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Verastem Announces Clinical Data from the Pivotal Phase 3 DUO™ Study: Duvelisib Significantly Improves Progression Free Survival in Relapsed or Refractory Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia and Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma
The DUO Study Achieves Primary Endpoint, Demonstrating Statistically Significant Improvement in PFS for Duvelisib Versus Ofatumumab (HR=0.52, p<0.0001)
Oral Duvelisib Monotherapy Also Achieves Significantly Higher ORR Compared to Ofatumumab (p<0.0001)
Duvelisib Continues to Demonstrate a Consistent and Manageable Safety Profile
“In the Phase 3 DUO study, oral duvelisib monotherapy achieved a
statistically significant improvement in Progression-Free Survival (PFS)
versus the approved standard of care treatment ofatumumab, along with a
well characterized and manageable safety profile, in patients with
previously treated CLL/SLL,” said
“CLL/SLL mostly affects elderly patients and many are unable or
unwilling to be hospitalized or come into the clinic for frequent IV
infusions. The CLL/SLL treatment landscape therefore is moving away from
chemotherapies and toward more targeted, preferably oral regimens,” said
DUO Efficacy Results
The DUO study met its primary endpoint with oral duvelisib monotherapy achieving a statistically significant improvement in median PFS (mPFS) compared to ofatumumab in patients with relapsed or refractory CLL/ SLL per a blinded Independent Review Committee (IRC) using iwCLL or revised IWG Response Criteria (modified iwCLL/IWG; 13.3 months vs 9.9 months, respectively; HR=0.52; p<0.0001), representing a 48% reduction in the risk of progression or death. Similar efficacy of duvelisib was observed regardless of whether patients had 17p deletion (del[17p]). The primary outcome of mPFS via IRC review in the del[17p] subpopulation significantly favored duvelisib over ofatumumab (12.7 months vs 9.0 months, respectively; HR=0.41; p=0.0011), representing a 59% reduction in the risk of progression or death. Per investigator assessment, duvelisib demonstrated a mPFS of 17.6 months, compared to 9.7 months for ofatumumab (HR=0.40, p<0.0001). Duvelisib maintained a PFS advantage in all patient subgroups analyzed as a subset of pre-specified sensitivity analyses.
The secondary efficacy outcome of ORR via IRC assessment according to modified iwCLL/IWG, significantly favored duvelisib over ofatumumab (73.8% vs 45.3%, respectively; p<0.0001), and reduced lymph node burden >50% in most patients vs ofatumumab (85% vs 16%). In the del[17p] subpopulation of patients, ORR was also significantly higher for duvelisib compared to ofatumumab, 70.0% versus 43.0%, respectively (p=0.0182). The Overall Survival (OS) in the ITT population was similar for those randomized to duvelisib and to ofatumumab during the study (HR=0.99; p=0.4807), demonstrating no detrimental effect on OS and was likely due to other available therapies following progression. Patients who progressed in the DUO study were given option to enroll in a crossover study to receive the opposite treatment. In the optional crossover study, 89 patients who were previously treated with ofatumumab in DUO and experienced disease progression were subsequently treated with duvelisib monotherapy. As in the parent DUO study, duvelisib demonstrated robust clinical activity in this crossover study with an ORR of 73%, a median duration of response of 12.7 months and a mPFS of 15 months by investigator assessments.
DUO Safety Results
Duvelisib monotherapy demonstrated a manageable safety profile, with results from this study consistent with the well-characterized safety profile of duvelisib monotherapy in patients with advanced hematologic malignancies in previous studies. For duvelisib-treated patients, the median time on treatment was 50.3 weeks (range, 0.9 - 160.0) compared to 23.1 weeks (range, 0.1 - 26.1) for ofatumumab. The most common Grade ≥3 treatment-emergent hematologic adverse events (occurring in >10% of patients) were neutropenia (30%) and anemia (13%). The most common Grade ≥3 non-hematologic treatment-emergent adverse events (occurring in >10% of patients) were diarrhea (15%), pneumonia (14%) and colitis (12%). The rate of severe opportunistic infections was 6%, including 2 patients (1%) with Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PJP), neither of whom was on prophylaxis for PJP at the time of the event. 35% of patients discontinued duvelisib treatment due to an adverse event; ~40% of patients treated with duvelisib remained on treatment for over 18 months, with a median total follow-up of nearly 2 years. Adverse Events of Interest infrequently led to discontinuation of duvelisib treatment (e.g., diarrhea (5.1%), colitis (5.1%), pneumonitis (1.9%), neutropenia (1.3%), pneumonia (1.3%), transaminase elevations (0.6%), and rash (0.6%). Duvelisib treatment-related AEs leading to death (n=4) include general physical health deterioration (n=1); pneumonia staphylococcal (n=2) and sepsis (n=1)).
A copy of the DUO oral presentation will be available here following the conclusion of the session.
Regulatory Plan
About the Phase 3 DUO Study Design
In the Phase 3 DUO study, 319 patients were randomized 1:1 to receive either duvelisib 25mg orally twice daily or ofatumumab monotherapy, an approved standard of care treatment for use in CLL/SLL, per its label with an initial infusion of 300 mg followed by 7 weekly infusions and 4 monthly infusions of 2,000 mg. In addition to the primary endpoint of PFS per IRC in the ITT population, additional analyses to evaluate the outcome in several patient subgroups, including those with 17p deletion CLL/SLL, a known poor prognostic subgroup, were also conducted. PFS and other efficacy endpoints were analyzed using response determinations per the IRC using modified iwCLL/IWG criteria.
On
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Ian Flinn , MD, PhD,Sarah Cannon Research Institute -
Steven Horwitz , MD,Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center -
Lori Kunkel , MD,Verastem Clinical and Scientific Advisory Board ; former CMO, Pharmacyclics
In addition,
The event will take place during the ASH 2017 annual meeting and
interested parties can access a live webcast of the event beginning
About Duvelisib
Duvelisib is a first-in-class investigational, dual inhibitor of phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)-delta and PI3K-gamma, two enzymes known to help support the growth and survival of malignant B-cells and T-cells. PI3K signaling may lead to the proliferation of malignant B- and T-cells and is thought to play a role in the formation and maintenance of the supportive tumor microenvironment.1,2,3 Duvelisib is currently being evaluated in late- and mid-stage extension trials, including DUO™, a randomized, Phase 3 monotherapy study in patients with relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL)/small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL),4 and DYNAMO™, a single-arm, Phase 2 monotherapy study in patients with refractory indolent non-Hodgkin lymphoma (iNHL).5 Both DUO and DYNAMO achieved their primary endpoints and Verastem intends to submit a New Drug Application (NDA) requesting the full approval of duvelisib for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory CLL/SLL, and accelerated approval for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory follicular lymphoma (FL). Duvelisib is also being developed by Verastem for the treatment of peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL), and is being investigated in combination with other agents through investigator-sponsored studies.6 Information about duvelisib clinical trials can be found on www.clinicaltrials.gov.
About
This press release includes forward-looking statements about
References
1 Winkler et al. PI3K-delta and PI3K-gamma inhibition by
IPI-145 abrogates immune responses and suppresses activity in autoimmune
and inflammatory disease models. Chem Biol 2013; 20:1-11.
2 Reif
et al. Cutting Edge: Differential roles for phosphoinositide 3 kinases,
p110-gamma and p110-delta, in lymphocyte chemotaxis and homing. J
Immunol 2004:173:2236-2240.
3 Schmid et al. Receptor
tyrosine kinases and TLR/IL1Rs unexpectedly activate myeloid cell PI3K,
a single convergent point promoting tumor inflammation and progression.
Cancer Cell 2011;19:715-727.
4 www.clinicaltrials.gov,
NCT02004522
5 www.clinicaltrials.gov,
NCT01882803
6 www.clinicaltrials.gov,
NCT02783625, NCT02158091
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Source:
Verastem, Inc.
Brian Sullivan, 781-292-4214
Senior
Director, Corporate Development
bsullivan@verastem.com