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Acute Myeloid LeukemiaPhase 1NCT04024761

A Phase 1 Trial of CIML NK Cell Infusion for Myeloid Disease Relapse After Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation

A Phase 1 study testing CIML NK, Fludarabine and Cyclophosphamide in people with Acute Myeloid Leukemia and Myelodysplastic Syndromes, run by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute at 2 sites in United States.

Recruiting

Looking for participants now. Contact the study team or a site below to ask about taking part.

Sites and contacts
Official record
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Trial summary

This research study is studying cytokine induced memory-like natural killer (CIML NK) cells combined with IL-2 in adult patients (18 years of age or older) with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS) and Myeloproliferative Neoplasms (MPN) who relapse after haploidentical hematopoietic cell… Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 12 years and older
What is being tested?
CIML NK, Fludarabine and Cyclophosphamide
Type of treatment
Injection or infusion
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
50 participants
Where
2 sitesUnited States
Study dates
31 Aug 2019to 1 Dec 2026
Phase
Phase 1
Are there results?
Not yet: the study is under way

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 12 years and older
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Child, Adult, Older adult
  1. Inclusion Criteria: 1.1 Relapse or post-transplant persistence of AML, MDS (including JMML) or MPN (CMML, myelofibrosis or MDS/MPN). Disease relapse or persistence will be defined as any measurable disease by morphology, flow-cytometry, validated tests for minimal residual disease or disease-defining mutations in the bone marrow, or non-immune privileged extramedullary sites. 1.2 Persistence of disease within 4 weeks before planned NK cell infusion and at least 2 weeks after completion of immune suppression taper as long as it is > 2 months after stem cell transplantation for both adult and pediatric patients. If 2 weeks after completion of the immune suppression taper is still within 2 months of the most recent stem cell transplant, then chemotherapy with Fludarabine/Cyclophosphamide would need to start no earlier than at least 2 months after the transplant. For adults, disease persistence after a second transplant is allowed as long as the most recent transplant was a haploidentical or HLA matched stem cell transplant. In the pediatric cohort, disease persistence or recurrence after a second transplant is allowed as long as the most recent transplant was a haploidentical or matched related donor SCT. 1.3 Available original donor (same donor as used for the most recent haploidentical or HLA matched stem cell transplant for adults, or for the most recent matched related donor or related haploidentical donor for pediatrics) that is willing and eligible for non-mobilized collection. 1.4 Age ≥12 years. 1.5 ECOG performance status ≤2. For For patients in the pediatric cohort, this corresponds to a Lansky (patients <16 years) or Karnofsky (≥16years) performance status of ≥50. 1.6 T cell chimerism ≥20% donor-derived within the 4 weeks prior to cell infusion. 1.7 Patient with ≤80% bone marrow involvement within 4 weeks prior to cell infusion. Medications like hydroxyurea, decitabine or cytarabine are allowed to control rising blasts between study enrollment and cell infusion. 1.8 No systemic corticosteroid therapy for GVHD (≤ 5mg of prednisone or equivalent dose of systemic steroids for non-GVHD, non-autoimmune indications are allowed) for at least 4 weeks prior to cell infusion. Patients on systemic GVHD prophylaxis medications such as tacrolimus or sirolimus need to be off these medications for at least 4 weeks prior to cell infusion. 1.9 No other systemic medications/treatments (e.g. ECP) for GVHD for at least 4 weeks prior to cell infusion. 1.10 Ability of the patient or legal guardian to understand and the willingness to sign a written informed consent document. 1.11 Adequate organ function within 2 weeks of NK cell infusion as defined below:
  • Total bilirubin: ≤1.5 x institutional upper limit of normal (ULN) (except Gilbert's or disease-related hemolysis, then <3 x ULN)
  • AST(SGOT)/ALT(SGPT): ≤3 x institutional ULN
  • Serum creatinine ≤2.0mg/dL
  • O2 saturation: ≥90% on room air
  • LVEF >40%. If there is no clinical evidence of a change in cardiovascular function from the time of pre-transplantation ECHO, then there is no need to repeat it. Otherwise, an ECHO will need to be repeated within 2 weeks of NK cell infusion. 1.12 Negative pregnancy test for women of childbearing potential only. 1.13 The effects of CIML NK cells and IL-2 on the developing human fetus are unknown. For this reason, women of child-bearing potential and men must agree to use adequate contraception (hormonal or barrier method of birth control; abstinence) prior to study entry and for the duration of study participation. Should a woman become pregnant or suspect she is pregnant while she or her partner is participating in this study, she should inform her treating physician immediately. Men treated or enrolled on this protocol must also agree to use adequate contraception prior to the study, for the duration of study participation, and 4 months after the last IL-2 dose administration.
  1. Exclusion Criteria:

2.1 Extramedullary relapse involving immuno-privileged sites (e.g. CNS, testes, eyes). Other sites of extramedullary relapse (e.g. leukemia cutis, granulocytic sarcoma) are acceptable.

2.2 Participants who have had investigational agents within 4 weeks prior to cell infusion (6 weeks for nitrosoureas or mitomycin C), or immunotherapy within 8 weeks prior, or those who have not recovered from adverse events due to agents administered more than 4 weeks prior or standard chemotherapy administered more than 14 days ago. Use of hydroxyurea, hypomethylating agents, low-dose cytarabine or venetoclax to control counts within 4 weeks prior to cell infusion is permitted with study PI approval but would need to be stopped 1 day prior to administration of Fludarabine and Cyclophosphamide preceding the NK cell infusion (provided that there are no ongoing AEs attributed to these agents that would preclude start of lymphodepletion in the view of the investigator). Patients on standard of care FLT-3, IDH1, and IDH2 inhibitors can stay on this treatment. Therapy with BCR-ABL inhibitors or bcl-2 inhibitors must be stopped 2 weeks before NK cell infusion and may be resumed after the end of the DLT period.

2.3 Prior history of Donor Lymphocyte Infusion (DLI) within 8 weeks of CIML NK infusion. DLI that was given before this time period and that did not result in any GVHD requiring systemic treatment is not an exclusion criterion.

2.4 Prior history of severe (grade 3 or 4) acute GVHD, or ongoing active GVHD requiring systemic treatment.

2.5 Solid organ transplant recipient. Prior allogeneic HLA matched or mismatched stem cell transplant is allowed in the pediatric cohort. Prior HLA matched related donor or HLA matched unrelated donor stem cell transplant is allowed in the adult cohort.

2.6 History of allergic reactions attributed to compounds of similar chemical or biologic composition to IL-2 or other agents used in study.

2.7 Autoimmune disease: Patients with a history of inflammatory bowel disease, including ulcerative colitis and Crohn's Disease, are excluded from this study, as are patients with a history of symptomatic disease (e.g., rheumatoid arthritis, systemic progressive sclerosis [scleroderma], systemic lupus erythematosus, autoimmune vasculitis [e.g., Wegener's Granulomatosis]) and motor neuropathy considered of autoimmune origin (e.g. Guillain-Barre Syndrome and Myasthenia Gravis). Patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis are eligible to go on study.

2.8 Uncontrolled intercurrent illness including, but not limited to, ongoing or active infection, symptomatic congestive heart failure, unstable angina pectoris, cardiac arrhythmia, or psychiatric illness/social situations that would limit compliance with study requirements.

2.9 Patients who develop a critical illness prior to NK cell infusion that would contraindicate the administration of Fludarabine and Cyclophosphamide conditioning. Patients who recover from such illness may still be eligible, but this must be reviewed with the study PI. A repeat bone marrow examination may be required depending on the timing of recovery. Patients who become critically ill on the planned day of NK cell infusion are excluded if the NK cell infusion cannot be given within 48 hours of the planned day 0.

2.10 Pregnant women are excluded from this study because of the unknown teratogenic risk of CIML NK cells and IL-2 and with the potential for teratogenic or abortifacient effects by Flu/Cy chemotherapy regimen. Because there is an unknown but potential risk for adverse events in nursing infants secondary to treatment of the mother with CIML NK cells and IL-2, breastfeeding should be discontinued if the mother is treated on this study.

2.11 HIV-positive participants are ineligible because of the potential for pharmacokinetic interactions with anti-retroviral agents used in this study. In addition, these participants are at increased risk of lethal infections when treated with marrow-suppressive therapy.

2.12 Individuals with active uncontrolled hepatitis B or C, HIV, or HTLV-1 are ineligible as they are at high risk of lethal treatment-related hepatotoxicity after HSCT.

2.13 Individuals with a history of a different malignancy are ineligible except for the following circumstances: 1. History of other malignancy and have had complete remission of disease for at least 2 years; 2. Diagnosed and treated within the past 2 years for: nonmetastatic melanoma, surgically resected (not needing systemic chemotherapy) squamous cell carcinoma of skin and nonmetastatic prostate cancer not needing systemic chemotherapy.

Trial locations and contacts

2 sites in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.

Roman M. Shapiro, MD contact

617-632-3470

roman_shapiro@dfci.harvard.edu

United States2 sites, 2 recruiting
  • Boston Children's Hospital

    Boston, Massachusetts, 02115

    Susanne Baumeister, MD, (617) 632-4687, susanne_baumeister@dfci.harvard.edu

    Susanne Baumeister, MD

    Recruiting
  • Dana Farber Cancer Institute

    Boston, Massachusetts, 02115

    Roman Shapiro, MD, 617) 632-3470, roman_shapiro@dfci.harvard.edu

    Roman Shapiro, MD

    Recruiting

Other trials in United States

About this study

This research study is studying cytokine induced memory-like natural killer (CIML NK) cells combined with IL-2 in adult patients (18 years of age or older) with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS) and Myeloproliferative Neoplasms (MPN) who relapse after haploidentical hematopoietic cell transplantation (haplo-HCT) or HLA matched stem cells. This study will also study CIML NK cell infusion combined with IL-2 in pediatric patients (12 years of age or older) with AML, MDS, JMML who relapse after stem cell transplantation using HLA-matched related donor or related donor haploidentical stem cells.

Read the detailed description

This research study is a Phase I clinical trial, which tests the safety of an investigational intervention and also tries to define the appropriate dose of the investigational intervention to use for further studies. "Investigational" means that the intervention is being studied.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved CIML NK Cell Infusion as a treatment for relapsed disease.

Being tested
CIML NK, Fludarabine, Cyclophosphamide
Keywords
Leukemia
Medical subject headings
Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute, Myelodysplastic Syndromes, Myeloproliferative Disorders, Leukemia, Myelomonocytic, Juvenile, Leukemia

What participants receive

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

  • CIML NKBiological

    CIML NK cells have enhanced ability to recognize and kill leukemia targets

  • FludarabineDrug

    Fludarabine is a chemotherapy agent

  • CyclophosphamideDrug

    Cyclophosphamide (CP), also known as cytophosphane among other names, is a chemotherapy agent

Study groups in NCT04024761
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
CIML NKExperimental* CIML NK cells will be administered intravenously on day 0. * Fludarabine will be administered as IV infusion once daily for 3 doses beginning on day -5. * Cyclophosphamide will be administered as IV infusion on days -5 and -4.
Receives: Biological: CIML NK; Drug: Fludarabine; Drug: Cyclophosphamide

What is being measured

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

  1. Safety

    To determine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) of CIML NK cell infusion followed by low-dose IL-2

    Measured: 6 Weeks

Secondary outcomes (4)
  1. ORR (Objective Response Rate)

    To determine complete remission (CR/CRi) rate after CIML NK cell infusion plus IL-2

    Measured: 28 days

  2. LFS and OS

    To determine the rate of leukemia-free survival (LFS) and overall survival (OS) at day 100 and at 1 year post cell CIML NK cell infusion plus IL-2

    Measured: 100 Days, 1 Year

  3. Acute GVHD (Incidence, Severity)

    To determine the incidence and severity of acute GVHD rates after CIML NK cell infusion plus IL-2

    Measured: 100 Days, 6 Months

  4. Chronic GVHD (Incidence, Severity)

    To determine the incidence and severity of chronic GVHD rates after CIML NK cell infusion plus IL-2

    Measured: 1 Year

Timeline

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

  1. First posted18 Jul 2019
  2. Study start31 Aug 2019
  3. Primary completion1 Dec 2026 (estimated)
  4. Study completion1 Dec 2026 (estimated)

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 1
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
50 participants (estimated)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT04024761
Sponsor's protocol ID
19-265
Status last verified
Jun 2026
First submitted
17 Jul 2019
Last updated
17 Jun 2026
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
Yes
FDA-regulated device
No
Individual data sharing
Yes: The Dana-Farber / Harvard Cancer Center encourages and supports the responsible and ethical sharing of data from clinical trials. De-identified participant data from the final research dataset used in the published manuscript may only be shared under the terms of a Data Use Agreement. Requests may be directed to: \[contact information for Sponsor Investigator or designee\]. The protocol and statistical analysis plan will be made available on Clinicaltrials.gov only as required by federal regulation or as a condition of awards and agreements supporting the research

Publications

  • Shapiro RM, Birch GC, Hu G, Vergara Cadavid J, Nikiforow S, Baginska J, Ali AK, Tarannum M, Sheffer M, Abdulhamid YZ, Rambaldi B, Arihara Y, Reynolds C, Halpern MS, Rodig SJ, Cullen N, Wolff JO, Pfaff KL, Lane AA, Lindsley RC, Cutler CS, Antin JH, Ho VT, Koreth J, Gooptu M, Kim HT, Malmberg KJ, Wu CJ, Chen J, Soiffer RJ, Ritz J, Romee R. Expansion, persistence, and efficacy of donor memory-like NK cells infused for posttransplant relapse. J Clin Invest. 2022 Jun 1;132(11):e154334. doi: 10.1172/JCI154334.

    PubMed 35349491

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 1 study testing CIML NK, Fludarabine and Cyclophosphamide in people with Acute Myeloid Leukemia and Myelodysplastic Syndromes, run by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute at 2 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?

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: looking for participants now, as of the sponsor's last update on 17 Jun 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 2 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 1 studies test a treatment in a small group of people for the first time or in a new way, mainly to check safety and find the right dose.

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

Are results available for this study?

This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.

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

Contact Roman M. Shapiro, MD (617-632-3470, roman_shapiro@dfci.harvard.edu), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Safety (time frame: 6 Weeks). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT04024761, which also lists 1 linked publication.

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 17 Jun 2026.

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