Nivolumab and Tumor Infiltrating Lymphocytes (TIL) in Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
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ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03215810 |
Recruitment Status :
Active, not recruiting
First Posted : July 12, 2017
Results First Posted : April 13, 2022
Last Update Posted : November 15, 2022
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Condition or disease | Intervention/treatment | Phase |
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Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Metastatic Non-small Cell Lung Cancer Squamous Cell Carcinoma Advanced NSCLC Adenosquamous Carcinoma Adenocarcinomas | Procedure: Tumor-infiltrating Lymphocytes (TIL) Drug: Nivolumab Drug: Cyclophosphamide Drug: Fludarabine Other: Tumor-infiltrating Lymphocyte Therapy Drug: Interleukin-2 (IL2) | Phase 1 |
In this study, these special immune T-cells will be taken from a sample of the participant's tumor tissue that will be surgically removed. Certain parts of these cells will be multiplied, or grown, in the laboratory, using the drug interleukin-2 (IL-2) during part of the process. They will then be given back to the participant by an infusion in their veins. These cells are called tumor- infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs). The use of TILs involves a combination of drugs, including the following:
- Fludarabine and cyclophosphamide - two types of chemotherapy drugs. These drugs will be used for what is called lymphodepletion. The purpose of lymphodepletion in this study is to temporarily reduce the number of normal lymphocytes circulating in the participant's body before they are given the TILs that were grown in the lab. This is so that there will be more "space" for the lymphocytes (TILs) that will be infused in their veins.
- Interleukin-2 (IL-2) - a drug used to help the body's response to treatment on the immune system. A high dose regimen of IL-2 will be given after the participant receives the infusion of the T-cells.
Study Type : | Interventional (Clinical Trial) |
Actual Enrollment : | 20 participants |
Allocation: | N/A |
Intervention Model: | Single Group Assignment |
Masking: | None (Open Label) |
Primary Purpose: | Treatment |
Official Title: | A Phase I Clinical Trial Combining Nivolumab and Tumor Infiltrating Lymphocytes (TIL) for Patients With Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer |
Actual Study Start Date : | October 11, 2017 |
Actual Primary Completion Date : | February 13, 2021 |
Estimated Study Completion Date : | December 2023 |

Arm | Intervention/treatment |
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Experimental: TIL+ Nivolumab
Tumor-infiltrating Lymphocyte Therapy (TIL) + Nivolumab Treatment Plan: Tumor harvest, Tumor-infiltrating Lymphocytes growth, 4 cycles of nivolumab, cytoreductive chemotherapy with cyclophosphamide and fludarabine, TIL infusion, Interleukin-2 treatment.
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Procedure: Tumor-infiltrating Lymphocytes (TIL)
Tumor harvest for TIL growth in the lab: A sample of the participant's tumor will be collected and sent to the lab for TIL growth. TIL will be prepared and cryopreserved.
Other Name: TIL Drug: Nivolumab Nivolumab will be administered intravenously at a fixed dose of 240 mg for 4 doses every 2 weeks prior to TIL. Nivolumab dose will be fixed at 480 mg every 4 weeks up to 12 months after TIL.
Other Name: Opdivo Drug: Cyclophosphamide Cyclophosphamide will be administered at 60 mg/kg/day IV in 250 mL normal saline (NS) over approximately 2 hours. Cyclophosphamide will be initiated seven days prior to the anticipated TIL transfer, and the precise timing will depend on the rate of in vitro TIL growth. The dose will be based on the patient's body weight, but to prevent undue toxicity, it will not exceed a dose greater than 140% of the maximum ideal body weight per Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, Height and Weight Table.
Other Name: Cytoxan Drug: Fludarabine After administration of Cyclophosphamide, Fludarabine will then be infused at 25 mg/m^2 intravenous piggyback (IVPB) daily over approximately 30 minutes starting 5 days prior to TIL transfer. To prevent undue toxicity with fludarabine, the dose will be based on body surface area (BSA), but will not exceed a dose calculated on surface areas based on body weights greater than 140% of the maximum ideal body weight per Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Height and Weight Tables.
Other Name: Fludara Other: Tumor-infiltrating Lymphocyte Therapy On day 0, all patients will receive TIL administered according to the current Moffitt Cell Therapy TIL Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). Eight (8) to twelve (12) hours after completing the TIL infusion, all participants will begin intermediate-dose decrescendo interleukin-2 (IL-2).
Other Name: TIL Drug: Interleukin-2 (IL2) Interleukin-2 (IL-2) - a drug used to help the body's response to treatment on the immune system. A high dose regimen of IL-2 will be given after the infusion of the T-cells.
Other Names:
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- Rate of Dose Limiting Toxicity (DLT) [ Time Frame: Up to 40 months ]Investigators plan to demonstrate that treatment with nivolumab in patients undergoing TIL therapy is safe with a continuous Pocock-type stopping boundary for serious toxicity of < 17%, with safety reported based upon Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) version 4.0 criteria. DLT defined as: any grade ≥3 immune-related adverse event definitely attributable to nivolumab. DLT related to adoptive cell therapy will be defined as a non-hematologic grade 4 or higher adverse event that is immediately life-threatening occurring upon or after the start of therapy that is immediately life-threatening and not related to non-small cell lung cancer or other pre-existing condition. Safety: Toxicity will be assessed within 4 weeks of the adoptive TIL transfer. The accrual will be halted if excessive numbers of participants with toxicity are seen. For example, if there are 5 or more out of 10 participants (full follow-up) with toxicity, the trial will be stopped.
- Number of Participants With Objective Response [ Time Frame: Up to 40 months ]Participants displaying objective response associated with the treatment regimen per Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST v.1.1). The best overall response is the best response recorded from the start of the treatment until disease progression/recurrence (taking as reference for progressive disease the smallest measurements recorded since the treatment started). The patient's best response assignment will depend on the achievement of both measurement and confirmation criteria.

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Ages Eligible for Study: | 18 Years and older (Adult, Older Adult) |
Sexes Eligible for Study: | All |
Accepts Healthy Volunteers: | No |
Inclusion Criteria:
- Age >18 years
- Able to understand and give written informed consent
- Confirmed or suspected diagnosis of stage IV or recurrent non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). For suspected NSCLC, diagnosis must be histologically or cytologically confirmed prior to start of nivolumab treatment. Neuroendocrine cancers, or mixed neuroendocrine features in >10% of tumor cells, are excluded.
- Tumor deemed accessible by metastasectomy (TIL harvest) which expects to yield >1.5 cm^3 of resectable tumor amount.
- Measurable disease, even after resection of applicable lesion for TIL harvest. Defined as ≥1 lesion that is ≥10 mm in one dimension by CT scan, MRI, or calipers on clinical exam.
- Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0 or 1
- Expected survival > 6 months
- Patients with activating Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) mutation or Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase (ALK) rearrangement which is expected to be responsive to available tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy, must have been previously treated with an applicable tyrosine kinase inhibitor.
- Adequate normal organ and marrow function in an assessment performed within 7 days (+ 3 day window) of enrollment, defined as: Hemoglobin ≥ 9.0 g/dL; Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) ≥ 1.0 x 10^9/L (> 1000 per mm^3); Platelet count ≥ 100 x 10^9/L (>100,000 per mm^3); Prothrombin Time (PT) and Partial Thromboplastin Time (PTT) ≤ 1.5x the institutional upper limit of normal (ULN), (This will not apply to patients with confirmed Factor XII deficiency.); Serum bilirubin ≤ 1.5x the institutional ULN, or ≤ 3x ULN if confirmed Gilbert's syndrome (persistent or recurrent hyperbilirubinemia that is predominantly unconjugated in the absence of hemolysis or hepatic pathology); Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST) (SGOT)/Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT) (SGPT) ≤ 2.5x institutional ULN unless liver metastases are present, in which case it must be ≤ 5x ULN; Serum creatinine of ≤ 1.5x institutional ULN; Albumin ≥ 2.5 g/dl.
- Positive screening Epstein Barr Virus (EBV) antibody titer on screening test.
- Cardiac stress test within past 6 months without evidence of reversible ischemia.
- Cardiac echocardiogram, stress test, or Multigated Acquisition Scan (MUGA) within past 6 months with demonstrated left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) > 50%
- Pulmonary function tests within past 6 months showing Diffusion Lung Capacity for Carbon Monoxide (DLCO) >50% of predicted. Adjusted DLCO based on hemoglobin concentration should be used, if available.
Exclusion Criteria:
- More than 5 lines of prior systemic therapy in the preceding 3 years.
- Any previous treatment with a PD-1 or PD-L1 inhibitor, including but not limited to: nivolumab, atezolizumab, pembrolizumab, or durvalumab.
- Current or prior use of any immunosuppressive medications, such as corticosteroids, within 14 days before enrollment. a.) Oral hydrocortisone, only for the purposes of a documented and confirmed adrenal insufficiency diagnosis, is permitted if ≤ 25 mg daily total dose. b.) Inhaled, intranasal, or topical corticosteroids are permitted.
- Patients with untreated brain metastases. Treated brain metastases with radiation or surgery are allowed if: ≤ 3 cm in size AND ≤ 4 in number AND there is no evidence of progressive disease, on brain imaging ≥ 28 days after last day of central nervous system (CNS) treatment.
- History of leptomeningeal metastases.
- Current or prior use of anticancer therapy before TIL collection: a.) Chemotherapy within the past 4 weeks; b.) Tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) within the past 1 week; c.) Investigational therapy within the past 4 weeks or 4 half-lives, whichever is shorter.
- Uncontrolled intercurrent illness including, but not limited to, symptomatic congestive heart failure, unstable angina pectoris, cardiac arrhythmia (other than stable atrial fibrillation) and significant carotid artery stenosis.
- Known to be HIV positive, hepatitis B or C positive, or both Rapid Plasma Reagin (RPR) and Fluorescent Treponemal Antibody (FTA positive). (Hepatitis B surface or core antibody alone is not indicative of Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) infection).
- Patients with rapidly progressing tumors, as judged by the investigator.
- Mean QT interval corrected for heart rate (QTc) ≥470 ms calculated from electrocardiograms (ECGs) using Bazett's Correction
- Known history of previous tuberculosis
- Receipt of live attenuated vaccination within 30 days prior to first anticipated dose of nivolumab.
- History of allogeneic organ transplant
- History of primary immunodeficiency
- History of severe hypersensitivity to nivolumab, cyclophosphamide, fludarabine, interleukin-2, or any excipient
- Any condition that, in the opinion of the investigator, would interfere with evaluation of study treatment or interpretation of patient safety or study results
- Patients with active systemic infections requiring intravenous antibiotics within 1 week prior to enrollment.
- Any unresolved toxicity (>CTCAE v4 grade 2) from previous anti-cancer therapy. Patients with irreversible toxicity that is not reasonably expected to be exacerbated by the investigational product may be included (e.g., hearing loss, peripheral neuropathy).
- History of pneumonitis or drug-related inflammatory lung disease
- Have a significant history of pulmonary disease that necessitates the use of supplemental oxygen, and patients with resting pulse oximetry less than 92% on room air.
- Active or prior documented autoimmune disease within the past 2 years. NOTE: Patients with vitiligo, Grave's disease, limited site eczema, or limited site plaque psoriasis not requiring systemic treatment (within the past 2 years), or other autoimmune conditions which are not expected to recur, are allowed after approval from the medical monitor or Principal Investigator (PI).
- Patients with other prior malignancies must have had a ≥ 2-year disease-free interval, except for: in situ carcinoma of the cervix, in situ ductal carcinoma of the breast, in situ prostate cancer, in situ bladder cancer. These must have been deemed stable and not expected to relapse. In addition, early stage skin cancers, including basal, squamous cell cutaneous carcinoma, and melanoma, are permitted if previously treated with curative intent and not expected to relapse.
- Women who are pregnant or lactating.
- Women of childbearing potential and fertile men unwilling to use effective contraception during study until 4 months after conclusion of the treatment period.

To learn more about this study, you or your doctor may contact the study research staff using the contact information provided by the sponsor.
Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier (NCT number): NCT03215810
United States, Florida | |
University of Florida Health Cancer Center. | |
Gainesville, Florida, United States, 32608 | |
H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute | |
Tampa, Florida, United States, 33612 |
Principal Investigator: | Ben Creelan, M.D. | H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute |
Documents provided by H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute:
Publications automatically indexed to this study by ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier (NCT Number):
Responsible Party: | H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute |
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: | NCT03215810 |
Other Study ID Numbers: |
MCC-19122 CA209-9JA ( Other Identifier: Bristol-Myers Squibb ) |
First Posted: | July 12, 2017 Key Record Dates |
Results First Posted: | April 13, 2022 |
Last Update Posted: | November 15, 2022 |
Last Verified: | November 2022 |
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated Drug Product: | Yes |
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated Device Product: | No |
Stage IV NSCLC Recurrent TIL Tumor-infiltrating Lymphocyte Therapy (TIL) |
Carcinoma Lung Neoplasms Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung Carcinoma, Adenosquamous Neoplasms, Glandular and Epithelial Neoplasms by Histologic Type Neoplasms Respiratory Tract Neoplasms Thoracic Neoplasms Neoplasms by Site Lung Diseases Respiratory Tract Diseases Carcinoma, Bronchogenic Bronchial Neoplasms Neoplasms, Complex and Mixed |
Cyclophosphamide Nivolumab Fludarabine Interleukin-2 Immunosuppressive Agents Immunologic Factors Physiological Effects of Drugs Antirheumatic Agents Antineoplastic Agents, Alkylating Alkylating Agents Molecular Mechanisms of Pharmacological Action Antineoplastic Agents Myeloablative Agonists Antineoplastic Agents, Immunological Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors |