Safety Study of the Bispecific T-cell Engager Blinatumomab (MT103) in Patients With Relapsed NHL

Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma (NHL) represents the 6th most common cancer. Globally, around 165,000 new cases are diagnosed each year, with approximately 90,000 deaths per year. The vast majority of NHLs are B-cell derived (90%) and express common B-cell antigens such as CD19, CD20 and CD22. NHL can be divided into indolent (low-grade) and aggressive (high-grade) lymphomas. Still almost all patients with advanced stage indolent disease will die from their disease. Therefore, a high medical need exists to develop novel agents that further improve the survival of NHL patients. Blinatumomab (MT103) is a bispecific antibody derivative, anti-CD19 x anti-CD3, designed to link B-cells and T-cells resulting in T-cell activation and a cytotoxic T-cell response against CD19+ cells. Data of prior phase I studies show evidence of biological activity in humans. In vitro and ex-vivo data suggest that a longterm presence of the drug in target tissues may provide antitumour activity. The study investigates the safety and tolerability of different doses of Blinatumomab administration in a continuous infusion regimen. Maximum tolerated dose (MTD) will be defined in a classical 3+3 dose escalation regimen.