A phase II, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial evaluating efficacy and safety of namodenoson (CF102), an A3 adenosine receptor agonist (A3AR), as a second-line treatment in patients with Child-Pugh B (CPB) advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Abstract

2503 Background: There is no established primary treatment for patients with advanced HCC and severe liver dysfunction (Child-Pugh B class; CPB), thus this representing a clear unmet need. Namodenoson, an A3AR agonist, showed promising preliminary results in this population in an open label phase 1/2 clinical study (NCT00790218), with median overall survival (OS) of 8.1 months. We present the results of a double blind, randomized phase 2, placebo-controlled study (NCT02128958), assessing the efficacy and safety of namodenoson as a second-line therapy of patients with advanced HCC and CPB class. Methods: Patients were randomized 2:1 to BID namodenoson (25 mg; n = 50) or placebo (n = 28) in 15 centers globally. Primary endpoint was OS and secondary endpoints were safety, progression-free survival (PFS), objective response (OR) and disease control rate (DCR). Assessment of OS and PFS was done by log rank test at a one final analysis when 75 deaths had occurred. Response was assessed by RECIST (local investigator) and mRECIST (central review). Results: The study did not meet the primary end point, with median OS 4.1 months (mo) for namodenoson vs. 4.3 mo for placebo (HR: 0.82). Pre-planned subgroup analysis of Child-Pugh 7 patients (n=56; namodenoson=34, placebo=21) showed median survival 6.8mo vs 4.3 mo [HR: 0.77 (95% CI 0.49-1.40)]. Similarly, for this subgroup of patients PFS was 3.5 mo vs 1.9 (HR=0.87). In terms of objective response, 3/34 patients assessed achieved OR (9%) with namodenoson vs 0% for placebo. Namodenoson was generally well-tolerated, with no treated patients being withdrawn for toxicity and no cases of treatment-related deaths. The most common adverse event (>10%) were anemia, abdominal pain, ascites, nausea, asthenia, fatigue, peripheral edema, and increased AST. Treatment-related grade 3 toxicities accounted for anemia, fatigue and hyponatremia. Conclusions: Namodenoson has demonstrated favorable clinical safety profile in patients with advanced HCC and severe liver dysfunction. Although the primary end-point was not met, the subgroup analysis showed a positive signal of efficacy for OS in patients with Child-Pugh 7. Both safety and efficacy results warrant testing this drug in a phase III trial. Clinical trial information: NCT02128958.