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Sickle Cell DiseasePhase 2NCT01000155

Efficacy of Vorinostat to Induce Fetal Hemoglobin in Sickle Cell Disease

A Phase 2 study testing vorinostat in people with Sickle Cell Disease and Sickle Cell Anemia, run by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute at 3 sites in United States.

Terminated

Stopped early. The study ended before it was planned to and will not resume.

Official record
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Trial summary

Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is a hereditary anemia that causes the red blood cells to change their shape from a round and doughnut-like shape to a half-moon/crescent, or sickled shape. People who have SCD have a different type of hemoglobin (protein that carries oxygen). Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 years and older
Conditions the study is for
Sickle Cell Disease, Sickle Cell Anemia
What is being tested?
vorinostat
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
5 participants
Where
3 sitesUnited States
Study dates
Oct 2009to Oct 2014
Phase
Phase 2
Are there results?
Yes, posted in the registrySummary in the doctors' view

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 years and older
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Diagnosis of sickle cell disease
  • Clinically significant disease defined as at least 1 painful episode per year averaged over the previous 3 years or a history of priapism, stroke, acute chest syndrome, avascular necrosis, multi-organ failure or the need for chronic narcotic medications for pain from sickle cell disease
  • Must have failed a previous attempt at treatment with hydroxyurea defined as the inability to achieve a significant absolute increase in % fetal hemoglobin or the inability to tolerate hydroxyurea treatment due to severe side effects such as but not limited to myelosuppression, gastrointestinal symptoms, edema or hepatic enzyme elevations or have contraindications to hydroxyurea
  • 18 years of age or older
  • Hematologic laboratory values as outlined in the protocol
  • Non-hematologic laboratory values as outlined in the protocol
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  • Must agree not to donate blood or other bodily fluid while taking the study drug and for 28 days thereafter
  • Women of child-bearing potential (WCBP) must have a negative serum pregnancy test 72 hours or less prior to starting treatment
  • Women of child-bearing potential and men must agree to use 2 forms of adequate contraception prior to study entry and for the duration of study participation

Who cannot join

  • Subjects with hemoglobin SC or SB+ thalassemia
  • Subjects on chronic transfusion program
  • Subjects who have received RBC transfusions cannot have >15% adult hemoglobin
  • Known positive status for HIV, active hepatitis B or hepatitis C
  • Pregnant or breast feeding women
  • Individuals with a history of malignancy are ineligible except for the following circumstances. Individuals with a history of malignancy are eligible if they have been disease-free for at least 5 years and are deemed by the investigator to be at low risk for recurrence of that malignancy. Individuals with the following cancer are eligible if diagnosed and adequately treated within the past 5 years: cervical or breast cancer in situ, and basal cell or squamous cell carcinoma of the skin
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  • Subjects with a history of thrombosis or other reason (other than sickle cell disease) for enhanced thrombotic risk
  • Subjects with unresolved infections
  • Severe or uncontrolled medical conditions that could compromise study participation
  • Subjects on fetal hemoglobin inducing agents
  • Subjects on any other experimental treatment within 90 days of the first dose of study drug or who have not recovered from the side effects of such therapy
  • Known allergic reaction to a histone deacetylase inhibitor
  • Subjects who have received valproic acid for treatment of epilepsy within 30 days of enrollment
  • Subjects who have received any HDAC inhibitors other than valproic acid

Trial locations and contacts

3 sites in 1 country.

United States3 sites
  • Brigham and Women's Hospital

    Boston, Massachusetts, 02115

  • Children's Hospital Boston

    Boston, Massachusetts, 02115

  • Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

    Boston, Massachusetts, 02115

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: A Phase II Pharmacodynamic Investigation of the Efficacy of Vorinostat to Induce Fetal Hemoglobin in Adults With Severe Sickle Cell Disease Who Have Not Benefitted From Prior Therapy

Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is a hereditary anemia that causes the red blood cells to change their shape from a round and doughnut-like shape to a half-moon/crescent, or sickled shape. People who have SCD have a different type of hemoglobin (protein that carries oxygen). This different type of hemoglobin makes the red blood cells change into a crescent shape under certain conditions. Sickle-shaped cells are a problem because they often get stuck in the blood vessels blocking the flow of blood and can cause inflammation and injury to important areas of the body. All babies are born with hemoglobin called fetal hemoglobin (HbF). Soon after birth, HbF production slows down and another hemoglobin called adult hemoglobin (HbA) is made. Clinical studies have shown that increasing the amount of HbF in the blood may prevent sickling of the red blood cells. Vorinostat has been used in the treatment of cancers and in other research studies and information from those suggests that it may help treat SCD by increasing the amount of HbF in the blood. The purpose of this research study is to determine the effectiveness and safety of vorinostat when used to treat SCD.

Read the detailed description

OBJECTIVES:

Primary

  • To determine the efficacy of vorinostat (suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid, SAHA), when administered orally, in a pulsed fashion, once-a-day for 3 consecutive days every week, in inducing a 4% absolute increase or a 100% increase in fetal hemoglobin percent levels (HbF%) in subjects with severe sickle cell disease who have failed prior therapy.
  • To characterize the safety and tolerability.

Secondary

  • To assess the effect of vorinostat on F-cell levels.
  • To determine the changes in y-globin, B-globin and E-globin RNA levels during treatment with vorinostat.
  • To describe the dose-response characteristics of vorinostat in inducing fetal hemoglobin in sickle cell disease.

Exploratory

  • To determine the extent and duration of global histone acetylation with intermittent vorinostat dosing.
  • To correlate the status of polymorphisms near the BCL11A, c-myb, and HBB gene loci, all of which are associated with levels of fetal hemoglobin, to assess for an association of polymorphism status with therapeutic response to vorinostat.
  • To evaluate red blood cell rheology before and after treatment with vorinostat.

STATISTICAL DESIGN:

This was a single stage design to evaluate induction of HbF on treatment with target enrollment of 15 patients. A 25% success rate was considered evidence of activity in this patient population while 5% success rate deemed ineffective. If at least 3 patients achieved success, the treatment would be considered promising. With 15 eligible patients, the probability of observing this was 0.76 assuming a true rate of 25% and 0.04 assuming a true rate of 5%.

Being tested
vorinostat
Keywords
fetal hemoglobin, vorinostat, HDAC inhibitor, SAHA
Medical subject headings
Anemia, Sickle Cell, beta-Thalassemia

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

Study groups in NCT01000155
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
VorinostatExperimentalPatients received vorinostat in a pulsed fashion, once a day for 3 consecutive days every week to a maximum dose of 400 mg per dose (1200 mg/wk), for 12 to 16 weeks at the maximum dose. The first 3 patients were enrolled in an intrapatient dose escalation schedule of 100 mg/d, then 200 mg/d, each for 3 consecutive days a week for 4 weeks, and then 400 mg/d, 3 consecutive days per week for 16 weeks. The last 2 patients were enrolled to receive 400 mg/d, 3 consecutive days per week for 12 weeks, without an initial dose escalation.
Receives: Drug: vorinostat

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Percent Fetal Hemoglobin (HbF%) Induction Success Rate

    Success will be defined by comparing the maximum HbF% on study drug to the HbF% at baseline. An absolute increase in HbF% of 4% of more, or an increase to 100% or more of baseline in patients with HbF under 4% at baseline will be considered a success. HbF% induction success rate is calculated as the count of successes divided by the count of patients in the analysis population.

    Measured: HbF% was measured at baseline and weekly on treatment. Median duration of treatment was 3 months.

Secondary outcomes (2)
  1. F-Cell Percentage Level

    F-cell percentage levels were estimated based on established methods.

    Measured: Measured at baseline and end of treatment, up to 16 weeks.

  2. γ-globin to β-globin Ratio

    Levels of peripheral blood γ-globin to β-globin messenger RNA were estimated based on established methods. The ratio of γ-globin to β-globin was then calculated.

    Measured: Measured at baseline and end of treatment, up to 16 weeks.

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted22 Oct 2009 (estimated)
  2. Study startOct 2009
  3. Primary completionOct 2014
  4. Study completionOct 2014

Why it stopped: The study terminated early due to slow accrual.

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
5 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT01000155
Sponsor's protocol ID
09-237
Status last verified
Jun 2017
First submitted
20 Oct 2009
Last updated
21 Jul 2017
Data monitoring committee
Yes

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 2 study testing vorinostat in people with Sickle Cell Disease and Sickle Cell Anemia, run by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute at 3 sites in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 9 inclusion and 14 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: stopped early, as of the sponsor's last update on 21 Jul 2017. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 3 sites in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

What does this phase mean?

Phase 2 studies give the treatment to a larger group to see whether it has the intended effect and to keep checking safety.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

Yes. Results are posted in the registry (first posted 8 Oct 2015). A summary is in the For doctors view, and the full results are on ClinicalTrials.gov.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Percent Fetal Hemoglobin (HbF%) Induction Success Rate (time frame: HbF% was measured at baseline and weekly on treatment. Median duration of treatment was 3 months.). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 21 Jul 2017.

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