A phase 2 study of belinostat and SGI-110 (guadecitabine) for the treatment of unresectable and metastatic conventional chondrosarcoma.
Authors: Oza Jay , Lee Shing Mirn , Weiss Mia C. , Siontis Brittany L , Powers Benjamin C. , Chow Warren Allen , Magana Wendy , Sheikh Tahir , Piekarz Richard , Schwartz Gary K. , Ingham Matthew 
Published: June 2021

TPS11578 Background: Conventional chondrosarcoma (cCS) accounts for ̃25% of primary bone cancers and is the second most common primary bone tumor after osteosarcoma. Surgical resection is the primary treatment for localized disease. No FDA approved therapy exists for advanced disease and chemotherapy has marginal efficacy with ORR < 12%. IDH1/2 mutation is seen in 50% of cases. Epigenetic dysregulation is central to oncogenesis in both IDH1/2 mutant and wild-type CS. Pre-clinical studies from our group show that combination treatment with HDAC and DNMT inhibitors is significantly more effective at suppressing the growth of CS models in vitro and in vivo compared to either therapy alone. The combination regimen mediates anti-tumor effects on CS by induction of apoptosis, induction of tumor suppressor genes (eg. E-cadherin), the induction of interferon responsive genes (eg. IRF7, OASL, ISG15, DDX58) and reversal of global hypomethylated state. Based on these findings we have designed a phase 2 clinical trial with an HDAC inhibitor (belinostat) and a DNMT inhibitor (guadecitabine) in patients with advanced cCS. Methods: NCI # 10330 is a single-arm, multi-center, Simon 2-stage, phase 2 clinical trial evaluating belinostat and guadecitabine in patients with advanced cCS. Eligible patients will have biopsy proven cCS which is measurable by RECIST v1.1 and amenable to biopsy, ECOG PS ≤ 2, any number of prior treatments (including none). Patients will receive guadecitabine 45 mg/m2 SC followed by belinostat 1000 mg/m2 IV once daily on days 1-5 of a 28-day cycle. A safety lead-in and continuous toxicity monitoring rule will be applied. The primary endpoint will be ORR. Since chemotherapy is associated with an ORR of 8-12% and targeted agents have shown an ORR of 0% in cCS, we will consider an ORR of 8% as inactive while an ORR of 28% will suggest promising activity. A Simon 2-stage design is employed. The design calls for 26 patients. If ≥ 2 responses are observed among 13 patients in stage I, the study will proceed to full accrual. If ≥ 5 responses are seen among 26 patients, the study treatment is considered promising. This design has 85% power with α of 0.054 to test for a response rate of 8% vs 28%. Secondary objectives include safety, tolerability and PFS. All patients will undergo pre-treatment and on-treatment tumor biopsies. Paired tissue will be used for correlative analysis including: 1) whole exome sequencing/RNAseq to evaluate changes in gene expression in response to treatment, 2) multiplex IHC to interrogate the effect of combination therapy on tumor immune microenvironment and 3) a global DNA methylation assay to better understand the changes in epigenetic landscape in response to treatment. This study is open throughout the ETCTN (NCT04340843). Six of the planned 26 patients in the safety lead-in have been enrolled without DLT. Further accrual is on hold pending completion of the safety lead-in. Clinical trial information: 04340843.