VARTUTRACE is a first-in-human PET/CT molecular imaging study in patients with solid tumors. This study will investigate the biodistribution and pharmacology of two antibody fragments binding oncofetal Chondroitin Sulfate (CS). Oncofetal CS are tumor-specific carbohydrate motifs present in proteoglycans and identified by VAR2 Pharmaceuticals as expressed during fetal development. Oncofetal CS reappears in the vast majority of cancers while remaining largely absent from normal tissues. VAR2 Pharmaceuticals recently developed antibodies specific for oncofetal CS. VARTUTRACE uses two of these as radiolabeled antibody fragments to study biodistribution, tumor accumulation, pharmacodynamics and clearance pathways in a diverse patient population.
VARTUTRACE aims to investigate the biodistribution and pharmacology in patients with solid tumors of two antibody fragments specific for oncofetal CS. VAR2 Pharmaceuticals has identified and characterized oncofetal CS as a group of tumor-specific carbohydrate motifs that appear in placental tissue during fetal development and in most cancers while remaining largely absent from healthy tissue. VAR2 Pharmaceuticals recently developed a panel of antibodies specific for oncofetal CS and characterized their tumor specificity, therapeutic, and safety in pre-clinical models under various formats. VARTUTRACE is a Phase 0 microdosing study of a single administration of \<30 nmol of one of the two most promising antibody fragments identified by VAR2 Pharmaceuticals - C9 and F8. Both antibody fragments will be used as short chain variable fragments (scFvs) labelled with the radioisotope Zirconium-89 (89Zr) and are therefore respectively named 89Zr-C9scFv or 89Zr-F8scFv. As it remains unclear from the pre-clinical in vitro and in vivo data which of the two will have the most optimal tumor targeting properties in patients with solid tumors, both scFvs will be evaluated. The biodistribution, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and clearance of two of these antibody fragments is planned to be studied in up to 32 patients with various cancers (i.e. a basket-trial).
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Purpose
OTHER
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
32
89-Zirconium labeled short-chain variable fragment F8 targeting oncofetal CS.
89-Zirconium labeled short-chain variable fragment C9 targeting oncofetal CS.
IMP administration will be followed by PET/CT scans on day 1, 2 and 4.
University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG)
Groningen, Provincie Groningen, Netherlands
RECRUITINGBiodistribution and pharmacokinetics of the radiolabeled IMP
Biodistribution and pharmacokinetics of the IMP are defined by the amount of IMP that is taken up per target organ or tissue over time. The radioactive dose absorbed per target organ or tissue over time is determined using whole-body PET/CT imaging at various time points post-injection. In addition, blood samples will be taken at various time points post-injection to determine IMP plasma level concentrations. The ICRP 89 values will be used to calculate the effective dose in each organ. Descriptive statistics of absorbed doses to target organs and tissues specified will be tabulated. The blood concentrations will be presented using descriptive summary statistics.
Time frame: Day 1, 2, and 4 after dosing
Tumor-specific uptake of the IMP
Tumor-specific uptake of the IMP is defined as the amount of IMP that tumors uptake compared to normal tissue. Tumor-specific uptake of the IMP is captured using PET/CT imaging and quantified by calculating the tumor-to-background ratio (TBR), which is determined by the ratio of radioactivity taken up by the tumor and radioactivity taken up by healthy reference tissue. A qualified PET investigator will obtain the raw data. PET/CT-derived TBR will be quantified for each patient and compared to standard of care imaging techniques. Variables will be presented as qualitative data. Data interpretation is considered descriptive.
Time frame: Day 1 - 7 after dosing
Incidence of treatment emergent adverse events (AE) (safety and tolerability)
Safety and tolerability will be assessed by the number of participants with treatment-emergent AEs, with abnormal laboratory tests results (including the occurrence of anti-drug antibodies), abnormal vital signs, abnormal ECG readings, and abnormal physical examination findings from the time of i.v. administration of the IMP until the end of the follow-up period. For this objective, variables will be presented as qualitative data. Interpretations of this data will be descriptive
Time frame: Study duration (up to 56 days)
Tumor-specific uptake of the IMP per cancer type
Tumor-specific uptake of the IMP will be quantified, as described in outcome measure 2, for each cancer type and compared across cancer types included in this study. Variables will be presented as qualitative data. Data interpretation is considered descriptive.
Time frame: Day 1 -7 after dosing
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