Efficacy and Safety Study of Leukocyte Interleukin,Injection (LI) to Treat Cancer of the Oral Cavity (IT-MATTERS)

• Overall Survival (OS) in LI + CIZ + SOC vs. SOC [ Time Frame: 3 year ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]
  OS will be assessed using Kaplan-Meier life-table and compared using a logrank test and confirmed further with tumor stage location and geographic stratified log rank tests. The unstratified logrank test constitutes the primary analysis. A two-sided p-value of 0.05 or less will be considered statistically significant for comparing the two groups. Interim analyses will be performed throughout the study to assess safety, sample size and futility.
  
  

• Progression Free Survival (PFS) in LI + CIZ + SOC vs.SOC [ Time Frame: 3 year. ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]
  PFS will be assessed using Kaplan-Meier life-table and compared using a logrank test and confirmed further with stage location and geographic stratified log rank tests. The unstratified logrank test constitutes the primary analysis.A two sided p-value of 0.05 or less will be considered statistically significant in comparing the groups. The Holm closed-sequential procedure will be used to control type 1 error probability to at most 0.05
  
  
• Local regional control (LRC) in LI + CIZ + SOC vs. SOC [ Time Frame: 2 years ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]
  LRC is assessed by classifying the first evidence of progression in local and distal sites for the control group and for the LI treated group. LRC failure includes progression of tumor(s) and nodes or appearance of new disease above the clavicle (but not distant metastases) the reappearance of tumor in the original tumor bed, development of cervical node metastases and new disease above the clavicle other than distant metastases not present at baseline. The number and percent of subjects in the treated and untreated groups and the timing of LRC will be displayed for each group.
  
  
• Quality of Life (QOL) in LI + CIZ + SOC vs. SOC [ Time Frame: 3 yr. ] [ Designated as safety issue: Yes ]
  QOL will be based on the EORTC QLOQ-C30 and EORTC QLQ-H&N35. QOL data will be assessed for change in QOL from baseline within and between treatment groups.Between group comparisons will be performed using ANOVA or Wilcoxon rank sum test. Within treatment group change from baseline will be performed using a paired t-test or a signed rank test. Two-sided t-test will be used with no adjustment for type I error. An exact binomial test of each treatment group will be used to assess a 10 point improvement between treatments. A Fisher Exact Test will be used for between group comparisons.
  
  

Head and neck carcinomas constitute about 5% of all cancers annually worldwide. In the US there are about 37,000 new cases annually. Ninety percent are advanced primary squamous cell carcinoma (SCCHN). Approximately 2/3 of SCCHN patients present on their first visit with locally advanced disease. The median 3 year overall survival(OS) for these patients with existing standard of care (SOC) therapies - surgery followed by radiotherapy or combined radiochemotherapy - is between 52 and 55%; the 5 year OS is 43%. There are clearly a large number of SCCHN patients not well served by available modalities.

Regional intra or perilymphatic and/or intratumoral or peritumoral low dose cytokine therapy may have important therapeutic effects in SCCHN patients and constitute an additional anti-tumor mechanism of action different and distinct from current SOC. Leukocyte Interleukin Injection (LI) [Multikine]contains a defined mixture of naturally derived cytokines and chemokines with demonstrated safety and immunomodulatory activity in animals and in man in Phase 1 and 2 clinical trials. LI was administered prior to SOC and in combination with low non-chemotherapeutic doses of cyclophosphamide, indomethacin, and zinc (CIZ) in studies with LI. The results of these studies indicate that the local/regional injection of mixed interleukins (LI) with CIZ prior to SOC can overcome local immunosuppression, break tumor tolerance to tumor antigens and allow for a sustainable and effective anti-tumor immune response.

LI is being tested in this large, global, multinational Phase III clinical trial to develop definitive proof of its efficacy and safety in treating SCCHN. The trial is an open-label randomized multi-center controlled study of LI + CIZ + SOC in subjects with advanced primary SCCHN of the oral cavity/soft palate vs. SOC [The Comparator Arms for, Overall Survival, the Primary End Point of this Study].