Subjects in this study have had an allogeneic (blood or marrow cells from another person) blood or marrow transplant to treat leukemia, lymphoma or other cancer of the blood, and have now developed Graft Versus Host Disease (GVHD) that is not responding to standard treatment. GVHD is when the graft (transplanted bone marrow or blood) attacks the recipient's body. GVHD occurs early after transplant (acute) and/or sometimes months after transplant (chronic). Both forms can be life threatening; chronic GVHD can be a lifelong disabling condition. Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) exist in tissues throughout the body. One place they are found is in the bone marrow and from here they can be obtained by needle aspiration, the same way bone marrow samples are obtained to test for leukemia. This study uses autologous MSCs obtained from the recipient with acute and/or chronic GVHD, which have a lower chance of being rejected. These MSCs may promote tolerance, helping the donor immune cells accept the recipient's body. This trial is being conducted as a step toward testing the long-term hypothesis that freshly cultured autologous MSC grown in platelet lysate-containing medium will modulate donor T-cell immune responses and reduce GVHD in allo-HSCT recipients. As a phase I dose escalation trial of autologous MSC in patients with acute and chronic GVHD, the main aim is to evaluate the safety of this therapy and its effects on GVHD biomarkers and T-cell phenotype
EPIC MSC2014-002 solution- Autologous Mesenchymal Stromal Cells expanded using pooled human platelet lysate,is made up of autologous marrow-derived mesenchymal stromal cells ex vivo expanded numerically for approximately 14 days using pooled human Platelet Lysate (phPL), harvested from culture on the day of infusion and suspended at a concentration of 4 million cells/ml in Plasmalyte A with 0.5% human serum albumin. This is a phase I dose-escalation, open label, non-randomized, non-placebo controlled, single group assignment study to evaluate the safety and tolerability of EPIC MSC2014-002. The product will be infused intravenously and will be administered at one of three dose levels: (Dose level 1): Single Cell infusion 2 x 10\^6 cells/kg, (Dose Level 2): Two weekly Cell infusions 2 x 10\^6 cells/kg , (Dose level 3): Four weekly Cell infusion 2 x 10\^6 cells/kg. This Phase I clinical trial will enroll 12-24 subjects with acute or chronic GVHD. The duration of this study for each patient is 1 year. The investigators anticipate that this study will be completed within 3 years of commencement. Objectives: * To determine the safety and tolerability of infusing escalating doses of autologous MSCs for patients with acute or chronic GVHD. * To assess the overall response rate of acute and chronic GVHD to autologous MSC infusion. These data will be used to plan future, larger clinical trials to evaluate the efficacy of autologous MSCs for the treatment of GVHD. * To determine the effect of MSC infusion on lymphocyte phenotype, inflammatory biomarkers and GVHD specific biomarker levels
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
11
Infusion of MSCs delivered to each patient will depend on their weight and assigned dose level. The maximal individual dose of MSCs any patient will receive is 2 x 1000000 cells/kg.
Children's Healthcare of Atlanta/Emory University
Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Safety and Tolerability of EPIC MSC2014-002 based on dose limiting toxicities (DLTs)
Number of adverse events that are considered dose limiting toxicities (DLTs). DLTs will be defined as any grade ≥3 adverse reaction that is unexpected, or considered attributable to the MSC infusion (attribution listed as at least probable).
Time frame: 6 months
Overall Response Rate for acute GVHD subjects
Percentage of subjects that had a complete response (CR) or partial response (PR). CR is resolution of acute GVHD in all involved organs and PR is improvement of at least 1 stage without worsening in other organ systems.
Time frame: 6 months
Overall Response Rate for chronic GVHD subjects
Percentage of subjects that had a reduction in the overall National Institute of Health (NIH) score at three months, without worsening any specific organ. NIH Criteria for Clinical Trials in Chronic Graft-versus-Host Disease scale: Organs and sites to be scored include skin, mouth, eyes, gastrointestinal tract, liver, lungs, joints and fascia, and the genital tract. Each organ or site is scored according to a 4-point scale (0 to 3), with 0 representing no involvement and 3 reflecting severe impairment. Total possible score: 63
Time frame: 6 months
Transplant-related mortality
Transplant-related mortality defined as any death occurring in continuous complete remission
Time frame: 6 months
Incidence of Relapse
Percentage of subjects who experience relapse of underlying malignancy
Time frame: 6 months
Disease-free survival
Disease-free survival will be defined as survival without relapse of underlying malignancy.
Time frame: 1 year post transplant
Overall-survival
Overall-survival will be defined as survival with or without relapse of underlying malignancy.
Time frame: 1 year post transplant
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