Amgen Research (Munich) GmbH

We assessed BM T cells of AML patients at initial diagnosis (ID), complete remission (CR), and first relapse (RL).We next measured the expression of inhibitory receptors within the CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ T cell compartments during AML progression and compared them to HD T cells.Taken together, our study provides insights into the dysfunctional state of BM T cells and the mol. determinants of their function during AML progression.It is of high importance that clin. trials evaluating these therapies incorporate thorough biomarker studies, including BM biopsies to obtain a T-cell signature associated with response to treatment.

The tumor-associated antigen STEAP1 is a potential therapeutic target that is expressed in most prostate tumors and at increased levels in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). We developed a STEAP1-targeted XmAb 2+1 T-cell engager (TCE) molecule, AMG 509 (also designated xaluritamig), that is designed to redirect T cells to kill prostate cancer cells that express STEAP1. AMG 509 mediates potent T cell–dependent cytotoxicity of prostate cancer cell lines in vitro and promotes tumor regression in xenograft and syngeneic mouse models of prostate cancer in vivo. The avidity-driven activity of AMG 509 enables selectivity for tumor cells with high STEAP1 expression compared with normal cells. AMG 509 is the first STEAP1 TCE to advance to clinical testing, and we report a case study of a patient with mCRPC who achieved an objective response on AMG 509 treatment.

Immunotherapy in prostate cancer has met with limited success due to the immunosuppressive microenvironment and lack of tumor-specific targets. AMG 509 provides a targeted immunotherapy approach to engage a patient's T cells to kill STEAP1-expressing tumor cells and represents a new treatment option for mCRPC and potentially more broadly for prostate cancer.See related commentary by Hage Chehade et al., p. 20.See related article by Kelly et al., p. 76.This article is featured in Selected Articles from This Issue, p. 5

Xaluritamig (AMG 509) is a six-transmembrane epithelial antigen of the prostate 1 (STEAP1)–targeted T-cell engager designed to facilitate lysis of STEAP1-expressing cancer cells, such as those in advanced prostate cancer. This first-in-human study reports monotherapy dose exploration for patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), primarily taxane pretreated. Ninety-seven patients received ≥1 intravenous dose ranging from 0.001 to 2.0 mg weekly or every 2 weeks. MTD was identified as 1.5 mg i.v. weekly via a 3-step dose. The most common treatment-related adverse events were cytokine release syndrome (CRS; 72%), fatigue (45%), and myalgia (34%). CRS occurred primarily during cycle 1 and improved with premedication and step dosing. Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and RECIST responses across cohorts were encouraging [49% PSA50; 24% objective response rate (ORR)], with greater frequency at target doses ≥0.75 mg (59% PSA50; 41% ORR). Xaluritamig is a novel immunotherapy for prostate cancer that has shown encouraging results supporting further development.

Xaluritamig demonstrated encouraging responses (PSA and RECIST) compared with historical established treatments for patients with late-line mCRPC. This study provides proof of concept for T-cell engagers as a potential treatment for prostate cancer, validates STEAP1 as a target, and supports further clinical investigation of xaluritamig in prostate cancer.See related commentary by Hage Chehade et al., p. 20.See related article by Nolan-Stevaux et al., p. 90.This article is featured in Selected Articles from This Issue, p. 5