The goal of this clinical trial is to learn whether neoadjuvant GV20-0251 combined with sintilimab is safe and tolerable, and to explore its preliminary antitumor activity, in adults with resectable, locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma at West China Hospital, Sichuan University. The main questions it aims to answer are: What is the incidence of dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs) during neoadjuvant treatment with GV20-0251 in combination with sintilimab in the dose-escalation phase? What is the major pathologic response (MPR) rate in resected specimens after neoadjuvant treatment? Participants will receive two 3-week cycles of neoadjuvant therapy using a 3+3 dose-escalation design (GV20-0251 at 10 mg/kg or 20 mg/kg plus fixed-dose sintilimab 200 mg, both given by intravenous infusion on Day 1 of each cycle), undergo protocol-specified safety monitoring with adverse events graded per CTCAE v5.0 and routine clinical assessments and laboratory tests, proceed to definitive surgery after neoadjuvant therapy, receive postoperative adjuvant therapy, and complete post-treatment safety follow-up and protocol-defined long-term follow-up for disease status and survival outcomes.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
9
GV20-0251 administered by intravenous infusion on a protocol-specified schedule as part of neoadjuvant treatment prior to surgery.
Sintilimab (PD-1 inhibitor) administered as neoadjuvant therapy in combination with GV20-0251 prior to planned surgery, according to the study protocol.
West China Hospital, Sichuan University
Chengdu, China
RECRUITINGIncidence of dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs) of GV20-0251 in combination with sintilimab
The incidence of dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs) of GV20-0251 in combination with sintilimab will be assessed to determine the recommended expansion dose (RDE).
Time frame: From first dose through the end of the DLT assessment window (21 days)
Pathologic Complete Response (pCR) Rate
Among participants who undergo surgery, pathologic complete response (pCR) is defined according to immune-related pathologic response criteria (irPR) as no residual viable tumor cells in the tumor bed or resected lymph nodes (%RVT = 0).
Time frame: At the time of surgery, after completion of neoadjuvant treatment
Major Pathologic Response (MPR) Rate
Among participants who undergo surgery, major pathologic response (MPR) is defined according to immune-related pathologic response criteria (irPRC) as ≤10% residual viable tumor cells in the tumor bed (%RVT ≤10%), regardless of whether residual viable tumor cells are present in lymph nodes.
Time frame: At the time of surgery, after completion of neoadjuvant treatment
Objective Response Rate (ORR)
Objective response rate (ORR) is defined as the proportion of participants with a complete response (CR) or partial response (PR), as assessed according to RECIST version 1.1 and iRECIST.
Time frame: From baseline to pre-operative tumor assessment following 2 cycles of neoadjuvant therapy (up to 9 weeks).
Adverse Events (AEs)
Adverse events (AEs) will be assessed according to CTCAE version 5.0, and all treatment-related adverse events will be reported to evaluate the safety of treatment.
Time frame: From first dose through 30 days after the last dose of neoadjuvant treatment
Event-Free Survival (EFS)
Event-free survival (EFS) is defined as the time from first dose to the first occurrence of any of the following events: disease progression during neoadjuvant treatment that precludes definitive surgery, local, regional, or distant recurrence after surgery, or death from any cause. Participants without an event will be censored at the date of last disease assessment or last follow-up.
Time frame: From first dose to the first occurrence of an event, assessed up to 2 years
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