Incidence of cytokine release syndrome (CRS), immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome (ICANS), infections and cardiovascular events across different chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy products in large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL): A nationwide analysis Free

Introduction: CAR T-cell therapy is an important treatment option for patients with relapsed or refractory (R/R) DLBCL. Three CAR T-cell products have received approval: axicabtagene ciloleucel (Yescarta), lisocabtagene maraleucel (Breyanzi), and tisagenlecleucel (Kymriah). Although direct head-to-head studies comparing the three therapies do not exist, clinical trials have revealed notable differences in response rates and remission rates among them. All three products induce CRS and ICANS; however, variations in the incidence and severity of these adverse effects have been observed. We utilized data from the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) to gain further insights into the incidence of various adverse events associated with different CAR-T products in DLBCL.

Method: In this retrospective study, the 2022 NIS database was used to identify hospitalizations with DLBCL and those who received Yescarta, Breyanzi, or Kymriah using appropriate ICD-10-CM diagnostic and ICD-10-PCS procedure codes. Data on CRS, ICANS, infections, and adverse cardiac events were extracted using relevant ICD-10-CM codes. These outcomes were compared across different CAR-T products using Pearson's chi-square analysis. Multivariate logistic regression was also performed, adjusting for demographics, hospital-specific characteristics, and comorbidities.

Results: We identified 1440 patients with DLBCL. Among these, 1100 patients (64.6% male; 70.7% Caucasian, 8.8% African American, 20.5% other ethnicities) received Yescarta, 90 patients (66.7% male; 82.4% Caucasian, 0% African American, 17.7% other ethnicities) received Kymriah and 250 patients (64% male; 82.6% Caucasian, 10.9% African American, 6.5% other ethnicities) received Breyanzi. The incidence of CRS was 52% for Breyanzi, 44.4% for Kymriah and 68.6% for Yescarta, and the difference was statistically significant by chi-square analysis (p = 0.03). This difference remained statistically significant for Kymriah after multivariate analysis [Adjusted Odds ratio (OR) = 0.3, CI 0.1 to 0.9, p=0.032], but not for Breyanzi (Adjusted OR = 0.3, CI 0.1 to 0.9, p=0.032) in comparison to Yescarta. The incidence of ICANS was 16% for Breyanzi, 22.2% for Kymriah, and 33.2% for Yescarta, with a statistically significant difference observed by chi-square analysis (p = 0.05). This difference remained statistically significant for Breyanzi after multivariate analysis [Adjusted OR = 0.3, CI 0.1 to 0.6, p=0.002], but not for Kymriah (Adjusted OR = 0.6, CI 0.1 to 2.9, p=0.551) in comparison to Yescarta. Among cardiovascular events, there was no significant difference in the incidence of acute myocardial infarction (Yescarta vs Kymriah vs Breyanzi, 0.5% vs 0% vs 0.2%, p = 0.487), stroke (0.5% vs 5.6% vs 2%, p = 0.07), cardiogenic shock (0.5% vs 0% vs 0%, p = 0.880), and arrhythmias (20.9% vs 27.8% vs 32%, p = 0.258) among these CAR T-cell therapies. Furthermore, there were no significant differences in the incidence of infectious complications, including pneumonia (5.9% vs 5.6% vs 2%, p = 0.510), sepsis (5% vs 5.6% vs 6%, p = 0.962), or septic shock (2.3% vs 0% vs 0%, p = 0.535) among these CAR T-cell therapies. There was no difference in all-cause in-hospital mortality across these therapies (2.3% vs 5.6% vs 2%, p = 0.692).

Conclusion: Kymriah showed lower CRS rates and Breyanzi showed lower ICANS rates in comparison to Yescarta in our study. All CAR T-cell therapies have the potential to cause infections and cardiac events, which require monitoring, early identification and prompt treatment. When selecting among various CAR T-cell products, several factors must be considered, including the patient's lymphoma type, prior treatment history, manufacturing turnaround time, cost, availability, and potential short-term and long-term side effects. The limitations of our study include its retrospective nature, reliance on ICD-10 codes to identify patients with adverse events, and the absence of longitudinal data on long-term adverse events. Nevertheless, this study provides essential insights for hematologists regarding the incidence of specific adverse events associated with different CAR T-cell products within the real-world population.