NCT05980598

TransCon (TC) TLR7/8 Agonist, TC IL-2 β/γ, Pembrolizumab Prior to Surgery for Advanced Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

BelieveIT-201: Phase 2, Randomized Open-labeled Trial of TransCon (TC) TLR7/8 Agonist in Combination With Pembrolizumab or With TC IL-2 β/γ, or Pembrolizumab Alone as Neoadjuvant Therapy for Stage III-IVA Resectable Locoregionally Advanced Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

• Status: Terminated
• Phase: Phase 2
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 27 (actual)
• Sponsor: Ascendis Pharma A/S · Industry
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

The purpose of this trial is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of TransCon TLR7/8 Agonist, TransCon IL-2 β/γ, and pembrolizumab given prior to curative intent surgery in treatment of participants with newly diagnosed Stage III/IVA resectable locoregionally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (LA-HNSCC). After surgery, participants will receive local standard-of-care treatment and will be followed for safety, efficacy, and survival for up to 2 years. This trial contains a safety run-in to evaluate the safety and tolerability of the two treatment arms: Arm A (TransCon TLR7/8 Agonist plus pembrolizumab) and Arm B (TransCon TLR7/8 Agonist plus TransCon IL-2 β/γ). The safety run-in will be followed by the randomized Phase 2, open-label part of the trial comparing the safety, efficacy and survival of treatment Arm A or Arm B compared to treatment Arm C (pembrolizumab monotherapy).

Detailed description

This is a randomized, Phase 2, open-label, multicenter trial of TransCon TLR7/8 Agonist in combination with pembrolizumab, TransCon TLR7/8 Agonist in combination with TransCon IL-2 β/γ, or pembrolizumab monotherapy as neoadjuvant therapy in participants with Stage III-IVA resectable LA-HNSCC. This trial starts with a safety run-in of 12 participants, 6 participants each in Arms A (TransCon TLR7/8 Agonist plus pembrolizumab) and B (TransCon TLR7/8 Agonist plus TransCon IL-2 β/γ) randomized 1:1. After completing the safety run-in, 80 participants will be randomized in a 2:2:1 ratio in 3 treatment Arms A, B or C (pembrolizumab monotherapy). Once randomized, participants should begin treatment within 5 calendar days. Participants enrolled after the safety run-in, into the 2:2:1 randomization part of the trial, will be stratified as follows: oropharyngeal HPV p16 positive versus oropharyngeal HPV p16 negative or larynx/hypopharyngeal/oral cavity regardless of HPV p16 status. All participants should receive study drug(s) every 21 days (Q21D) for 2 cycles followed by curative-intent surgery. After surgery, participants may receive standard-of-care treatment in the adjuvant setting, as per investigator's decision and local guidelines.

Conditions

• Head and Neck Neoplasms

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DRUG	TransCon TLR7/8 Agonist	TLR7/8 agonist prodrug
DRUG	Pembrolizumab	A type of immunotherapy that works by blocking the PD-1 pathway to help prevent cancer cells from hiding
DRUG	TransCon IL-2 β/γ	Sustained systemic release of IL-2 β/γ with selective receptor binding that may stimulate the immune system to kill cancer cells

Timeline

• Start date: 2023-09-29
• Primary completion: 2025-03-28
• Completion: 2025-03-28
• First posted: 2023-08-08
• Last updated: 2025-08-01

Locations

65 sites across 8 countries: United States, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Spain, Taiwan

Regulatory

• FDA-regulated drug study