The gvhd Hub website uses a third-party service provided by Google that dynamically translates web content. Translations are machine generated, so may not be an exact or complete translation, and the gvhd Hub cannot guarantee the accuracy of translated content. The gvhd and its employees will not be liable for any direct, indirect, or consequential damages (even if foreseeable) resulting from use of the Google Translate feature. For further support with Google Translate, visit Google Translate Help.
The GvHD Hub is an independent medical education platform, sponsored by Medac and supported through grants from Sanofi and Therakos. The funders are allowed no direct influence on our content. The levels of sponsorship listed are reflective of the amount of funding given. View funders.
Now you can support HCPs in making informed decisions for their patients
Your contribution helps us continuously deliver expertly curated content to HCPs worldwide. You will also have the opportunity to make a content suggestion for consideration and receive updates on the impact contributions are making to our content.
Find out moreCreate an account and access these new features:
Bookmark content to read later
Select your specific areas of interest
View gvhd content recommended for you
During the 25th Annual Congress of the European Hematology Association (EHA), the results from the phase III GRAVITAS-301 trial were presented by Robert Zeiser. This study investigated the efficacy of the Janus kinase 1 (JAK1) inhibitor, itacitinib, in combination with corticosteroids for the treatment of acute graft-versus-host disease (aGvHD). Allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) is a curative treatment option for many malignancies. Unfortunately, approximately 30–60% of patients receiving allo-SCT will develop Grade ≥ 2 aGvHD, which deteriorates patient outcomes and manifests as an important cause of mortality1. So far, corticosteroids are the standard of care for the first-line treatment of aGvHD but approximately 60% of patients become corticosteroid-refractory following therapy.1
To explore new therapeutic regimens for the corticosteroid-refractory population and for the treatment of aGvHD altogether, GRAVITAS-301 (NCT03139604) was undertaken. In January 2020, a press release announced that GRAVITAS-301 did not meet its primary endpoint of improving the overall response rate (ORR) at Day 28. Nevertheless, a summary of the full data with some new and interesting post-hoc analyses are presented below. For more information on the press release, please read here.
Table 1. Key patient baseline characteristics in GRAVITAS-3011
Baseline characteristic |
Placebo arm (n = 220) |
Itacitinib arm (n = 219) |
GvHD, graft-versus-host disease; MAGIC, Mount Sinai Acute GvHD International Consortium |
||
Median (range) age, years ≥ 65 years old, % |
58.0 (19–77) 77.3 |
58.0 (18–78) 75.8 |
Male patients, % |
58.6 |
62.6 |
MAGIC Grade, % 0 1 2 3 4 Missing |
0.5 2.3 67.7 23.2 4.5 1.8 |
0.9 0.9 70.3 23.3 2.3 2.3 |
GvHD risk, % Standard High |
74.5 25.5 |
76.7 23.3 |
Race, % White Black/African American Asian Other |
88.2 2.3 1.8 5.9 |
89.5 3.7 1.8 4.6 |
Table 2. Response rates in GRAVITAS-301 at Day 28 of treatment1
Response rates |
Placebo arm (n = 220) |
Itacitinib arm (n = 219) |
OR (95% CI); p value |
CR, complete response; CI, confidence interval; OR, odds ratio; ORR, overall response rate; PR, partial response; VGPR, very good partial response |
|||
ORR, % (95% CI) |
66.4 (59.7–72.6) |
74.0 (67.6–79.7) |
1.45 (0.959–2.204); p = 0.0782 |
CR, % |
40.5 |
53.0 |
— |
VGPR, % |
15.0 |
12.3 |
— |
PR, % |
10.9 |
8.7 |
— |
Table 3. Response outcomes at Day 28 of treatment from GRAVITAS-301 following post-hoc patient stratification by aGvHD risk1
Outcome |
Standard risk patients |
High risk patients |
||||
CR, complete response; CI, confidence interval; OR, odds ratio; ORR, overall response rate Statistical significance is indicated by bold font |
||||||
Placebo arm (n = 163) |
Itacitinib arm (n = 162) |
OR (95% CI); p value |
Placebo arm (n = 57) |
Itacitinib arm (n = 57) |
OR (95% CI); p value |
|
ORR |
69.9% |
78.4% |
1.56 (0.96–2.58); p = 0.082 |
56.1% |
61.4% |
1.24 (0.59–2.62); p = 0.570 |
CR |
42.3% |
56.8% |
1.66 (1.14–2.44); p = 0.008 |
35.1% |
42.1% |
1.66 (1.14–2.44); p = 0.008 |
Table 4. Key secondary outcomes of GRAVITAS-3011
cGvHD, chronic GvHD; CI, confidence interval; DoR, duration of response; FFS, failure-free survival; GvHD, graft-versus-host disease; NRM, non-relapse mortality; OS, overall survival *Median follow-up of 267 days for both arms †Median follow-up was 130 days for the placebo arm and 148 days for itacitinib |
|||
Outcome |
Placebo arm |
Itacitinib arm |
p value |
6-month NRM, % (95% CI) |
18.9 (14–25) |
18.3 (13–24) |
0.7952 |
Malignancy relapse, % Leading to death, % |
10.9 7.3 |
12.4 4.6 |
— |
Median OS, % (95% CI)* |
NE (520 days–NE) |
NE (NE–NE) |
— |
One-year OS, % (95% CI) |
66 (58–72) |
70 (62–76) |
0.7414 |
One-year FFS, % (95% CI)† |
0.27 (0.21–0.34) |
0.30 (0.23–0.37) |
0.3560 |
Signs/symptoms of cGvHD, % |
22.3 |
13.7 |
— |
Median DoR (range), days |
174 (1–633) |
180 (1–587) |
— |
Table 5. Most common (> 5%) Grade ≥ 3 TEAEs observed in GRAVITAS-3011
Grade ≥ 3 TEAEs |
Placebo arm (n = 216) |
Itacitinib arm (n = 215) |
ALT, alanine aminotransferase; CMV, cytomegalovirus; TEAEs, treatment-related adverse events |
||
All, % |
82.4 |
86.0 |
Thrombocytopenia, % |
31.5 |
36.3 |
CMV infections, % |
7.4 |
8.4 |
Anemia, % |
12.0 |
18.6 |
Neutropenia, % |
20.8 |
22.8 |
Hyperglycemia, % |
13.0 |
12.1 |
Diarrhea, % |
10.2 |
6.5 |
Pyrexia, % |
3.2 |
5.1 |
Hypertension, % |
6.5 |
7.9 |
Hypokalemia, % |
5.1 |
4.7 |
Hypertriglyceridemia, % |
4.2 |
9.8 |
ALT increase, % |
1.9 |
7.0 |
Pneumonia, % |
6.9 |
5.1 |
Febrile neutropenia, % |
6.0 |
5.1 |
GRAVITAS-301 did not meet its primary endpoint of ORR improvement at Day 28 with itacitinib addition to corticosteroids vs placebo. Moreover, no statistical differences were found in terms of OS or 6-month NRM rates. Nevertheless, post-hoc patient stratification by aGvHD risk revealed that itacitinib addition to corticosteroids improves complete response rates by Day 28 in both standard and high-risk patients. Moreover, fewer patients in the itacitinib group discontinued treatment due to GvHD progression or the need of additional therapy from inadequate response. Further analyses of the GRAVITAS-301 data and more studies are needed to provide an explanation and validate these results.
References
Please indicate your level of agreement with the following statements:
The content was clear and easy to understand
The content addressed the learning objectives
The content was relevant to my practice
I will change my clinical practice as a result of this content