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CALD Gene Therapy Granted “Breakthrough Therapy Designation”

Reporter: Irina Robu, PhD

Bluebird Bio’s Lenti D has been granted as “breakthrough therapy designation” by FDA for the treatment of patients with cerebral adrenoleukodystrophy (CALD), or Lorenzo’s Oil disease due to optimistic data from current ongoing Phase 2/3 study. This therapy contains using patient’s own immature bone marrow cells and modifying them to include a functional copy of ABCD1 gene which permits the expression of functional ALD, the deficient protein in the patient population.

In addition, the data indicated that the safety profile of Lenti-D remains consistent with myeloablative chemotherapy and no graft versus host disease or treatment related mortality were reported. Initial findings from the ongoing Starbeam Study (ALD-102) assessing the investigational gene therapy in boys with CALD aged 17 years or younger who do not have a matched sibling donor were published in the New England Journal of Medicine  in October 2017 and indicated that the drug hit its main effectiveness endpoint. In the study, 88% (n=15) of patients infused with Lenti-D remained alive and free of major functional disabilities at 2 years post-treatment.

According to Mohammed Asmal, Vice President, Clinical Development at bluebird bio “The mechanism by which this would work is very much like how stem cell therapy transplantation is able to correct the disease. The theory was certainly there, it just relied on someone, essentially, being willing to develop the vector and then try it on patients who did not have any other feasible options for transplant, and who had poor predicted outcomes for transplant survival.”

Currently, the only available therapeutic option for patients with CALD is allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). Whereas clinical benefit has been reported if made early during CALD progression, possible complications of allogeneic HSCT can be fatal. According to David Davison, chief medical officer at Bluebird Bio “FDA’s Breakthrough Therapy designation for Lenti-D brings new hope to the patients and families affected by this devastating disease”.

Source

https://patientworthy.com/2018/05/29/gene-therapy-ald-breakthrough-therapy-fda/