; BeiGene: Consultancy; Gilead: Consultancy, Research Funding; Genentech/Roche: Consultancy. Advani:Kyowa Kirin Pharmaceutical Developments, Inc.: Consultancy; Seattle Genetics: Consultancy, Research Funding; Celmed: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Forty-Seven: Research Funding; Roche/Genentech: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Kura: Research Funding; Bayer: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Millennium: Research Funding; Gilead Sciences, Inc./Kite Pharma, Inc.: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Celgene: Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Infinity Pharma: Research Funding; Janssen: Research Funding; Merck: Research Funding; Takeda: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Cell Medica, Ltd: Consultancy; Autolus: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Agensys: Research Funding; AstraZeneca: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Stanford University: Employment, Equity Ownership; Regeneron: Research Funding; Pharmacyclics: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding. Ansell:Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Trillium: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Trillium: Research Funding; Regeneron: Research Funding; Mayo Clinic Rochester: Employment; Regeneron: Research Funding; LAM Therapeutics: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Mayo Clinic Rochester: Employment; Mayo Clinic Rochester: Employment; LAM Therapeutics: Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; Regeneron: Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; Trillium: Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; Affimed: Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; LAM Therapeutics: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Affimed: Research Funding; Mayo Clinic Rochester: Employment; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Affimed: Research Funding; Affimed: Research Funding; Trillium: Research Funding; LAM Therapeutics: Research Funding; Affimed: Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; LAM Therapeutics: Research Funding; Regeneron: Research Funding; Regeneron: Research Funding; Affimed: Research Funding; Affimed: Research Funding; Regeneron: Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; LAM Therapeutics: Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; LAM Therapeutics: Research Funding; Trillium: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Affimed: Research Funding; Regeneron: Research Funding; Trillium: Research Funding; LAM Therapeutics: Research Funding; LAM Therapeutics: Research Funding; Trillium: Research Funding; Mayo Clinic Rochester: Employment; Regeneron: Research Funding; Trillium: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; Trillium: Research Funding; Affimed: Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; Mayo Clinic Rochester: Employment; Mayo Clinic Rochester: Employment; Mayo Clinic Rochester: Employment; Regeneron: Research Funding; Mayo Clinic Rochester: Employment. O'Brien:Pfizer: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; AbbVie: Consultancy, Honoraria; Acerta: Research Funding; Alexion: Consultancy; Amgen: Consultancy; Aptose Biosciences, Inc: Consultancy; Astellas: Consultancy; Celgene: Consultancy; Eisai: Consultancy; Gilead: Consultancy, Research Funding; GlaxoSmithKline: Consultancy; Kite: Research Funding; Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria; Pharmacyclics LLC, an AbbVie Company: Consultancy, Research Funding; Regeneron: Research Funding; Verastem: Consultancy; Sunesis: Consultancy, Research Funding; Vaniam Group LLC: Consultancy; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy, Research Funding. Chavez:Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Speakers Bureau; Kite Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Genentech: Speakers Bureau; Novartis: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Duell:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Research Funding. Martin:I-MAB: Consultancy; Karyopharm: Consultancy; Celgene: Consultancy; Janssen: Consultancy; Sandoz: Consultancy; Teneobio: Consultancy. Charnas:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Ambati:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Adriaens:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Ufkin:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Zhu:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Li:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Gasparini:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Ibrahim:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Jankovic:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Fiaschi:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Aina:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Zhang:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Deering:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Hamon:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Thurston:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Murphy:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Weinreich:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Yancopoulos:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Lowy:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Sternberg:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Topp:Amgen: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Boehringer Ingelheim: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; KITE: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Roche: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Celgene: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Novartis: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. OffLabel Disclosure: The data described in the abstract will report on use REGN1979 in a Phase 1 clinical trial of patients with B-NHL.

7542 Background: Maintenance rituximab in MCL has improved survival, though the optimal approach is not yet defined. Ibrutinib, a selective BTK inhibitor, has profound activity in R/R MCL. Ibrutinib maintenance (I-M) following induction for treatment-naive MCL has not been explored. We report preliminary results of a multicenter phase II trial assessing efficacy and safety of I-M for MCL after frontline induction. Methods: Patients with MCL with CR/PR to frontline chemo-immunotherapy (+/- autoSCT) received I-M 560 mg daily for up to 4 years. Primary objective was 3 year PFS rate. Secondary objectives were PR to CR conversions, median OS at 4 years and toxicity with MRD assessments planned. Results: Accrual is complete with 36 patients, median age of 60 (range 46-90), 28 males, 28 with advanced stage and 9 with extranodal disease. 18 (50%), 7 (19%) and 11 (31%) had low vs intermediate vs high risk MIPI respectively. 8/24 patients had a Ki-67 > / = 30%. For induction, 17 (47%) received BR, 18 (50%) a cytarabine-based regimen, 1 (3%) R-CHOP. 18 (50%) had autoSCT in CR1 prior to enrollment. 33 (92%) and 3 (8%) had CR and PR with induction respectively with 1 PR to CR conversion on I-M. At median follow-up of 19 mos, 24/36 (67%) patients remain on I-M (median 15 cycles, range 1-49) with 1 PD and 1 death. TRAEs led to dose reductions/interruptions in 25 (69%) patients, including permanent dose reductions in 7 (19%) and treatment discontinuation in 9 (25%; Table). 3 additional patients discontinued I-M, 1 for endometrial adenocarcinoma, 1 PD, 1 death, cause unknown. Conclusions: Ibrutinib maintenance is feasible in MCL patients who respond to frontline chemo-immunotherapy +/- autoSCT with manageable toxicities consistent with prior reports of ibrutinib. Additional follow-up and MRD status correlations with PFS and OS will provide insight on clinical relevance for this approach. Clinical trial information: NCT02242097. [Table: see text]

A 77-year-old man was admitted to this hospital because of confusion and malaise after resection of a papillary urothelial cancer. He reported abdominal pain, facial and jaw pain, anorexia, lethargy, weakness, and night sweats; imaging revealed generalized lymphadenopathy.

The optimal therapy for primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma is a subject of ongoing debate, with no accepted standard of care. We performed a retrospective analysis of 63 patients in the modern era treated with rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine and prednisone (R-CHOP), with or without radiation. Median age was 37 years (range 20-82). Eighty percent had limited stage disease and 71% were bulky. By age-adjusted International Prognostic Index (IPI), 15% were low-risk, 52% low-intermediate, 27% high-intermediate and 6% high-risk. Some 77% of responding patients received consolidative radiotherapy. Overall and complete response rates were 79% and 71%. Primary induction failure occurred in 13 (21%) patients. Five-year PFS and OS were 68% and 79%, respectively. Adverse prognostic features included increased IPI, advanced stage, advanced age and multiple extranodal sites. These data demonstrate an unacceptably high rate of primary refractory disease on R-CHOP, particularly among patients with high-risk features. Novel treatment approaches are needed that reduce primary refractory disease and reliance on mediastinal radiation in young people.

Nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF) is associated with gadolinium-based magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast exposure in the setting of acute or chronic renal compromise. It has been proposed that circulating fibrocytes mediate the disease. A study was conducted to determine whether bone marrow–derived fibroblast precursors are involved in contributing to organ fibrosis in MRI contrast–treated rodents with renal insufficiency. Rats status post 5/6 nephrectomy underwent bone marrow transplant from human placental alkaline phosphatase (hPAP)–expressing donors. After engraftment, animals were treated with gadolinium-based MRI contrast (2.5 mmol/kg IP), during weekdays for 4 weeks, or an equivalent volume of normal saline. Dermal cellularity in the contrast-treated group was fourfold that of control. Skin cells from the contrast-treated group demonstrated greater hPAP expression with co-expression of pro-collagen I and α–smooth muscle actin–positive stress fibers. Donor and host cells expressed CD34. Dihydroethidium staining of skin was greater in the contrast-treated animals, indicating oxidative stress. This was abrogated when the animals were co-administered the superoxide dismutase mimetic tempol. In conclusion, a bone marrow–derived cell population is increased in the dermis of MRI contrast–treated rodents. The cell markers are consistent with fibrocytes mediating the disease. These changes correlate with oxidative stress and expression of Nox4, suggestive of a novel therapeutic target. Elucidation of the mechanisms of MRI contrast–induced fibrosis may aid in discovering therapies to this devastating disease.

The goal of this study is to evaluate the diagnostic performance of simultaneous FDG-PET/MR including diffusion compared to FDG-PET/CT in patients with lymphoma. Eighteen patients with a confirmed diagnosis of non-Hodgkin’s (NHL) or Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL) underwent an IRB-approved, single-injection/dual-imaging protocol consisting of a clinical FDG-PET/CT and subsequent FDG-PET/MR scan. PET images from both modalities were reconstructed iteratively. Attenuation correction was performed using low-dose CT data for PET/CT and Dixon-MR sequences for PET/MR. Diffusion-weighted imaging was performed. SUVmax was measured and compared between modalities and the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) using ROI analysis by an experienced radiologist using OsiriX. Strength of correlation between variables was measured using the Pearson correlation coefficient (r p). Of the 18 patients included in this study, 5 had HL and 13 had NHL. The median age was 51 ± 14.8 years. Sixty-five FDG-avid lesions were identified. All FDG-avid lesions were visible with comparable contrast, and therefore initial and follow-up staging was identical between both examinations. SUVmax from FDG-PET/MR [(mean ± sem) (21.3 ± 2.07)] vs. FDG-PET/CT (mean 23.2 ± 2.8) demonstrated a strongly positive correlation [r s = 0.95 (0.94, 0.99); p

Systemic fibrosis can be induced in humans with gadolinium-based contrast, and cumulative doses correlate with severity. Bone marrow-derived fibrocytes accumulate in the dermis. Whether target organs liberate chemokines to recruit these fibrocytes or whether fibrocytes are stimulated to home to the affected tissue is unknown. Transgenic (tagged) donor rats were treated with gadolinium-based contrast. Bone marrow was obtained from diseased animals and age-matched controls. Rats with subtotal nephrectomies were lethally irradiated and underwent salvage transplantation with either the contrast-naive or contrast-exposed bone marrow. Groups were randomly assigned to control or contrast treatment. Contrast treatment led to dermal fibrosis, and this was exacerbated in recipients of contrast-exposed marrow. Fibronectin, C-C chemokine receptors (CCRs)2 and 7, and oxidative stress were all increased in skin from contrast-treated animals-all parameters more severe in recipients of contrast-treated animals. The respective ligands, monocyte chemoattractant protein and C-C motif ligand 19, were both elevated in skin from contrast-treated animals. Coadministration of gadolinium-based contrast and a CCR2 inhibitor reduced the severity of skin disease as well as dermal cellularity. The functional role of chemokines in the effects of gadolinium-based contrast was further confirmed in in situ coculture studies using neutralizing CCR2 antibodies. These data implicate dermal liberation of specific chemokines in the recruitment of circulating bone marrow-derived cells. The disease is augmented by bone marrow exposure to contrast, which explains why multiple exposures correlate with severity.-Drel, V. R., Tan, C., Barnes, J. L., Gorin, Y., Lee, D.-Y., Wagner, B. Centrality of bone marrow in the severity of gadolinium-based contrast-induced systemic fibrosis.

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma is an aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma without a standard therapy for patients who relapse after or are not eligible for salvage autologous stem cell transplantation. In vitro analysis of lymphoma cell lines has shown that everolimus can inhibit cell cycle progression in vitro and inhibitors of the mammalian target of rapamycin have already demonstrated single-agent activity in relapsed non-Hodgkin's lymphomas including diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, validating mammalian target of rapamycin as a viable therapeutic target. We performed an open label phase II study of everolimus, an inhibitor of mammalian target of rapamycin, in combination with rituximab to examine efficacy and tolerability in patients with relapsed/refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. Eligible patients were treated with everolimus 10 mg by mouth once daily on days 1-28 of a 28-day cycle with rituximab administered weekly during cycle one and then on day one of subsequent cycles. Patients were treated for a total of 12 cycles or until disease progression. The primary end-point was objective response rate, with secondary end-points being toxicity, progression-free survival, duration of response, and overall survival. Twenty-six patients (24 evaluable) were enrolled and had an overall response rate of 38% [90% CI (21%-56%)] with three complete responses and six partial responses among these 24 patients. The median duration of response among responders was 8.1 months. At a median follow-up of 12 months, the overall survival rate was 37% [90% CI (20%-54%)]. The most common grade 3 to 4 toxicities were neutropenia, anemia, and thrombocytopenia. In conclusion, everolimus in combination with rituximab is well tolerated and demonstrates activity in relapsed diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. Further studies of this combination are warranted. Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT00869999

We explored molecular events associated with aging-induced matrix changes in the kidney. C57BL6 mice were studied in youth, middle age, and old age. Albuminuria and serum cystatin C level (an index of glomerular filtration) increased with aging. Renal hypertrophy was evident in middle-aged and old mice and was associated with glomerulomegaly and increase in mesangial fraction occupied by extracellular matrix. Content of collagen types I and III and fibronectin was increased with aging; increment in their mRNA varied with the phase of aging. The content of ZEB1 and ZEB2, collagen type I transcription inhibitors, and their binding to the collagen type Iα2 promoter by ChIP assay also showed age-phase-specific changes. Lack of increase in mRNA and data from polysome assay suggested decreased degradation as a potential mechanism for kidney collagen type I accumulation in the middle-aged mice. These changes occurred with increment in TGFβ mRNA and protein and activation of its SMAD3 pathway; SMAD3 binding to the collagen type Iα2 promoter was also increased. TGFβ-regulated microRNAs (miRs) exhibited selective regulation. The renal cortical content of miR-21 and miR-200c, but not miR-192, miR-200a, or miR-200b, was increased with aging. Increased miR-21 and miR-200c contents were associated with reduced expression of their targets, Sprouty-1 and ZEB2, respectively. These data show that aging is associated with complex molecular events in the kidney that are already evident in the middle age and progress to old age. Age-phase-specific regulation of matrix protein synthesis occurs and involves matrix protein-specific transcriptional and post-transcriptional mechanisms.

Progression of fibrosis involves interstitial hypercellularity, matrix accumulation, and atrophy of epithelial structures, resulting in loss of normal function and ultimately organ failure. There is common agreement that the fibroblast/myofibroblast is the cell type most responsible for interstitial matrix accumulation and consequent structural deformations associated with fibrosis. During wound healing and progressive fibrotic events, fibroblasts transform into myofibroblasts acquiring smooth muscle features, most notably the expression of alpha-smooth muscle actin and synthesis of mesenchymal cell-related matrix proteins. In renal disease, glomerular mesangial cells also acquire a myofibroblast phenotype and synthesize the same matrix proteins. The origin of interstitial myofibroblasts during fibrosis is a matter of debate, where the cells are proposed to derive from resident fibroblasts, pericytes, perivascular adventitial, epithelial, and/or endothelial sources. Regardless of the origin of the cells, transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-β1) is the principal growth factor responsible for myofibroblast differentiation to a profibrotic phenotype and exerts its effects via Smad signaling pathways involving mitogen-activated protein kinase and Akt/protein kinase B. Additionally, reactive oxygen species (ROS) have important roles in progression of fibrosis. ROS are derived from a variety of enzyme sources, of which the nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NAD(P)H) oxidase family has been identified as a major source of superoxide and hydrogen peroxide generation in the cardiovasculature and kidney during health and disease. Recent evidence indicates that the NAD(P)H oxidase homolog Nox4 is most accountable for ROS-induced fibroblast and mesangial cell activation, where it has an essential role in TGF-β1 signaling of fibroblast activation and differentiation into a profibrotic myofibroblast phenotype and matrix production. Information on the role of ROS in mesangial cell and fibroblast signaling is incomplete, and further research on myofibroblast differentiation during fibrosis is warranted.

Background: Early interim positron emission tomography (PET) scans appear powerfully predictive of outcome in Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL), particularly in advanced-stage disease where it has been predominantly studied. The prognostic value of interim PET in limited-stage patients with nonbulky disease has not been well established. Patients and methods: Ninety-six patients with nonbulky limited-stage HL were identified who had interim and end-of-treatment PET scans. Response rate, overall survival (OS), and progression-free survival (PFS) were calculated. Results: Four-year PFS and OS for the entire cohort were 88% and 97%, respectively. Interim PET did not predict outcome, with PFS in positive and negative patients 87% versus 91% (P = 0.57), respectively. End-of-treatment PET result was predictive of outcome, with PFS of 94% in end PET-negative patients versus 54% in end PET-positive patients (P < 0.0001). Four-year OS was 100% in end PET-negative patients and 84% in end PET-positive patients (P < 0.0001). Conclusions: Interim PET scans were not predictive of outcome, compared with scans carried out at completion of therapy. End-of-treatment PET was highly predictive of PFS and OS, regardless of interim PET result. In this low-risk patient population, even patients with interim positive PET scans show a favorable prognosis.

BACKGROUND: ABVD with or without radiation is standard therapy for limited stage HL, but carries risks of bleomycin-lung injury and radiation toxicity. Brentuximab vedotin (BV) is an anti-CD30 antibody drug conjugate which is highly active in relapsed classical HL. We previously combined BV with AVD in limited stage non-bulky classical HL which resulted in a high CR rate, but at the cost of increased neutropenia, neutropenic fever, and neuropathy, likely related to the overlapping toxicity profile with vinblastine. Similar toxicity findings were also observed with BV-AVD in advanced stage classical Hodgkin lymphoma. We therefore evaluated BV plus AD (BV-AD) without radiation therapy for non-bulky stage I-II classical HL with the goal of reducing toxicity and maintaining high rates of inducing CR. METHODS: This is a multicenter single arm open label phase 2 study. Patients received BV 1.2 mg/kg plus standard dose adriamycin and dacarbazine on days 1 and 15 of each 28 day cycle. GCSF prophylaxis was not included. Patients received 4 or 6 cycles of BV-AD based on the results of an interim PETCT scan performed following cycle 2. PET negativity was defined as Deauville scores 1-3. Patients in CR on interim PETCT received 4 total cycles of therapy; patients in PR completed 6 cycles. The primary endpoint is complete response rate (CRR) at end of treatment. A sample size of 34 was required to detect an end of treatment CRR of 95% with 91% power and alpha error of 0.09. RESULTS: 34 patients were enrolled. Median age is 36 (range 18-63). Stage is IA (3), IB (1), IIA (29) and IIB (1). Risk is classified per the GHSG criteria as early unfavorable in 47%, and favorable in 53%. The interim CR rate is 94%. Accordingly, 32 interim PET negative patients (94%) received 4 total cycles of therapy, and 2 interim PET positive patients (6%) received 6 total cycles of therapy. No patients received consolidative radiation therapy, per protocol. The primary endpoint of end of treatment CR rate is 100%. At a median follow-up of 15 months, the FFS, PFS and OS are all 100%. The most common adverse events of any grade are nausea (79%), peripheral sensory neuropathy (56%), fatigue (50%), constipation (38%), alopecia (35%) and neutropenia (24%). Most toxicities were low grade, with only 15% of subjects experiencing any grade 3 toxicity, and there were no grade 4 or 5 toxicities. Specifically, 2 patients had grade 3 neutropenia, and 1 patient each had grade 3 nausea/vomiting, pneumonia and thromboembolic event. Peripheral sensory neuropathy was grade 1 in 17 patients, and grade 2 in 2 patients. There were no cases of neutropenic fever. CONCLUSIONS: BV-AD for 4-6 cycles induces high interim and end of treatment CR rates of 94% and 100%, respectively, allowing 4 total cycles of therapy in most patients. The PFS, FFS and OS are all 100% at last follow up. Toxicity appears mild and notable for a low incidence of neutropenia, alopecia, and moderate peripheral neuropathy. This promising regimen avoids bleomycin, vinblastine, radiation and primary GCSF prophylaxis with resultant low toxicity and preserved high efficacy rates in patients with early favorable and early unfavorable non-bulky limited stage classical Hodgkin lymphoma. Follow up for this trial is ongoing. Figure. Figure. Disclosures Abramson: Merck: Consultancy; Seattle Genetics: Consultancy; Karyopharm: Consultancy; Verastem: Consultancy; Amgen: Consultancy; Humanigen: Consultancy; Juno Therapeutics: Consultancy; Gilead: Consultancy; Novartis: Consultancy; Bayer: Consultancy; Celgene: Consultancy. Sokol:Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy; Seattle Genetics: Consultancy; Spectrum Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy. Jacobsen:Merck: Consultancy; Seattle Genetics: Consultancy. LaCasce:Seattle Genetics: Consultancy, Honoraria; Research to Practice: Speakers Bureau; Humanigen: Consultancy, Honoraria; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Other: Data safety and monitoring board.

Introduction REGN1979 is an anti-CD20 x anti-CD3 bispecific IgG4 antibody (Ab) modified to reduce Fc binding. Engaging both targets results in CD20-specific, local T-cell activation and cytotoxicity, a mechanism of action distinct from standard anti-CD20 Abs. We report updated promising efficacy results of a Phase 1 trial of REGN1979 in patients (pts) with relapsed/refactory (R/R) B-NHL previously treated with anti-CD20 Abs. Methods The primary objectives of the study are to determine safety, tolerability, and occurrence of dose limiting toxicities (DLTs). Other objectives include assessment of preliminary antitumor activity, pharmacokinetics (PK), and pharmacodynamics. Eligible pts with R/R NHL must have received at least 1 prior CD20-directed therapy. Treatment consists of 12 weekly doses of REGN1979 followed by every 2 week dosing for 12 doses for a total of 36 weeks. Guidelines are provided for management of cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and include steroids and/or tocilizumab at investigator discretion. Results As of June 1, 2018, 54 pts with B-NHL were treated with REGN1979 monotherapy: DLBCL (pt number [n]=30), FL (n=16), MCL (n=5), MZL (n=2), and WM (n=1). The median number of prior regimens was 3 (range, 1-11); 41 pts were refractory to their last prior systemic therapy, 18 had bulky disease, and 6 had prior HSCT. Pts were treated with REGN1979 0.03-27 mg and received a median of 7 (range, 1-24) doses. Eight pts remain on treatment, 13 completed treatment, and 33 discontinued therapy prior to the planned 36 wks (majority [n=22] due to progressive disease [PD]). There have been no DLTs to date. The most common treatment-related treatment-emergent adverse events (TR-TEAEs) included infusion-related reactions (IRR) or CRS; 26 pts experienced CRS (Grade 1-2, n=23; Grade 3, n=3) with a median duration of CRS of 2 (range 1-15) days. Six pts received tocilizumab. The severity of CRS symptoms declined through optimized pre-medication even with REGN1979 dose escalation. Other common Grade ≥3 TR-TEAEs were lymphocytopenia/ decreased lymphocyte count (n=8); neutropenia/ decreased neutrophil count (n=7); and thrombocytopenia/ decreased platelet count, hypotension, hypophosphatemia, and anemia (each n=3). Seventeen pts experienced a nervous system event including headache, dizziness, paraesthesia, dysgeusia, and peripheral neuropathy with no Grade ≥3 events; no neurologic event required termination of study drug. Seven pts died on study: PD (n=5), gastric perforation (n=1), and cardiac arrest (n=1). TEAEs leading to premature discontinuation of REGN1979 were Grade 3 fatigue (n=1), Grade 3 hemolysis (n=1), and Grade 2 pyrexia/Grade 2 tachycardia (n=1). Among 27 pts treated with REGN1979 ≥5 mg (dose associated with tumor killing in pre-clinical data), the overall response rate (ORR) was 55.6% (5 complete response [CR] and 10 partial response [PR]; Table/Figure). Responses were seen in 7/7 FL Grade 1-3a pts (5 CR, 2 PR), 6/15 DLBCL pts (all PR), 2/2 MCL pts (all PR). At 18 mg and 27 mg of REGN1979, 4 of 4 pts with DLBCL had best response of PR. Post data cut-off, 1 pt with a DLBCL best response of PR converted to CR. PK and pharmacodynamic assessments suggest that for pts treated with REGN1979 5-18 mg, best exposures in the first 3 weeks appear to linearly increase with dose. In pts treated with up to REGN1979 18 mg, a maximum mean Ctrough of 1.6 mcg/mL was observed in the first 3 weeks of weekly dosing. Studies of peripheral blood biomarkers demonstrated depletion of peripheral B lymphocytes, transient margination of circulating T-cells, and elevated circulating cytokines following REGN1979 dosing. Increased peak cytokine levels (IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-alpha) were observed in pts with CRS. Immunohistological analysis of malignant lymph node tissue demonstrated a decrease of CD20 expression in responding pts; among the responders, subsequent relapse was associated with either maintenance of CD20 expression or further CD20 loss, suggesting antigen-dependent and independent disease escape mechanisms. Conclusions REGN1979 displays efficacy and an acceptable safety profile in pts with R/R B-NHL. Most TR-TEAEs were IRR/CRS and have been well managed with supportive care. No significant neurological toxicity has been observed. At doses of 5-27 mg of REGN1979, the preliminary ORR was 100% in pts with FL Grade 1-3a and 40.0% in pts with DLBCL. This promising efficacy warrants further clinical investigation. Disclosures Bannerji: Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Consultancy; AbbVie, Inc.: Consultancy. Arnason:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Consultancy. Advani:Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals: Other: Consultancy/Advisory Role; Janssen Pharmaceutical: Other: Institutional Research Support; Bristol Myers Squibb: Other: Consultancy/Advisory role and Institutional Research Support; Pharmacyclics: Other: Institutional Research Support; Takeda: Other: Consultancy/Advisory Role; Millenium: Other: Institutional Research Support; Gilead/Kite: Other: Consultancy/Advisory Role; Infinity: Other: Institutional Research Support; Merck: Other: Institutional Research Support; Forty Seven, Inc: Other: Institutional Research Support; Cell Medica: Other: Consultancy/Advisory Role; Agensys: Other: Institutional Research Support; Celgene: Other: Institutional Research Support; Seattle Genetics: Other: Consultancy/Advisory role, Institutional Research Support; Kura: Other: Institutional Research Support; Roche/Genentech: Other: Consultancy/Advisory Role, Institutional Research Support; Kyowa: Other: Consulting/Advisory Role; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Other: Institutional Research Support; Autolus: Other: Consultancy/Advisory Role; AstraZeneca: Other: Consultancy/Advisory Role. Brown:Acerta / Astra-Zeneca: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Verastem: Consultancy, Research Funding; Pharmacyclics: Consultancy; Celgene: Consultancy; Genentech: Consultancy; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy; Morphosys: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Janssen: Consultancy; Abbvie: Consultancy; Gilead: Consultancy, Research Funding; Sun Pharmaceutical Industries: Research Funding; Sunesis: Consultancy; Loxo: Consultancy; Beigene: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Invectys: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Roche/Genentech: Consultancy; Boehringer: Consultancy. Allan:Genentech: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Verastem: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Sunesis: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; AbbVie: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Acerta: Consultancy. Ansell:Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; Affimed: Research Funding; Regeneron: Research Funding; Merck & Co: Research Funding; LAM Therapeutics: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Trillium: Research Funding; Celldex: Research Funding; Takeda: Research Funding; Pfizer: Research Funding. O'Brien:Kite Pharma: Research Funding; Aptose Biosciences Inc.: Consultancy; Pharmacyclics: Consultancy, Research Funding; GlaxoSmithKline: Consultancy; Astellas: Consultancy; Sunesis: Consultancy, Research Funding; Alexion: Consultancy; Amgen: Consultancy; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy, Research Funding; Pfizer: Consultancy, Research Funding; Vaniam Group LLC: Consultancy; Regeneron: Research Funding; Janssen: Consultancy; Celgene: Consultancy; Abbvie: Consultancy; Acerta: Research Funding; Gilead: Consultancy, Research Funding. Chavez:Genentech: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Merck: Research Funding; Kite: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Janssen: Speakers Bureau; Novartis: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Humanigen: Consultancy. Lowy:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Charnas:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Sternberg:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Ambati:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Adriaens:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Ufkin:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Yan:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Li:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Navarro:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment. Gasparini:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Jankovic:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Fiaschi:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Zhang:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Hamon:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Thurston:Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment, Equity Ownership. Topp:Amgen: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: Travel, Research Funding; F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Boehringer Ingelheim: Research Funding; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Honoraria, Research Funding.

BACKGROUND: The outcome of patients with systemic diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) had improved over the past decade with the addition of monoclonal antibody therapy. Unfortunately, approximately 5% of these patients still developed a secondary central nervous system (CNS) recurrence followed invariably by rapid death. This rate is substantially increased in patients with certain high-risk features. Although prophylaxis against CNS recurrence with either intrathecal or intravenous methotrexate is commonly used for such patients, to the authors' knowledge, there is no standard of care. Retrospectively evaluated was the role of high-dose systemic methotrexate combined with standard cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone with rituximab (R-CHOP) chemotherapy to decrease CNS recurrence in high-risk patients. METHODS: A total of 65 patients with DLBCL and CNS risk factors were identified at the study institution between 2000 and 2008 who received intravenous methotrexate as CNS prophylaxis concurrent with standard systemic therapy with curative intent. CNS recurrence rate, progression-free survival, and overall survival were calculated. RESULTS: Patients received a median of 3 cycles of methotrexate at a dose of 3.5 gm/m2 with leucovorin rescue. The complete response rate was 86%, with 6% partial responses. At a median follow-up of 33 months, there were only 2 CNS recurrences (3%) in this high-risk population. The 3-year progression-free and overall survival rates were 76% and 78%, respectively. Complications associated with methotrexate therapy included transient renal dysfunction in 7 patients and a delay in systemic chemotherapy in 8 patients. CONCLUSIONS: Intravenous methotrexate can be safely administered concurrently with R-CHOP and is associated with a low risk of CNS recurrence in high-risk patients. Cancer 2010. © 2010 American Cancer Society.

Diabetic nephropathy manifests aberrant activation of TORC1, which senses key signals to modulate protein synthesis and renal hypertrophy. PRAS40 has recently been identified as a raptor-interacting protein and is a component and a constitutive inhibitor of TORC1. The mechanism by which high glucose stimulates TORC1 activity is not known. PRAS40 was identified in the mesangial cells in renal glomeruli and in tubulointerstitium of rat kidney. Streptozotocin-induced diabetic renal hypertrophy was associated with phosphorylation of PRAS40 in the cortex and glomeruli. In vitro, high glucose concentration increased PRAS40 phosphorylation in a PI 3 kinase- and Akt-dependent manner, resulting in dissociation of raptor-PRAS40 complex in mesangial cells. High glucose augmented the inactivating and activating phosphorylation of 4EBP-1 and S6 kinase, respectively, with concomitant induction of protein synthesis and hypertrophy. Expression of TORC1-nonphosphorylatable mutant of 4EBP-1 and dominant-negative S6 kinase significantly inhibited high glucose-induced protein synthesis and hypertrophy. PRAS40 knockdown mimicked the effect of high glucose on phosphorylation of 4EBP-1 and S6 kinase, protein synthesis, and hypertrophy. To elucidate the role of PRAS40 phosphorylation, we used phosphorylation-deficient mutant of PRAS40, which in contrast to PRAS40 knockdown inhibited phosphorylation of 4EBP-1 and S6 kinase, leading to reduced mesangial cell hypertrophy. Thus, our data identify high glucose-induced phosphorylation and inactivation of PRAS40 as a central node for mesangial cell hypertrophy in diabetic nephropathy.

The therapeutic efficacy of individual components of fish oils (FOs) in various human inflammatory diseases still remains unresolved, possibly due to low levels of n-3 fatty acids docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) or lower ratio of DHA to EPA. Because FO enriched with DHA (FO-DHA) or EPA (FO-EPA) has become available recently, we investigated their efficacy on survival and inflammatory kidney disease in a well-established animal model of human systemic lupus erythematosus. Results show for the first time that FO-DHA dramatically extends both the median (658 d) and maximal (848 d) life span of (NZB × NZW)F1 (B × W) mice. In contrast, FO-EPA fed mice had a median and maximal life span of ∼384 and 500 d, respectively. Investigations into possible survival mechanisms revealed that FO-DHA (versus FO-EPA) lowers serum anti-dsDNA Abs, IgG deposition in kidneys, and proteinuria. Further, FO-DHA lowered LPS-mediated increases in serum IL-18 levels and caspase-1–dependent cleavage of pro–IL-18 to mature IL-18 in kidneys. Moreover, FO-DHA suppressed LPS-mediated PI3K, Akt, and NF-κB activations in kidney. These data indicate that DHA, but not EPA, is the most potent n-3 fatty acid that suppresses glomerulonephritis and extends life span of systemic lupus erythematosus-prone short-lived B × W mice, possibly via inhibition of IL-18 induction and IL-18–dependent signaling.

We studied autocrine transforming growth factor (TGF)beta signaling in kidney epithelium. Cultured proximal tubule cells showed regulated signaling that was high during log-phase growth, low during contact-inhibited differentiation, and rapidly increased during regeneration of wounded epithelium. Autoregulation of signaling correlated with TGFbeta receptor and Smad7 levels, but not with active TGFbeta, which was barely measurable in the growth medium. Confluent differentiated cells with low receptor and high Smad7 levels exhibited blunted responses to saturating concentrations of exogenously provided active TGFbeta, suggesting that TGFbeta signaling homeostasis was achieved by cell density-dependent modulation of signaling intermediates. Antagonism of Alk5 kinase, the TGFbeta type I receptor, dramatically accelerated the induction of differentiation in sparse, proliferating cultures and permitted better retention of differentiated features in regenerating cells of wounded, confluent cultures. Alk5 antagonism accelerated the differentiation of cells in proximal tubule primary cultures while simultaneously increasing their proliferation. Consequently, Alk5-inhibited primary cultures formed confluent, differentiated monolayers faster than untreated cultures. Furthermore, treatment with an Alk5 antagonist promoted kidney repair reflected by increased tubule differentiation and decreased tubulo-interstitial pathology during the recovery phase following ischemic injury in vivo. Our results show that autocrine TGFbeta signaling in proliferating proximal tubule cells exceeds the levels that are necessary for physiological regeneration. To that end, TGFbeta signaling is redundant and maladaptive during tubule repair by epithelial regeneration.

High glucose and high insulin, pathogenic factors in type 2 diabetes, induce rapid synthesis of the matrix protein laminin-β1 in renal proximal tubular epithelial cells by stimulation of initiation phase of mRNA translation. We investigated if elongation phase of translation also contributes to high glucose and high insulin induction of laminin-β1 synthesis in proximal tubular epithelial cells. High glucose or high insulin rapidly increased activating Thr56 dephosphorylation of eEF2 and inactivating Ser366 phosphorylation of eEF2 kinase, events that facilitate elongation. Studies with inhibitors showed that PI3 kinase-Akt-mTOR-p70S6 kinase pathway controlled changes in phosphorylation of eEF2 and eEF2 kinase induced by high glucose or high insulin. Renal cortical homogenates from db/db mice in early stage of type 2 diabetes showed decrease in eEF2 phosphorylation and increment in eEF2 kinase phosphorylation in association with renal hypertrophy and glomerular and tubular increase in laminin-β1 content. Rapamycin, an inhibitor of mTOR, abolished diabetes-induced changes in phosphorylation of eEF2, eEF2 kinase, and p70S6 kinase and ameliorated renal hypertrophy and laminin-β1 protein content, without affecting hyperglycemia. These data show that mTOR is an attractive target for amelioration of diabetes-induced renal injury.