Abstract PS12-08: MORPHEUS Hormone Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer: interim analysis of a Phase Ib/II, study of fulvestrant ± atezolizumab and abemaciclib triplet treatment in patients metastatic disease
Authors: Jung Kyung Hae , Im Seock-Ah , Yardley Denise , Hurvitz Sara , Lee Keun Seok , Sonnenblick Amir , Shachar Shlomit , Tan Antoinette , Comen Elizabeth , Gal-Yam Einav , Brufsky Adam , Rugo Hope , Zhu Jing , DuPree Kelly , Breton Vanessa , Young Fiona , Schwab Richard , Cha Edward , Telli Melinda 
Published: May 2024

BACKGROUND

Endocrine therapy (ET) is the mainstay of treatment for metastatic hormone receptor-positive breast cancer (HR+ BC). ET resistance and disease progression are expected, thus novel therapies, like cancer immunotherapy, are needed. Prior data suggest that abemaciclib (abema), a cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6 (CDK4/6) inhibitor, has immunomodulatory activity. In the MORPHEUS HR+ BC study (NCT03280563), atezolizumab (atezo; anti–programmed death-ligand 1 [PD-L1]) was tested in combination with fulvestrant (FUL), with and without abema, in patients (pts) with HR+ metastatic BC. We present 24-week interim analyses.

METHODS

Pts with measurable disease progression during first- or second-line therapy for metastatic or inoperable locally advanced HR+ BC and prior treatment with a CDK4/6 inhibitor were randomized to receive FUL (control) or FUL + atezo (1200 mg intravenous every 3 weeks) or FUL + atezo + abema (150 mg twice a day); prior FUL was not permitted. Pts were treated until loss of clinical benefit or unacceptable toxicity. Primary endpoints were objective response rate (ORR) per Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumours (RECIST) v1.1 and safety. Progression-free survival (PFS) was a secondary endpoint. Baseline tumor samples were analyzed for PD-L1 expression (SP263), CD8 T cell infiltration, and gene expression by RNAseq.

RESULTS

As of Dec 2022, 40, 31, and 25 pts (38, 30, and 20 evaluable pts) were randomized to atezo + abema + FUL, atezo + FUL, and FUL, respectively. Pts were followed for ≥ 24 weeks. Demographics were similar among the groups, with most pts receiving prior palbociclib (palbo) as part of their only prior metastatic therapy. Details and best confirmed ORRs are shown in the table. Median PFS was 6.34 months (95% confidence interval [CI] 5.52, 16.03) in the atezo + abema + FUL arm, 3.15 months (95% CI 1.51, 7.79) in the atezo + FUL arm, and 1.95 months (95% CI 1.45, 4.93) in the FUL arm. The hazard ratio of atezo + abema + FUL vs FUL was 0.43 (95% CI 0.24, 0.78). Safety data are shown in the table. Mild/moderate (grade 1/2) interstitial lung disease (ILD)/pneumonitis (7.7%) was observed in the atezo + abema + FUL arm. At baseline, tumors exhibited low prevalence of PD-L1 (median immune cells: 0.5%, tumor cells: 0%) and CD8 infiltration (12% inflamed phenotype), which did not associate with response in any arm. RNAseq analysis indicated that response to atezo + abema + FUL was strongly associated with low baseline expression levels of proliferation and metabolism signatures and trended with high expression of some immune signatures.

CONCLUSIONS

The triplet therapy of atezo + abema + FUL showed improved ORR and PFS compared with FUL monotherapy in the second- or third-line setting post-CDK4/6 inhibitor. This combination of atezo + abema + FUL was tolerable, with no unexpected safety signals, including no high-grade ILD/pneumonitis.

Efficacy and safety Data are number of patients (%), unless otherwise specified. * Patient was treated in the second line and incorrectly included in this group. Abema, abemaciclib; AE, adverse event; ALT, alanine aminotransferase; AST, aspartate aminotransferase; atezo, atezolizumab; CDK4/6, cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6; CI, confidence interval; ful, fulvestrant; irAE, immune-related adverse event; L, line; ORR, objective response rate; PFS, progression-free survival; TRAE, treatment-related adverse event.

Citation Format: Kyung Hae Jung, Seock-Ah Im, Denise Yardley, Sara Hurvitz, Keun Seok Lee, Amir Sonnenblick, Shlomit Shachar, Antoinette Tan, Elizabeth Comen, Einav Gal-Yam, Adam Brufsky, Hope Rugo, Jing Zhu, Kelly DuPree, Vanessa Breton, Fiona Young, Richard Schwab, Edward Cha, Melinda Telli. MORPHEUS Hormone Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer: interim analysis of a Phase Ib/II, study of fulvestrant ± atezolizumab and abemaciclib triplet treatment in patients metastatic disease [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2023 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2023 Dec 5-9; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(9 Suppl):Abstract nr PS12-08.