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Azacitidine Plus Deferasirox (ICL670) in Higher Risk Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS)

Phase 2
Terminated
Conditions
Myelodysplastic Syndromes
Interventions
Registration Number
NCT02038816
Lead Sponsor
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
Brief Summary

Myelodysplastic syndromes are common blood disorders that can affect as many as one in 1000 Canadians over the age of 65. They are characterized by low blood counts that require frequent blood transfusions. The development of iron overload in these patients is inevitable. The iron deposits in vital organs such as the heart and the liver and can lead to organ dysfunction. Deferasirox is a well-studied drug that helps remove iron from the body. Most people with this disorder die due to progression of their disease to acute leukemia through multiple mechanisms. Iron overload in patients with myelodysplastic syndromes has been shown to be associated with shorter survival, and potentially a higher chance of leukemia. In a certain sub-group of higher risk patients, the drug azacitidine has been shown to decrease the chance of progression to leukemia and death from it. Thus, it is presently the standard of care for these patients. However, 50% of higher risk patients are still unresponsive to this medication, leaving a large group of patients for which other treatment options are emergently needed. Given that a large proportion of higher risk MDS patients fail to respond to azacitidine, and the evidence that iron deposition may lead to increased leukemic transformation, we would like to study whether iron removal from the body with deferasirox potentiates azacitidine in its effects on overall survival, as well as the chance of leukemia transformation. This question needs to be addressed in a randomized controlled trial, and the first step is a preliminary study to determine if the combination of azacitidine and deferasirox has any biologic effect. This study will determine whether this combination leads to blood count improvement over azacitidine alone. If this drug combination ultimately proves more useful than azacitidine alone with respect to survival, this has the potential to impact the care of a large proportion of patients with myelodysplastic syndromes.

Detailed Description

Patients with stable disease after 6 cycles of AZA with higher risk MDS will be randomized to either standard of care (continued AZA until progression ) or AZA + defasirox. Primary endpoint is augmented response rate by the addition of deferasirox

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
TERMINATED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
1
Inclusion Criteria
  • Adults >18 yrs of age
  • WHO defined MDS with Higher risk MDS (IPSS int-2/high)
  • Azacitidine X at least 6 cycles with no hematologic improvement/no disease progression as per IWG 2006 criteria
  • Ferritin >500 µg/L
  • If transfusion independent, must have Hb <110 g/L OR Neutrophils < 1,000/mL OR Platelets < 100,000/mL
  • ECOG ≤2
  • CrCl >40 ml/min
Exclusion Criteria
  • Increased ALT (>300 U/L)
  • Uncontrolled infection
  • HIV+
  • Pregnant or breast-feeding
  • Previous and concurrent iron chelation
  • Concurrent use of hematopoietic growth factors including erythropoietin, darbepoietin and granulocyte colony stimulating factor
  • Concurrent use of other disease modifying agents including cytotoxic chemotherapy, histone deacetylase inhibitors, other hypomethylating agents or lenalidomide

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Deferasirox + AzacitidineDeferasirox + AzacitidineAzacitidine 75 mg/m2 daily X 7 days every 28 days for 6 cycles + Deferasirox 10-30 mg/kg/d depending on transfusion needs
Deferasirox + AzacitidineAzacitidineAzacitidine 75 mg/m2 daily X 7 days every 28 days for 6 cycles + Deferasirox 10-30 mg/kg/d depending on transfusion needs
AzacitidineAzacitidineAzacitidine 75 mg/m2 daily X 7 days every 28 days for 6 cycles
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Difference in proportion of patients with hematologic improvement as defined by the IWG criteria30 with the addition of deferasirox to azacitidine compared with azacitidine alone in higher risk non-responding MDS patients after 6 cycles of azacitidine.6 months

improvement in blood counts or remission status

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Percentage and absolute change in serum ferritin and labile plasma iron (LPI) between baseline and end of study6 months

Impact of experimental arm on iron parameters

Percentage change in CD34 cell intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) from baseline to end of study.6 months

Impact of experimental arm on markers of oxidative stress in the bone marrow

Tolerability (defined by the percentage of patients able to remain on deferasirox for 6 cycles concurrent with azacitidine) and safety (type, using CTCAE version 4.0, frequency, severity, and relationship of adverse events to study therapy)6 months

toxicity as defined by compliance

Percentage change in erythroid colony forming units (BFU-E and CFU-E) from baseline to end of study6 months

Impact of experimental arm on erythropoiesis

Percentage change in markers of DNA damage (lipid peroxidation, GSH content, and gH2AX expression), and activity of NFkappaB and Akt signaling pathways between baseline and end of study.6 months

Impact of experimental arm on markers of DNA damage

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Odette Cancer Centre, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre

🇨🇦

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

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