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Second-Line Axicabtagene Ciloleucel Therapy Improves Outcomes in Patients with Large B-Cell Lymphoma: ZUMA-7

May 2022, Vol 12, No 5

Second-line standard therapy for patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma is high-dose chemotherapy and autologous stem-cell transplantation (ASCT), but the prognosis after first-line therapy is poor for many patients, who are unable to receive definitive therapy. Using a second-line therapy with a different mechanism of action may therefore benefit these patients. Axicabtagene ciloleucel (Yescarta), an anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, is indicated for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma after ≥2 systemic therapies. The ZUMA-1 study showed good responses with axicabtagene ciloleucel in patients with refractory large B-cell lymphoma, resulting in a 5-year overall survival (OS) of 43%.1 These results were the basis for the ZUMA-7 study (Locke FL, et al. N Engl J Med. 2022;386:640-654).

ZUMA-7 was an international, randomized, phase 3 clinical trial that compared axicabtagene ciloleucel with standard of care in the second-line setting for patients with early relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma. Patients were randomized (1:1) to axicabtagene ciloleucel (N = 180) or to standard of care (N = 179). The CAR T-cell arm received a single infusion of 2 × 106 CAR T-cells/kg after conditioning with cyclophosphamide 500 mg/m2 and fludarabine 30 mg/m2 on days 5, 4, and 3 before infusion. The standard-of-care arm received 2 or 3 cycles of protocol-based investigator-selected, platinum-based, chemoimmunotherapy, followed by high-dose chemotherapy and ASCT in patients who responded to chemoimmunotherapy. The primary end point was event-free survival (EFS). The secondary end points included response to therapy, OS, and safety.

The study included 359 patients with early relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma who had received first-line chemotherapy. EFS was longer in patients who received axicabtagene ciloleucel than in those who received standard of care. At a median follow-up of 24.9 months, the median EFS was 8.3 months in the CAR T-cell arm compared with 2 months in the standard-of-care arm, and the 24-month EFS was 41% and 16%, respectively (hazard ratio for adverse events [AEs] or death, 0.40; 95% confidence interval, 0.31-0.51; P <.001). The response rate was 83%, including 65% complete responses, in the axicabtagene ciloleucel arm versus 50%, including 32% complete responses, in the standard-of-care group. An interim analysis at 2 years showed an estimated OS of 61% in the CAR T-cell arm versus 52% in the standard-of-care arm. The rate of AEs, including grade ≥3 AEs, was high in both groups—91% versus 83%, respectively. In all, 6% of patients in the axicabtagene ciloleucel arm had grade ≥3 cytokine-release syndrome (CRS) and 21% of patients had neurologic AEs. No deaths related to CRS or neurologic AEs occurred in that arm. Based on these results, the researchers concluded that axicabtagene ciloleucel may be a viable alternative to the use of chemoimmunotherapy, high-dose chemotherapy, and ASCT as a second-line treatment for patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Based on these results, on April 1, 2022, the FDA approved axicabtagene ciloleucel (Yescarta, Kite Pharma) for adult patients with large B-cell lymphoma that is refractory to first-line chemoimmunotherapy or relapses within 12 months of first-line chemoimmunotherapy. It is not indicated for the treatment of patients with primary central nervous system lymphoma.

Reference

  1. Jacobson CA, Locke FL, Ghobadi A, et al. Long-term (4- and 5-year) overall survival in ZUMA-1, the pivotal study of axicabtagene ciloleucel in patients with refractory large B-cell lymphoma. Poster presented at the American Society of Hematology annual meeting; December 11-14, 2021; Atlanta, GA.

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