Study to Assess the Efficacy and Safety of Nivolumab in Combination With Paclitaxel in Subjects With Head and Neck Cancer Unable for Cisplatin-based Chemotherapy (NIVOTAX)

Phase II Multicenter Randomized Trial to Assess the Efficacy and Safety of First Line Nivolumab in Combination With Paclitaxel in Subjects With R/M HNSCC Unable for Cisplatin-based Chemotherapy (NIVOTAX)

Status

Completed

Phases

Phase 2

Study type

Interventional

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT04282109

Acronym

NIVOTAX

Enrollment

141

Registered

2020-02-24

Start date

2020-06-03

Completion date

2024-03-21

Last updated

2025-06-26

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Recurrent/Metastatic Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Keywords

Head and neck cancer, Squamous cell carcinoma, Nivolumab

Brief summary

Chemotherapy for recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma is palliative and usually platinum based, and the patients often present with poor physical condition. Consequently, many of them are not able to withstand a platinum-based chemotherapy. The addition of taxanes to the armamentarium of drugs improve the outcome in this group of patients. An alternative and better tolerated regimen for these patients is paclitaxel in combination with cetuximab, included the in guidelines of the Spanish Society of Medical Oncology. Recently, new treatments such as immune-checkpoint inhibitors have shown promising activity and good tolerability in patients with recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma and has been included in the recently published guidelines from the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer. Nivolumab (anti-PD1) has been approved for patients progressing on or after platinum-based therapy, as it clearly impacts on overall survival. This randomized phase II study will evaluate the efficacy of nivolumab plus paclitaxel for first-line treatment of recurrent or metastatic HNSCC in the platinum ineligible and platinum refractory settings. Control arm will be paclitaxel in combination with cetuximab, treatment included in the guidelines of the Spanish Society of Medical Oncology.

Interventions

DRUGNivolumab + Paclitaxel

Combination treatment: Nivolumab 240 mg will be administered via IV infusion every 2 weeks. Paclitaxel 80mg/m2 will be administered via IV infusion weekly. After 12 weeks from the start of the combined treatment paclitaxel will be stopped. Maintenance treatment with nivolumab 480 mg every 4 weeks will start two weeks after the last administration of nivolumab 240 mg. Once nivolumab is administered at 480 mg, paclitaxel can no longer be administered. Nivolumab will be continued alone until disease progression, unacceptable toxicity or withdrawal of consent up to a maximum of 24 months.

DRUGCetuximab + Paclitaxel

Combination treatment: Cetuximab 250 mg/m2 (first dose of 400 mg/m2) administered via IV infusion weekly plus weekly paclitaxel (80 mg/m2) administered via IV infusion. After 12 weeks from the start of the combined treatment paclitaxel will be stopped and weekly cetuximab will be continued alone until disease progression, unacceptable toxicity or withdrawal of consent up to a maximum of 24 months.

Study design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

PARALLEL

Primary purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

ALL

Age

18 Years to No maximum

Healthy volunteers

Inclusion criteria

1. Voluntary written consent must be given before performance of any study-related procedure not part of standard medical care. 2. Histologically confirmed HNSCC (oral cavity, oropharynx, hypopharynx, larynx) not amenable to therapy with curative intent (surgery or radiation therapy with or without chemotherapy). 3. Patients not previously treated for recurrent/metastatic disease. 4. Radiographically measurable disease as defined by RECIST version 1.1. Previously irradiated lesions can only be considered as measurable disease if disease progression according to RECIST version 1.1. 5. Patients unable for cisplatin-based chemotherapy, defined unable by: 1. Karnofsky 70% or 2. Karnofsky 80-100% and amenable to chemotherapy, but: i. Impaired renal function, creatinine clearance \>30 mL/min and \<80 mL/min GFR could be assessed by direct measurement (EDTA or creatinine clearance) if available or by calculation from serum or plasma creatinine (see annex 5), or ii. grade ≥2 hearing loss, according to the NCI CTCAE v 5.0, or iii. Class III heart failure according to the New York Heart Association (annex 9), or iv. History of allergic reactions to cisplatin, carboplatin, or other platinum-containing compounds or v. Prior dose of cisplatin ≥225 mg/m² for locally advanced disease (a patient who received prior RT + 3 cycles of cisplatin 100 mg/m2 or 3 cycles induction TPF (with cisplatin ≥75/m2) for locally advanced primary HN cancer can be included), or vi. Disease progression or relapse during or within 6 months of receiving platinum-based therapy administered as neoadjuvant, adjuvant therapy or as concomitant chemotherapy with radiotherapy and have received at least 200 mg/m2 of cisplatin. 6. Male or female patients aged ≥18 years. Patients aged ≥70 years old can only be included with a G8 (Geriatric 8) health status screening score ≥ 14. 7. Clinical laboratory values as specified below within 28 days before the first dose of study drug: 1. Total bilirubin must be ≤2 × the upper limit of normal (ULN). 2. Magnesium ≥ lower limit of normal. 3. Calcium ≥ lower limit of normal. 4. ALT and AST must be ≤3 × ULN unless liver metastases are present, in which case they must be ≤5x ULN. 5. Hemoglobin must be ≥9 g/dL, absolute neutrophil count (ANC) must be ≥1.500/µL, WBC must be ≥2.000/µL and platelet count must be ≥100.000/µL. 8. Subjects who have received radiation as primary therapy are eligible if radiation therapy treatment was completed \> 4 weeks prior to inclusion. 9. Documentation of PD-L1 status by IHC performed by the central lab at randomization. A pre-treatment tumor tissue sample should be sent. A newly obtained biopsy (within 6 months prior to start of study treatment) is preferred but an archival sample is acceptable, if several tumor samples are available, testing should be performed on the most recently obtained tumor sample. 10. Documentation of HPV p16 status (OPC) is required for HNSCC tumor of the oropharynx. For subjects with oropharyngeal cancer, sites are defined in annex 8. HPV status of tumor tissue has to be locally determined at screening by any of the following methods: p16 IHC, in situ hybridization, or polymerase chain reaction based assay. If HPV status by p16 IHC is positive result confirmation by PCR is mandatory.

Exclusion criteria

1. Male or female patients aged \<18 years. Patients aged ≥ 70 years old should not be included with a G8 (Geriatric 8) health status screening score \< 14. 2. Karnofsky \<70%. 3. Patients that meets more than one of the following criteria: 1. Karnofsky 70%, 2. Impaired renal function, creatinine clearance \>30 mL/min and \<80 mL/min GFR could be assessed by direct measurement (EDTA or creatinine clearance) if available or by calculation from serum or plasma creatinine (see annex 5), 3. Class III heart failure according to the New York Heart Association (annex 9). 4. Any unresolved toxicity NCI CTCAE Grade ≥2 from previous anticancer therapy except for alopecia, vitiligo, hear loss and the laboratory values defined in the inclusion criteria. 5. Histologically confirmed recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of unknown primary, of the nasopharynx or non-squamous histologies (eg, mucosal melanoma). 6. Active brain metastases or leptomeningeal metastases. 7. Carcinomatous meningitis. 8. Active, known, or suspected autoimmune disease. Subjects with vitiligo, type I diabetes mellitus, residual hypothyroidism due to autoimmune thyroiditis only requiring hormone replacement, or unexpected conditions of recurrence in the absence of an external trigger are allowed to be included. 9. Diagnosis of immunodeficiency or any condition requiring systemic treatment with either corticosteroids (\>10 mg daily prednisone equivalents) or other immunosuppressive medications within 14 days of treatment. 10. History of pneumonitis requiring treatment with steroids; history of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, drug-induced pneumonitis, organizing pneumonia, or evidence of active pneumonitis on screening chest CT scan; history of radiation pneumonitis in the radiation field (fibrosis) is permitted. 11. Patients with a history of interstitial lung disease cannot be included if they have symptomatic ILD (Grade 3-4) and/or poor lung function. 12. Prior therapy with experimental antitumor vaccines; any T-cell co-stimulation agents or inhibitors of checkpoint pathways, such as anti-PD-1, anti-PD-L1, anti-PD-L2, anti-CD137, or anti-CTLA-4 antibody; or other agents specifically targeting T cells are prohibited. 13. Any serious medical or psychiatric illness, including drug or alcohol abuse, that could, in the investigator's opinion, potentially interfere with the completion of treatment according to this protocol. 14. Life-threatening illness unrelated to cancer. 15. Female patients who are lactating and breast-feeding or a positive serum pregnancy test during the screening period. 16. Systemic anticancer treatment or radiotherapy less than 4 weeks or 5 half-lives, whichever is longer, before the first dose of study treatment or not recovered from acute toxic effects from prior chemotherapy and radiotherapy. 17. Prior treatment with investigational agents ≤21 days (≤4 weeks for monoclonal antibodies with evidence of PD) or ≤5 their half-lives (whichever is shorter) before the first dose of study treatment. A minimum of 10 days should elapse from prior therapy to initiating protocol therapy. 18. Major surgery within 14 days before the first dose of study drug and not recovered fully from any complications from surgery. 19. Systemic infection requiring IV antibiotic therapy or other serious infection within 14 days before the first dose of study drug. 20. Known human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) positive (testing not required), or known acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). 21. Patients with positive test for hepatitis B virus or hepatitis C virus indicating presence of virus, eg, Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) positive, or Hepatitis C antibody (anti-HCV) positive (except if HCV-RNA negative). 22. Active secondary malignancy that requires treatment. Patients with previous malignancies (except non-melanoma skin cancers, and the following in situ cancers: bladder, gastric, colon, endometrial, cervical/dysplasia, melanoma, or breast) are excluded unless a complete remission was achieved at least 2 years prior to study entry and no additional therapy is required during the study period 23. Any clinically significant co-morbidities, such as uncontrolled pulmonary disease, known impaired cardiac function or clinically significant cardiac disease, active central nervous system disease, active infection, or any other condition that could compromise the patient's participation in the study. 24. Patients with history of hypersensitivity reactions to study drugs (nivolumab, cetuximab or paclitaxel) or any of their excipients. 25. Symptomatic peripheral neuropathy of Grade ≥ 2 based on the CTCAE v5.0 26. Pulmonary embolism, deep vein thrombosis, or other significant thromboembolic event ≤ 8 weeks prior to starting the study treatment. 27. History of severe skin disorder that in the opinion of the investigator may interfere with study conduct.

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Two Years Overall Survival (OS)	2 years	OS is defined as the time between the date of randomization and the date of death. For subjects without documentation of death, OS will be censored on the last date the subject was known to be alive.

Secondary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Overall Response Rate (ORR)	Up to 2 years	ORR is defined as the number of subjects with a best overall response (BOR) of a complete response (CR) or partial response (PR) divided by the number of randomized subjects for each treatment group.
Disease Control Rate (DCR)	Up to 2 years	Disease control rate (DCR) is defined as the number of subjects with a best overall response (BOR) of a complete response (CR), partial response (PR) or stable disease (SD) divided by the number of randomized subjects for each treatment group.
Duration of Response (DoR)	Up to 45 months	Duration of Response (DoR) is defined as the time between the date of first confirmed response to the date of the first documented tumor progression (per RECIST 1.1), or death due to any cause, whichever occurs first.
6-months Progression-free Survival Rate	6 months	Probability of progression at 6 months.
Overall Survival in Patients ≥ 70 Years.	Up to 45 months	OS is defined as the time between the date of randomization and the date of death.
Progression Free Survival in Patients ≥ 70 Years.	Up to 45 months	PFS is defined as the time from randomization to the date of first documented disease progression, as assessed by the investigator using RECIST 1.1 criteria, or death due to any cause, whichever occurs first.
Overall Response Rate in Patients ≥ 70 Years.	Up to 2 years	ORR is defined as the number of subjects with a best overall response (BOR) of a complete response (CR) or partial response (PR) divided by the number of randomized subjects for each treatment group.
Overall Survival Based on PDL1 Expression (CPS).	Up to 45 months	OS is defined as the time between the date of randomization and the date of death.
Progression Free Survival Based on PDL1 Expression (CPS).	Up to 45 months	PFS is defined as the time from randomization to the date of first documented disease progression, as assessed by the investigator using RECIST 1.1 criteria, or death due to any cause, whichever occurs first.
Overall Response Rate Based on PDL1 Expression (CPS).	Up to 2 years	ORR is defined as the number of subjects with a best overall response (BOR) of a complete response (CR) or partial response (PR) divided by the number of randomized subjects for each treatment group.
Progression Free Survival (PFS)	Up to 45 months	PFS is defined as the time from randomization to the date of first documented disease progression, as assessed by the investigator using RECIST 1.1 criteria, or death due to any cause, whichever occurs first.
Progression Free Survival Based on Cisplatin Ineligibility.	Up to 45 months	PFS is defined as the time from randomization to the date of first documented disease progression, as assessed by the investigator using RECIST 1.1 criteria, or death due to any cause, whichever occurs first.
Overall Response Rate Based on Cisplatin Ineligibility.	Up to 2 years	ORR is defined as the number of subjects with a best overall response (BOR) of a complete response (CR) or partial response (PR) divided by the number of randomized subjects for each treatment group.
Overall Survival Based on Karnofsky.	Up to 45 months	OS is defined as the time between the date of randomization and the date of death.
Progression Free Survival Based on Karnofsky.	Up to 45 months	PFS is defined as the time from randomization to the date of first documented disease progression, as assessed by the investigator using RECIST 1.1 criteria, or death due to any cause, whichever occurs first.
Overall Response Rate Based on Karnofsky.	Up to 2 years	ORR is defined as the number of subjects with a best overall response (BOR) of a complete response (CR) or partial response (PR) divided by the number of randomized subjects for each treatment group.
Percentage of Patients With AEs	2 years	Percentage of patients with AEs in relation with total number of treated patients
Percentage of Patients With Grade 3 and Grade 4 AEs	2 years	Percentage of patients with Grade 3 and Grade 4 AEs in relation with total number of treated patients
Percentage of Patients With SAEs	Up to 45 months	Percentage of patients with SAEs in relation with total number of treated patients
Percentage of Patients Who Discontinued Due to AEs	Up to 2 years	Percentage of patients who discontinued due to AEs in relation with total number of treated patients
Overall Survival Based on Cisplatin Ineligibility.	Up to 45 months	OS is defined as the time between the date of randomization and the date of death.

Countries

Spain

Participant flow

Participants by arm

Arm	Count
Arm 1 NIVOTAX (nivolumab + paclitaxel, follow by maintenance with nivolumab). Nivolumab + Paclitaxel: Combination treatment: Nivolumab 240 mg will be administered via IV infusion every 2 weeks. Paclitaxel 80mg/m2 will be administered via IV infusion weekly. After 12 weeks from the start of the combined treatment paclitaxel will be stopped. Maintenance treatment with nivolumab 480 mg every 4 weeks will start two weeks after the last administration of nivolumab 240 mg. Once nivolumab is administered at 480 mg, paclitaxel can no longer be administered. Nivolumab will be continued alone until disease progression, unacceptable toxicity or withdrawal of consent up to a maximum of 24 months.	93
Arm 2 ERBITAX (cetuximab + paclitaxel, follow by maintenance with cetuximab). Cetuximab + Paclitaxel: Combination treatment: Cetuximab 250 mg/m2 (first dose of 400 mg/m2) administered via IV infusion weekly plus weekly paclitaxel (80 mg/m2) administered via IV infusion. After 12 weeks from the start of the combined treatment paclitaxel will be stopped and weekly cetuximab will be continued alone until disease progression, unacceptable toxicity or withdrawal of consent up to a maximum of 24 months.	48
Total	141

Baseline characteristics

Characteristic	Arm 1	Arm 2	Total
Age, Categorical <=18 years	0 Participants	0 Participants	0 Participants
Age, Categorical >=65 years	51 Participants	21 Participants	72 Participants
Age, Categorical Between 18 and 65 years	42 Participants	27 Participants	69 Participants
Age, Continuous	66.8 years	64 years	65.9 years
Alcohol consumption Current	14 Participants	12 Participants	26 Participants
Alcohol consumption Former	41 Participants	15 Participants	56 Participants
Alcohol consumption No	31 Participants	20 Participants	51 Participants
Alcohol consumption Unknown	7 Participants	1 Participants	8 Participants
Karnofsky performance status 70%	36 Participants	16 Participants	52 Participants
Karnofsky performance status 80-100%	57 Participants	32 Participants	89 Participants
Metastatic disease at diagnosis No	85 Participants	45 Participants	130 Participants
Metastatic disease at diagnosis Yes	8 Participants	3 Participants	11 Participants
PD-L1 CPS <1	20 Participants	11 Participants	31 Participants
PD-L1 CPS ≥1	73 Participants	37 Participants	110 Participants
Primary tumor location Hypopharynx	11 Participants	11 Participants	22 Participants
Primary tumor location Larynx	17 Participants	5 Participants	22 Participants
Primary tumor location Oral cavity	32 Participants	18 Participants	50 Participants
Primary tumor location Oropharynx	33 Participants	14 Participants	47 Participants
Race/Ethnicity, Customized Arab	0 Participants	1 Participants	1 Participants
Race/Ethnicity, Customized White/Caucasian	93 Participants	47 Participants	140 Participants
Sex: Female, Male Female	20 Participants	12 Participants	32 Participants
Sex: Female, Male Male	73 Participants	36 Participants	109 Participants
Smoking habits: Does the patient currently smoke? No	72 Participants	39 Participants	111 Participants
Smoking habits: Does the patient currently smoke? Yes	21 Participants	9 Participants	30 Participants
Smoking habits: Has the patient ever smoked? No	18 Participants	37 Participants	55 Participants
Smoking habits: Has the patient ever smoked? Yes	75 Participants	11 Participants	86 Participants
Type of disease Loco-regional disease	40 Participants	27 Participants	67 Participants
Type of disease Loco-regional disease + M1	26 Participants	12 Participants	38 Participants
Type of disease Metastatic disease	27 Participants	9 Participants	36 Participants
Unable platinum Cumulative cisplatin dose ≥ 225 mg/m²	15 Participants	8 Participants	23 Participants
Unable platinum Platinum-refractory	25 Participants	13 Participants	38 Participants
Unable platinum Platinum sensitive but unable	53 Participants	27 Participants	80 Participants

Adverse events

Event type	EG000 affected / at risk	EG001 affected / at risk
deaths Total, all-cause mortality	79 / 93	43 / 48
other Total, other adverse events	93 / 93	48 / 48
serious Total, serious adverse events	53 / 93	26 / 48

Outcome results

Primary

Two Years Overall Survival (OS)

OS is defined as the time between the date of randomization and the date of death. For subjects without documentation of death, OS will be censored on the last date the subject was known to be alive.

Time frame: 2 years

Arm	Measure	Value (NUMBER)
Arm 1	Two Years Overall Survival (OS)	24.7 percentage of participants
Arm 2	Two Years Overall Survival (OS)	13.4 percentage of participants

Secondary

6-months Progression-free Survival Rate

Probability of progression at 6 months.

Time frame: 6 months

Arm	Measure	Value (NUMBER)
Arm 1	6-months Progression-free Survival Rate	47.5 percentage of participants
Arm 2	6-months Progression-free Survival Rate	50.0 percentage of participants

Secondary

Disease Control Rate (DCR)

Disease control rate (DCR) is defined as the number of subjects with a best overall response (BOR) of a complete response (CR), partial response (PR) or stable disease (SD) divided by the number of randomized subjects for each treatment group.

Time frame: Up to 2 years

Arm	Measure	Value (NUMBER)
Arm 1	Disease Control Rate (DCR)	74.2 percentage of participants
Arm 2	Disease Control Rate (DCR)	79.2 percentage of participants

Secondary

Duration of Response (DoR)

Duration of Response (DoR) is defined as the time between the date of first confirmed response to the date of the first documented tumor progression (per RECIST 1.1), or death due to any cause, whichever occurs first.

Time frame: Up to 45 months

Arm	Measure	Value (MEDIAN)
Arm 1	Duration of Response (DoR)	9 month
Arm 2	Duration of Response (DoR)	7.6 month

Secondary