Abstract P3-09-19: Preliminary safety data of intrahepatic talimogene laherparepvec and intravenous atezolizumab in patients with triple negative breast cancer
Authors: Joel Randolph Hecht, Arlene Chan, Jean-Francois Baurain, Miguel Martin, Federico Longo-Munoz, Kevin Kalinsky, Steven Raman, Chunxu Liu, Edward Cha, Emily Chan
Journal: Cancer Research (2020)

Abstract Background Talimogene laherparepvec (T-VEC) is a genetically modified, oncolytic herpes simplex virus type 1 designed to selectively replicate within tumors and to produce granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor to enhance systemic antitumor immune responses. The safety and efficacy of T-VEC in treatment of advanced melanoma has been demonstrated as monotherapy and in combination with the checkpoint inhibitors (CPI) pembrolizumab and ipilimumab. Additionally, T-VEC monotherapy has demonstrated tolerable safety for intrahepatic injection (Hecht GICS 2018). Atezolizumab (atezo) is a humanized monoclonal antibody that promotes antitumor immunity by targeting programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1) and is approved for metastatic triple negative breast cancer (mTNBC). We hypothesize that T-VEC in combination with a CPI may be effective in mTNBC and CRC in addition to melanoma. This phase 1b, multicenter study (clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT03256344) evaluates the safety of intrahepatic injection of T-VEC in combination with intravenous (IV) atezo in patients (pts) with mTNBC or colorectal cancer (CRC) with liver metastases (LMs). Here we report early safety data in the TNBC cohort. Methods Key eligibility criteria included age ≥ 18 years, confirmed diagnosis of TNBC or CRC with LMs, ECOG PS 0/1, adequate organ function, disease progression during or after ≥ 1 prior standard-of-care systemic therapy for metastatic disease, and ≥ 1 measurable LM suitable for injection. T-VEC (≤ 4mL) was injected by image-guided intralesional injection: 106 PFU/mL day 1, 108 PFU/mL every 21 days thereafter; atezo 1,200 mg IV was given on day 1 and every 21 days thereafter. The primary objective of this study is to evaluate incidence of dose limiting toxicity (DLT) for safety of T-VEC injection into LMs in combination with IV atezo, by tumor type. The DLT analysis set included DLT-evaluable pts who were on treatment for at least 6 weeks from the initial dose of study treatment and received at least 2 doses of T-VEC and 2 doses of atezo in combination or have a DLT during the DLT evaluation period. Key secondary objectives include objective response rate, durable response rate, progression-free survival, and overall survival of the combination therapy, by tumor type. Results Thirty-two pts were enrolled in two parallel cohorts (8 TNBC, 24 CRC). Of the 8 TNBC pts, 4 were evaluable for DLT at the time of this analysis. Of the 4 pts that were not DLT-evaluable, 1 never received study drug, 1 received atezo monotherapy, and 2 received intrahepatic T-VEC and IV atezo but stopped study drugs for unconfirmed progression before the DLT evaluation period was completed. No DLTs were reported in the TNBC cohort. In the 7 TNBC pts who received at least one dose of the study drug, the most common treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) in terms of the subject incidence were pyrexia (71.4%), chills (42.9%), and rash (42.9%). In the 7 TNBC pts who received at least one dose of study drug, T-VEC related AEs in more than one pt were pyrexia (n=3) and chills (n=2). Atezo related AEs in more than one pt were pyrexia (n=5), chills and rash (n=3 each), and fatigue, arthralgia, pain, and pruritus (n=2 each). Study drug-related serious adverse events (SAEs) occurred in 3 (42.9%) pts, including Grade (G) 3 hypersensitivity related to atezo, G3 orthostatic hypotension related to T-VEC and atezo, and G1 pyrexia related to T-VEC and atezo. Procedure-related SAEs occurred in 1 (14.3%) pt, of G3 hepatic hematoma and G3 abdominal infection, but these were not related to the study drugs. One confirmed partial response in the TNBC cohort has been seen thus far. Conclusion T-VEC intrahepatic injection in combination with IV atezo at standard doses has thus far been demonstrated as feasible and tolerable with no DLTs observed in the TNBC cohort to date. Citation Format: Joel Randolph Hecht, Arlene Chan, Jean-Francois Baurain, Miguel Martin, Federico Longo-Munoz, Kevin Kalinsky, Steven Raman, Chunxu Liu, Edward Cha, Emily Chan. Preliminary safety data of intrahepatic talimogene laherparepvec and intravenous atezolizumab in patients with triple negative breast cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2019 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2019 Dec 10-14; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P3-09-19.