Defactinib Combined With Pembrolizumab and Gemcitabine in Patients With Advanced Cancer
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2021-01-11
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
In pancreatic cancer, targeting the tumor microenvironment has become a promising therapeutic
strategy. Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) pathway activation is essential for promoting a
fibrotic and inflammatory tumor microenvironment, and FAK inhibitors have demonstrated
reasonable anti-tumor activity in the preclinical setting. Furthermore, a maximal synergetic
effect was achieved when a FAK inhibitor was given in combination with a PD-1 antagonist and
chemotherapy in multiple pancreas tumor animal models. This supports the concept of using FAK
inhibitors to reduce stromal fibrosis during checkpoint immunotherapeutic treatment.
Therefore, these robust preclinical findings will be tested in the proposed phase I trial.
Phase:
Phase 1
Details
Lead Sponsor:
Washington University School of Medicine
Collaborators:
Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. The Foundation for Barnes-Jewish Hospital Verastem, Inc.