NY-ESO-1 Protein With Montanide and CpG 7909 as Cancer Vaccine in Several Tumors

Tumors Clinical Trial

Official title: A Phase I Study Using Vaccination With NY-ESO-1 Recombinant Protein Mixed With CpG 7909 and Montanide ISA-51 VG in Patients With Cancers That Often Express NY-ESO-1.

Status Completed

Clinical Trial Summary

This is a Phase I, open-label, randomized study of NY-ESO-l protein with immune adjuvants CpG 7909 and Montanide ISA-51 VG in patients with tumors that often express NY-ESO-1.

The vaccinations was to be administered subcutaneously every 3 weeks for 4 doses.

Patients with any malignancy that is known to frequently express NY-ESO-1 were eligible, regardless of whether antigen expression in the autologous tumor could be demonstrated or not by either PCR or immunohistochemistry.

The primary objective of the study was to define safety.

Secondarily, the study was to evaluate whether patients developed a specific immunologic response to the NY-ESO-1 protein. Blood samples were to be obtained at baseline, prior to each vaccination, one week after each vaccination, and at the last study visit for the assessment of NY-ESO-1-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Cytokine secretion by NY-ESO-1-specific CD8+ and CD4+ T cells, as a measure of T cell activation, was to be determined by FACS analysis. In addition, humoral immunity was to be determined by the presence of NY-ESO-1-specific antibodies which were to be assessed in all patients by ELISA.

Disease status was to be assessed at baseline and 2-4 weeks after the fourth vaccination in patients with evaluable (measurable and non-measurable) disease.

Clinical Trial Description

Subjects were to receive an investigational (research) cancer vaccine every 3 weeks for a total of 4 treatments. It was given by injection underneath the skin in an extremity (leg or arm). A vaccine is a compound designed to strengthen the immune system (the cells and substances that protect the body from infection and foreign matter) to fight an illness such as infections or cancer. This vaccine is called NY-ESO-1 protein. NY-ESO-1 protein (an antigen, which is a compound that is recognized by the immune system) is found in many cancers. Proteins such as NY-ESO-1 and their fragments are the targets the immune system needs to recognize cancer cells. If the immune system can recognize these antigens (foreign substances) it may be able to kill the cells that carry them. NY-ESO-1 can be found at different stages of cancers, and is likely to be expressed (shown) at some point in the lifecycle of these types of cancer (that are eligible for this study). Therefore this study tries to boost (strengthen) the immune system toward NY-ESO-1 protein regardless of whether it is found in your tumor or not.

Since we do not know whether different doses of the NY-ESO-1 protein may result in varying degrees of immune stimulation, we will be randomizing (that is, at the flip of a coin or, in other words, by chance). You may receive either the lower dose of NY-ESO-1 protein (100 µg) or the higher dose (400 µg).

The NY-ESO-1 protein vaccine was to be mixed with 2 substances, called adjuvants (the full names are: CPG 7909 and Montanide ISA-51 VG). Adjuvants are substances to increase the vaccine's ability to stimulate the immune system. By adding two adjuvants to the vaccine, it is hoped that the boosting of the immune system will be especially effective.

It is important to understand, that vaccines are only experimental (investigational, research) for the treatment of cancer. They are not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as treatment. Therefore they are only offered in clinical trials.

All tests and treatments were performed as an outpatient. ;

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Tumors

• NCT number: NCT00299728
• Study type: Interventional
• Source: Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research
• Status: Completed
• Phase: Phase 1
• Start date: March 21, 2006
• Completion date: January 10, 2014