- Chi, Andrew;
- Tarapore, Rohinton;
- Hall, Matthew;
- Shonka, Nicole;
- Gardner, Sharon;
- Umemura, Yoshie;
- Sumrall, Ashley;
- Khatib, Ziad;
- Mueller, Sabine;
- Kline, Cassie;
- Zaky, Wafik;
- Khatua, Soumen;
- Weathers, Shiao-Pei;
- Odia, Yazmin;
- Niazi, Toba;
- Daghistani, Doured;
- Cherrick, Irene;
- Korones, David;
- Karajannis, Matthias;
- Kong, Xiao-Tang;
- Minturn, Jane;
- Waanders, Angela;
- Arillaga-Romany, Isabel;
- Batchelor, Tracy;
- Wen, Patrick;
- Merdinger, Krystal;
- Schalop, Lee;
- Stogniew, Martin;
- Allen, Joshua;
- Oster, Wolfgang;
- Mehta, Minesh
BACKGROUND: H3 K27M-mutant diffuse midline glioma is a fatal malignancy with no proven medical therapies. The entity predominantly occurs in children and young adults. ONC201 is a small molecule selective antagonist of dopamine receptor D2/3 (DRD2/3) with an exceptional safety profile. Following up on a durable response in the first H3 K27M-mutant diffuse midline glioma patient who received ONC201 (NCT02525692), an expanded access program was initiated. METHODS: Patients with H3 K27M-mutant gliomas who received at least prior radiation were eligible. Patients with leptomeningeal spread were excluded. All patients received open-label ONC201 orally once every week. Safety, radiographic assessments, and overall survival were regularly assessed at least every 8 weeks by investigators. As of August 2018, a total of 18 patients with H3 K27M-mutant diffuse midline glioma or DIPG were enrolled to single patient expanded access ONC201 protocols. Among the 18 patients: seven adult (> 20 years old) and seven pediatric (< 20 years old) patients initiated ONC201 with recurrent disease and four pediatric patients initiated ONC201 following radiation, but prior to disease recurrence. FINDINGS: Among the 14 patients with recurrent disease prior to initiation of ONC201, median progression-free survival is 14 weeks and median overall survival is 17 weeks. Three adults among the 14 recurrent patients remain on treatment progression-free with a median follow up of 49.6 (range 41-76.1) weeks. Among the 4 pediatric patients who initiated adjuvant ONC201 following radiation, two DIPG patients remain progression-free for at least 53 and 81 weeks. Radiographic regressions, including a complete response, were reported by investigators in a subset of patients with thalamic and pontine gliomas, along with improvements in disease-associated neurological symptoms. INTERPRETATION: The clinical outcomes and radiographic responses in these patients provide the preliminary, and initial clinical proof-of-concept for targeting H3 K27M-mutant diffuse midline glioma with ONC201, regardless of age or location, providing rationale for robust clinical testing of the agent.