Characterization and Management of Oral and Dermatological Toxicities in Patients Receiving the CD3 X GPRC5D Bispecific Antibody Talquetamab (JNJ-64407564) for the Treatment of Relapsed and/or Refractory Multiple Myeloma

Background: Talquetamab (JNJ-64407564) is a humanized IgG4 bispecific antibody that targets the CD3 receptor complex on T cells and G-protein-coupled receptor class 5 member D (GPRC5D) a transmembrane receptor protein overexpressed on malignant plasma cells in Multiple Myeloma. After 6.3 months of follow up in RRMM, talquetemab monotherapy at the recommended phase 2 dose yielded an overall response rate of 70%. Talquetemab was well tolerated and here we describe the presentation and management of dermatologic and oral adverse events (AEs) in 78 patients (pts) treated with talquetemab at a single center that is part of a multi-center, multi-national study. Methods: Eligible pts with RRMM were enrolled to the Phase 1, first in human, open-label dose escalation study (NCT03399799) at our site, and received talquetamab intravenously (IV; range 1.5µg/kg -1200µg/kg biweekly or weekly) or subcutaneously (SC; 5µg/kg to 800µg/kg weekly). AEs were graded using CTCAE v4.03. Results: As of July 2021, 78 pts received talquetamab, 53 (67.9%) by IV and 25 (32%) by SC route. Treatment emergent dermatologic AEs were observed in 20 (25.6%) pts. The most common AEs were palmar/plantar desquamation in 22 pts (28.2%, grade 1/2), nail disorders in 14 pts (17.9%, all grade 1), systemic rash in 11 patients (14%, grades 1-3), and injection site reaction in 7 pts (8.9%, all grade 1). Time of onset for dermatologic toxicities was generally within the first 30 days of therapy. In collaboration with dermatology consultation, the management of palmar/plantar desquamation, nail disorders, and injection site reaction has been ammonium lactate 12% cream, triamcinolone 0.1% cream, along with plain Vaseline and Vanicream products applied twice daily. Of the 11 pts with systemic rash, 10 were at or above a dose of 405 µg /kg. Five pts had grade 3 rash requiring dose hold and systemic steroids in conjunction with topical medications. All pts have resumed dosing without recurrence of grade 3 rash. Four of these pts were at a dose level of 800 µg/kg SC. Grade 1-2 rash did not require dose hold and was managed with early intervention of the 3 topical treatments applied to affected areas twice daily. In addition to the above described dermatologic AEs, treatment emergent oral AEs were observed in 38 (48.7%) pts, all grade 1-2. 42 pts developed dysgeusia (53.8%), 16 developed dry mouth (20.5%), and 17 developed dysphagia (21.8% ). Dysgeusia resulted in 3 pts requiring drug interruption. 1 pt requiring dose reduction, and 1 discontinued treatment. The average time to onset for dysgeusia was 26.5 days. Dry mouth resulted in no drug interruptions, reductions, or discontinuations, and had an average onset of 6.7 days. Dysphagia also ranged from grades 1-2, with 3 pts requiring drug interruption. There were no dose reductions or treatment discontinuation. The average time to onset was 41.5 days. Dry mouth, dysgeusia, and dysphagia were more prevalent with higher doses. Along with GI and nutrition consultation, oral AEs have been successfully managed with saliva substitute sprays and rinses. These supportive interventions are instituted promptly at time of onset of symptoms. The above-described treatments for dermatologic and oral AEs were not protocol mandated procedures. Discussion The dermatologic and oral AEs associated with talquetamab have unknown etiologies and are currently under investigation. These AEs are typically low grade, rarely require dose holds or modifications, and have been manageable with early and consistent supportive care. Only one patient to date at our center, has discontinued treatment due to an oral or dermatologic side effect. Talquetamab appears to have a have favorable risk/benefit profile in RRMM with durable responses and manageable toxicities. A standardized regimen of topical and oral supportive care appears to be beneficial in the management of dermatological and oral side effects. Disclosures Farrell: Regeneron: Current Employment. Florendo: Legend Biotech: Current Employment. Catamero: Celgene: Ended employment in the past 24 months, Honoraria; Legend: Honoraria; Oncopeptides: Speakers Bureau. Parekh: Foundation Medicine Inc: Consultancy; Amgen: Research Funding; PFIZER: Research Funding; CELGENE: Research Funding; Karyopharm Inv: Research Funding. Richter: Janssen: Speakers Bureau; Celgene: Speakers Bureau; Adaptive Biotechnologies: Speakers Bureau; Celgene: Consultancy; Janssen: Consultancy; BMS: Consultancy; Karyopharm: Consultancy; Antengene: Consultancy; Sanofi: Consultancy; X4 Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy; Oncopeptides: Consultancy; Adaptive Biotechnologies: Consultancy; Secura Bio: Consultancy; Astra Zeneca: Consultancy. Chari: Janssen Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy, Research Funding; Bristol Myers Squibb: Consultancy, Research Funding; Novartis Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy, Research Funding; Amgen: Consultancy, Research Funding; Pharmacyclics: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Consultancy, Research Funding; Takeda Pharmaceutical Company: Consultancy, Research Funding; Karyopharm: Consultancy; Sanofi Genzyme: Consultancy; Oncopeptides: Consultancy; Antegene: Consultancy; Glaxosmithkline: Consultancy; Secura Bio: Consultancy.

Remimazolam: A Novel Option for Procedural Sedation in High Risk Patients

Purpose: The purpose of this drug review was to explore the safety and efficacy of the newly approved benzodiazepine, remimazolam, in order to evaluate its place in therapy. Summary: Remimazolam has a faster onset of action and recovery time than midazolam when given as single IV doses. Additionally, it has no known CYP450 interactions that would contribute to drug-drug interactions. Patients with severe hepatic impairment may require dose titration as well as the elderly who should be closely monitored. Although remimazolam vials should be protected from light and must be reconstituted immediately before use, the reconstituted vial may be stored for later use at room temperature for up to 8 hours. Remimazolam is more expensive than current options used in practice, as such individual institutional formulary and provider preference will require review to see if its advantages are worth the additional cost and to determine its place in therapy. Conclusion: Remimazolam is a novel option when choosing a benzodiazepine for procedural sedation that has pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic advantages when compared to other commonly prescribed sedatives. Remimazolam has proved superior to midazolam when analyzing drug-drug interactions, onset, and time to alertness. Remimazolam also has a shorter elimination half-life and decreased volume of distribution when compared to midazolam.

Efficacy and Safety of TLANDO, A Novel Oral Easy to Prescribe and Use TRT Option

Most widely used testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) products can be inconvenient and cumbersome topical and invasive injectable requiring dose adjustments to attain efficacy. In a pivotal study, a recently approved oral TRT only 26% of patients did not require any dose adjustment. Typically, patients start on a sub-therapeutic dose with gradual dose increases to attain efficacy resulting in additional visit(s) to clinic and pharmacy. Physician research data (N=402) suggested it typically takes 3-6 months of titrations to reach an efficacious dose for majority of patients, a significant barrier in effecting a switch without a period of “efficacy gap”. The requirement of additional visit(s) presents significant challenges for new and current patients desiring to start and to switch to a convenient TRT option, especially in the current COVID-19 pandemic. Recent reports suggest increase of disease severity/mortality in men with low testosterone is possibly due to underlying co-morbidities commonly associated with male hypogonadism. There remains a need for an effective, safe, and easy to use and prescribe product that does not require dose titration. TLANDO is a “triglyceride-free” oral single strength TRT with single dose designed to lymphatically deliver effective and safe levels of testosterone regardless of meal fat content. Moreover, dose titration is prone to some inherent titration decision errors and requires understanding of often complex titration rules. The objective is to assess whether TLANDO, an oral TRT without requiring dose titration, safely restores effective testosterone (T) levels in hypogonadal men. An open-label, single-arm, multicenter study (NCT03242590) was performed with TLANDO in hypogonadal males (N=95). Subjects received orally 225 mg twice a day testosterone undecanoate (TU) for 24 days without dose adjustment. Efficacy was evaluated by % of subjects who achieved daily T Cavg within the eugonadal range. Using 450mg daily dose without dose adjustment, 80% of subjects (95% CI of 72% to 88%) achieved a T Cavg in the normal range and safely restored with mean T Cavg of 476±184 ng/dL post steady state. T restoration was comparable to other non-oral TRT products. TLANDO was well tolerated with no deaths, no drug-related severe AEs, and no hepatic AEs. In conclusion, effective T restoration using TLANDO, an easy to use and prescribe oral TRT option, was confirmed. Minimal AEs were reported with no hepatic AEs. Upon approval, TLANDO will be the first convenient TRT option without requiring dose adjustments; therefore, enabling selection of an efficacious dose from the start of therapy. TLANDO is well suited for new or existing TRT patients desiring a convenient oral option.

Enhanced elimination of betamethasone in dichorionic twin pregnancies

Aims: No study has evaluated the BET pharmacokinetics in twin pregnancies separated by chorionicity. The aim this study is to describe and compare the BET pharmacokinetic parameters in singleton, dichorionic (DC) and monochorionic (MC) twin pregnancies in the third trimester of pregnancy. Methods: Twenty-six pregnant women received an intramuscular dose of 6 mg of BET sodium phosphate plus 6 mg BET acetate. Serial blood samples were collected for 24 hours after the first intramuscular BET esters dose. BET plasma concentrations were quantified using a validated HPLC analytical method. BET pharmacokinetic parameters were obtained employing a non-compartment model, and were compared using ANOVA’s test with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test. Correlations between clinical features and pharmacokinetic parameters were analyzed using Pearson’s correlation. Preliminary data on the BET placental transfer were also presented. Results: The geometric mean (IC 95%) of AUC0-∞ 670.0 (504.3-805.2) vs 434.9 (311.2-539.6) ng.h/mL and the CL/F 18.38 (13.84-22.65) vs 29.40 (21.17-36.69) were significantly lower and higher, respectively, in DC twin pregnancies compared to singleton. Others pharmacokinetic parameters did not differ among the groups. Conclusions: Data from this study suggest that the presence of two fetoplacental units may increase the BET metabolism by CYP3A4 enzyme and increase its elimination. Pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic clinical studies are needed to investigate whether this BET pharmacokinetic changes have clinical repercussions for the newborns and require dose adjustment in DC twin pregnancies.

Evaluation of Direct Oral Anticoagulant Prescribing in Patients With Moderate to Severe Renal Impairment

Patients with renal impairment require dose adjustments for direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs), though there is uncertainty regarding their use in severe chronic kidney disease. Inappropriately dosed DOACs may increase risk of ischemic events when under-dosed, or risk of bleeding when over-dosed. The purpose of this study was to describe DOAC selection, dosing strategies, and associated clinical outcomes in patients with moderate to severe renal impairment at our institution. This was a single-center retrospective analysis of adult outpatients with moderate to severe renal impairment (estimated creatinine clearance <50 mL/min, including need for hemodialysis) who were prescribed a DOAC by a cardiologist between June 1, 2015 and December 1, 2018. Outcomes evaluated included the percentage of patients who received appropriate and inappropriate DOAC dosing, prescriber reasons for inappropriate DOAC dosing if documented, and incidence of thrombotic and bleeding events. A total of 207 patients were included. Overall, 61 (29.5%) patients received inappropriate dosing, with 43 (70.5%) being under-dosed and 18 (29.5%) being over-dosed as compared to FDA-labeled dosing recommendations for atrial fibrillation or venous thromboembolism (VTE). By a median follow-up duration of 20 months, stroke occurred in 6 (3.3%) patients receiving DOACs for atrial fibrillation, and VTE occurred in 1 (4.3%) patient receiving a DOAC for VTE. International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis major or clinically relevant nonmajor bleeding occurred in 25 (12.1%) patients. Direct oral anticoagulants were frequently prescribed at off-label doses in patients with moderate to severe renal impairment, with a tendency toward under-dosing.

Completing the Enalaprilat Excretion Pathway—Renal Handling by the Proximal Tubule

Background: Enalapril is often used in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Clinical data suggest that the urinary excretion of enalaprilat, the active metabolite of enalapril, is mediated by renal transporters. We aimed to identify enalaprilat specificity for renal proximal tubular transporters. Methods: Baculovirus-transduced HEK293 cells overexpressing proximal tubular transporters were used to study enalaprilat cellular uptake. Uptake into cells overexpressing the basolateral transporters OCT2, OAT1, OAT2, or OAT3 and apical transporters OAT4, PEPT1, PEPT2, OCTN1, OCTN2, MATE1, MATE2k, and URAT1 was compared with mock-transduced control cells. Transport by renal efflux transporters MRP2, MPR4, P-gp, and BCRP was tested using a vesicular assay. Enalaprilat concentrations were measured using LC-MS/MS. Results: Uptake of enalaprilat into cells expressing OAT3 as well as OAT4 was significantly higher compared to control cells. The enalaprilat affinity for OAT3 was 640 (95% CI: 520–770) µM. For OAT4, no reliable affinity constant could be determined using concentrations up to 3 mM. No transport was observed for other transporters. Conclusion: The affinity of enalaprilat for OAT3 and OAT4 was notably low compared to other substrates. Taking this affinity and clinically relevant plasma concentrations of enalaprilat and other OAT3 substrates into account, we believe that drug–drug interactions on a transporter level do not have a therapeutic consequence and will not require dose adjustments of enalaprilat itself or other OAT3 substrates.

Pharmacogenomics to Drive COVID-19 Therapy for Best Outcome in a Low Resource Setting

Corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has taken the world by storm with global infectivity and mortality of 3.5%. Since there is no specific treatment for COVID-19, several drugs have been repurposed to combat infection, these include drugs like anti-malarial – chloroquine, hydroxychloroquine, anti- diarrheal– loperamide and antipsychotic-promazine, which have been considered to be effective inhibitors as of viral binding to ACE2 receptor. The administration of these drugs is currently random and is the key factors responsible for varied treatment response, hence genes involved in drug metabolism should be analysed before planning therapy. Genes involved in metabolism of the listed drugs are ABCB1, CYP1A2, CYP2C8, CYP2C19, CYP3A4 and CYP2D6. Unpublished pharmacogenomic data from our internal cohort (75 cases) was analyzed to predict likely-responders and non-responders to propose drugs for COVID-19 drug therapy in our population. Preliminary data from random individuals without bias indicates that both anti-malarials at standard dose will benefit 98% of our cases (in absence of co-morbidities), while 11-85% of individuals would require dose reduction/alternatives for loperamide and promazine. Anti-malarials like chloroquine, hydroxychroloquine can be prescribed for prophylaxis and as first line of therapy in absence of comorbidities. Simple genotype testing of ABCB1, CYP1A2, CYP2C19 and CYP2D6 is an indispensable tool to predict treatment outcomes of loperamide and promazine for COVID-19 patients.

Omadacycline: A Modernized Tetracycline

When tetracyclines were introduced in the 1940s, these antibiotics offered a broad spectrum of activity against multiple types of pathogens. However, their utility waned after the selection of tetracycline resistance in the pathogens against which they were effective. Omadacycline is a semisynthetic aminomethylcycline antibacterial derived from the tetracycline class of antibiotics that is unaffected by these resistance mechanisms. It has an appropriate spectrum of activity for community-acquired infections, including those caused by many resistant organisms. Omadacycline offers a well-tolerated treatment for acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections and community-acquired bacterial pneumonia. Omadacycline has minimal known drug–drug interactions, and should be administered in a fasting state, avoiding dairy and cation-containing products for at least 4 hours after dosing. It does not require dose adjustments for sex, age, or hepatic or renal impairment, and has a safety profile similar to that of other oral tetracyclines. Because omadacycline can be administered effectively orally, it can help reduce hospitalization costs associated with intravenous antibiotic administration. This special supplement to Clinical Infectious Diseases offers an in-depth examination of omadacycline development, including discussions of pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic trials, spectrum of activity and preclinical data, early clinical trials, phase III clinical trials, and an integrated safety summary.

Crizotinib-Associated Renal Cysts: A Case Series

Crizotinib is an anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitor, used as a targeted chemotherapeutic agent in ALK-positive cases of nonsmall cell lung carcinoma. Although uncommon, it may be associated with the formation of new renal cysts, which may be simple or complex, or the enlargement of preexisting simple renal cysts or their transformation into complex cysts. These cysts usually regress partially or completely but may rarely enlarge over time or get complicated by infection or abscess formation. Such cases may even require dose reduction or withholding crizotinib. Although documented in clinical literature, this entity is not well known among radiologists. Knowledge of this entity helps in preventing erroneous diagnosis of the new kidney “lesion” as metastasis or disease progression and avoids an unnecessary biopsy. We describe a series of four cases which developed complex renal cysts during treatment with crizotinib to demonstrate this point.

Ramucirumab (RAM) for sorafenib intolerant patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and elevated baseline alpha fetoprotein (AFP): Outcomes from two randomized phase 3 studies (REACH, REACH2).

4073 Background: Oral multikinase inhibitors that have shown improvements in overall survival (OS) in HCC are associated with clinically important toxicities that commonly require dose adjustment or discontinuation (D/C) due to intolerance. REACH and REACH-2 studied RAM in patients (pts) with HCC who progressed on or were intolerant to sorafenib (SOR), and REACH-2 only enrolled pts with baseline AFP ≥400 ng/mL. In REACH-2 RAM treatment (trt) improved OS compared to placebo (P), supporting findings in REACH pts with baseline AFP ≥400 ng/mL. An exploratory analysis of outcomes by reason for D/C of SOR was performed. Methods: Pts had advanced HCC, Child-Pugh A, ECOG PS 0-1, and prior SOR. Pts were randomized to RAM 8 mg/kg or P Q2W. A pooled independent pt data analysis (stratified by study) of REACH-2 and REACH pts (AFP ≥400 mg/mL) was performed. Results are reported by reason for SOR D/C (intolerance or disease progression). OS and PFS were evaluated using Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazard model. Objective response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR) and safety are reported. Results: Baseline characteristics in the pooled population were generally balanced between trt arms in each subgroup. Median durations of prior SOR were 2.5 mo for SOR intolerant (n = 70) and 4.0 mo for SOR progressors (n = 472). Median OS (RAM v P) was 10.2 v 6.7 mo for SOR intolerant and 8.0 v 4.7 mo for SOR progressors (Table). Rates of D/C due to trt-related adverse events (AEs) (Table) (7% in each subgroup), and Grade ≥3 AEs (most frequently hypertension) were consistent with those observed in each study. Conclusions: Acknowledging limitations of sample size, the RAM trt benefit in SOR intolerant pts was consistent with that in the ITT population. RAM was well tolerated in SOR intolerant pts with low rates of D/C due to related-AEs. Clinical trial information: NCT01140347, NCT02435433. [Table: see text]