While the number of kidney transplants is increasing worldwide every year, there is a clear imbalance between the high number of patients in the waiting list and those receiving a transplant and importantly, among waitlist patients there is a progressively higher number of highly sensitised patients that have very low or even no chance to receive a compatible organ. These patients remain for very long periods of time on dialysis therapy, having lower quality of life, lower life expectancy and produce higher health-related costs. Unfortunately, current desensitization therapies have shown very poor success and patients usually lose these grafts very fast if transplanted across a positive cross-match. Therefore, there is an urgent need for novel desensitization strategies capable of overcoming this immunological barrier and allow an increasing number of patients to receive a HLA-compatible kidney allograft.This is a non-randomized, single arm study, combination trial designed according to the Recommendations of the Clinical Trial Design Task Force of the NCI Investigational Drug Steering Committee. The study will enroll 12 patients with cPRA or TGI ≥99% on the deceased donor kidney transplant waiting list, who have not received a compatible donor offer for \>3 year. According to inclusion and exclusion criteria patients will be screened to participate in the trial.
This is a non-randomized, single arm study, combination trial designed according to the Recommendations of the Clinical Trial Design Task Force of the NCI Investigational Drug Steering Committee. The study will enroll 12 patients with cPRA or TGI ≥99% on the deceased donor kidney transplant waiting list, who have not received a compatible donor offer for \>3 year. According to inclusion and exclusion criteria patients will be screened to participate in the trial.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NA
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
5
Four consecutive cohorts each comprising 3 patients are planned. STEP I: Patients receive Belatacept 10mg/kg, administered on days 1, 5, end of week 2, 4 and 8 . Patients without a significant decrease in the global cPRA (cPRA or TGI ≥99%) or significant reduction of anti-HLA Ab MF will continue to the second step. STEP II: (15 weeks) One week after the last injection of belatacept, patients will undergo 4 sessions of apheresis (plasmapheresis (PF) or Immunoadsorption (IA)) which will be given every 48h. At week 11, patients will receive 4 doses of daratumumab (8mg/kg) every two weeks until week 17. Daratumumab will be alternated with 4 additional doses of belatacept 5 mg/kg FOLLOW-UP (24 weeks) All patients exiting the study, either having completed all treatment courses or exiting prematurely (transplanted or not), will be proposed monthly follow-up visits
Chu Grenoble
La Tronche, France
Proportion of severe or medically significant Adverse and Serious Adverse Events
Proportion of severe or medically significant Adverse and Serious Adverse Events, defined by: Any grade 3 or higher infection (according to the CTCAE definition, i.e. IV antibiotic, antifungal, or antiviral intervention indicated; or invasive intervention indicated) during the interventional study period (6 months). Success will be defined by a proportion of toxicity below 17% (≤2/12).
Time frame: end of study
Assess the efficacy of dual targeting with anti-CD38 mAb daratumumab (Darzalex®) and co-stimulation blockade with belatacept (Nulojix®) in HLA-sensitized patients
Proportion of patients in whom ≥10 HLA antibodies (class I and/or class II) are eliminated (undetectable or \<2000 MFI) OR cPRA(or TGI) decrease to \<99% at the end of step I and at the end of step II. Success will be defined by an efficacy of 66% (≥8/12)
Time frame: end of study
Evaluate the impact of belatacept on anti-HLA antibody reduction using single antigen beads (SAB) in terms of MFI and specificities
Total number and mean number of HLA antibodies at the end of Step I (belatacept) as compared to baseline
Time frame: Week 9
Evaluate the impact of belatacept on circulating Tfh cells compared to baseline belatacept therapy and at the end of this therapy (Step I).
Change in number and percentages of subtypes of circulating Peripheral T helper cells (TPH) including Tfh cells at the end of belatacept therapy
Time frame: week 9 compared to baseline
Evaluate the impact of belatacept on circulating HLA-specific mBC and their capacity to produce anti-HLA antibodies as well as numbers function of HLA-specific LLPC in bone marrow compared to baseline therapy and at the end of this therapy (Step I)
Proportion of patients with a reduction of circulating HLA-specific memory B cells (both class I and class II)
Time frame: Week 9
Evaluate the impact of the dual combination of belatacept and daratumumab on anti-HLA antibody reduction using single antigen beads (SAB) in terms of MFI and specificities
Change in number and mean number of HLA antibodies at the end of Step II (belatacept followed by daratumumab)
Time frame: week 24 compared to baseline
Evaluate the impact of the dual combination of belatacept and daratumumab on circulating Tfh cells compared to baseline and the end of this dual therapy and at the time of a kidney transplantation, if any (Step II).
Change in number and percentages of subtypes of circulating Tfh cells at the end of dual therapy and at the time of an kidney transplantation as compared to baseline
Time frame: week 24 compared to baseline
Evaluate the impact of the dual combination of belatacept and daratumumab on circulating HLA-specific mBc and their capacity to produce anti-HLA antibodies as well as numbers and function of LLPC in bone marrow compared to baseline and the end of this
Proportion of patients with a reduction of circulating HLA-specific memory B cells (both class I and class II)
Time frame: week 24
Evaluate the impact of the dual combination of belatacept and daratumumab on immunodominant HLA antibody (class I and Class II) at the end Step II as compared to baseline and as compared to the end of Step I
Mean reduction in MFI of the immunodominant HLA antibody, class I and Class II at the end Step II
Time frame: week 24
Evaluate the impact of the dual combination of belatacept and daratumumab on HLA-specific Antibody secreting cells (ASC) frequencies in bone marrow aspirates at the end of Step II as compared to baseline
Proportion of patients with a reduction of HLA-specific ASC frequencies in bone marrow aspirates
Time frame: week 24
Number of participants with treatment-related adverse events as assessed by CTCAE v4.0
Number of participants with treatment-related adverse events as assessed by CTCAE v4.0'
Time frame: End of study
Evaluate the impact of the dual combination of belatacept and daratumumab on patients transplanted with a compatible donor
Proportion of patients transplanted with a compatible donor
Time frame: week 18, week 24
In case of kidney transplantation, investigate the germinal center activation of iliac lymph nodes obtained at the time of kidney transplantation
At the time of kidney transplantation investigate the germinal center activation of iliac lymph nodes obtained during surgery
Time frame: day of transplantation
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