Cited by 21Glioma Diagnosis and TreatmentCancer-related Molecular PathwaysCancer Mechanisms and Therapy

A window-of-opportunity trial reveals mechanisms of response and resistance to navtemadlin in patients with recurrent glioblastoma

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Rendo, Veronica, Lee, Eudocia Q., Bossi, Connor, Khuu, Nicholas, Rudek, Michelle A., Pal, Sangita, Azazmeh, Narmen, Rashid, Rumana +35 more·2025·Science Translational Medicine

Abstract

Inhibitors of murine double minute homolog 2 (MDM2) represent a promising therapeutic approach for the treatment of TP53 wild-type glioblastomas (GBMs), reactivating p53 signaling to induce cancer cell death. We conducted a surgical window-of-opportunity trial (NCT03107780) of the MDM2 inhibitor navtemadlin (KRT-232) in 21 patients with TP53 wild-type recurrent GBM to determine achievable drug concentrations within tumor tissues and biological mechanisms of response and resistance. Participants received navtemadlin at 120 mg ( n = 10) or 240 mg ( n = 11) for 2 days before surgical resection and after surgery until progression or unacceptable toxicity. Both 120 and 240 mg daily dosing achieved a pharmacodynamic impact, but median progression-free survival was 3.1 months. DNA sequencing of three recurrent tumors revealed an absence of TP53 -inactivating mutations, indicating alternative mechanisms of resistance. To understand the mechanisms of response and resistance associated with navtemadlin, we conducted functional and spatial analyses of human tissue and patient-derived GBM neurosphere models. Navtemadlin induced partial tumor cell death as monotherapy, and combination with temozolomide enhanced apoptosis in GBM neurospheres while sparing normal bone marrow cells in vitro. We also observed up-regulation of oligodendrocyte differentiation genes with navtemadlin treatment and enrichment of oligodendrocyte transcription factor 2 (OLIG2)–positive cells at relapse, suggesting an unexplored mechanism of navtemadlin tolerance in GBM. Overall, these results indicated that clinically achievable doses of navtemadlin exert pharmacodynamic effects on GBM and suggest that combined treatment with temozolomide may be a route to more durable survival benefits.

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  • In GBM, the navtemadlin phase 0 study completed enrollment, and total intra-tumoral drug concentrations at the 240 mg dose level exceeded the predefined target of >25 nmol/L, which was defined based on the IC50 in cell culture.

    “In GBM, the navtemadlin phase 0 study completed enrollment, and total intra-tumoral drug concentrations at the 240 mg dose level exceeded the predefined target of >25 nmol/L, which was defined based on the IC50 in cell culture (16).”

    From Preclinical Modeling of Navtemadlin Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacodynamics, and Efficacy in IDH–Wild-type Glioblastoma (2025) · cites this paper as [16]

    The Results (Trial outcomes) describe the phase 0 cohort and report 21 patients enrolled. The Results (Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic analysis) report that all 10 assessed patients in the 240 mg cohort had contrast-enhancing tumor concentrations ≥25 nM. However, the Introduction says the threshold was based on the lowest concentration showing benefit with radiation in preclinical in vitro models, not on a cell-culture IC50; the paper also reports ≥25 nM rather than strictly >25 nM for every patient. (LLM, conf=0.88)

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  • The phase 0 component of the navtemadlin GBM trial met the prespecified target for measured intra-tumoral drug levels with evidence of p53 pathway modulation in tumor tissue.

    “the phase 0 component met the prespecified target for measured intra-tumoral drug levels with evidence of p53 pathway modulation in tumor tissue (16).”
  • Although both 120 and 240 mg navtemadlin achieved PD impact in patient tumors, progression-free and overall survival were similar to historical controls.

    “Although both 120 and 240 mg navtemadlin achieved PD impact in patient tumors, progression-free and overall survival were similar to historical controls.”
  • A disconnect between PD and patient survival was also observed in the human phase 0 trial.

    “Notably, a disconnect between PD and patient survival was also observed in the human phase 0 trial (16).”
  • Navtemadlin has completed a phase 0 window-of-opportunity study in glioblastoma (NCT03107780).

    “Navtemadlin is a potent small-molecule inhibitor of MDM2, which has completed a phase 0 window-of-opportunity study in glioblastoma (GBM).”

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  1. [39]Kuter DJ, in Consultative Hemostasis and Thrombosis (Fourth Edition), Kitchens CS, Kessler CM, Konkle BA, Streiff MB, Garcia DA, Eds. (Elsevier, Philadelphia, 2019), pp. 108– 126.

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Authors
Rendo, V., Lee, E. Q., Bossi, C., Khuu, N., Rudek, M. A., Pal, S., Azazmeh, N., Rashid, R., Lin, J.-R., Cusick, M., Reynolds, A. R. N., Fassinou, A. C. R., Ayoub, G., Malinowski, S., Lapinskas, E., Pisano, W., Jeang, J., Stopka, S. A., Regan, M. S., Spetz, J., Desai, A., Lieberman, F., Palanichamy, K., Fisher, J. D., Pelton, K., Huang, R. Y., Sarosiek, K. A., Nabors, L. B., Holdhoff, M., Danda, N., Strowd, R., Desideri, S., Walbert, T., Ye, X., Chakravarti, A., Sorger, P. K., Santagata, S., Agar, N. Y. R., Grossman, S. A., Alexander, B. M., Wen, P. Y., Ligon, K. L., & Beroukhim, R.
Affiliations
  • Department of Medical Oncology and Center for Neuro-Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA 02215, USA.
  • Brigham and Women's Hospital (US)
  • Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (US)
  • Broad Institute (US)
  • Johns Hopkins University (US)
  • Harvard University (US)
  • University of Gothenburg (SE)
  • University of Pennsylvania (US)
  • University of Pittsburgh (US)
  • Wake Forest University Health Sciences (US)
  • Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35233, USA.
  • Montefiore Medical Center (US)
  • Department of Neurology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA.
  • Henry Ford Health (US)
  • The Ohio State University (US)
Corresponding author
  • Lee, Eudocia Q.
  • Rudek, Michelle A.
  • Wen, Patrick Y.
  • Ligon, Keith L.
  • Beroukhim, Rameen
Venue
Science Translational Medicine
Published
2025-02-19
Volume
17
Issue
786
Pages
eadn6274-eadn6274
ISSN
  • 1946-6234 (ISSN-L)
  • 1946-6242
OpenAlex
W4407736502
Cited by
19
References
47
Citations by year
2026: 11 · 2025: 8
FWCI
12.21
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Science Translational Medicine (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institutes of Health (UL1TR003098)
  • National Cancer Institute (R01CA219943, UM1CA137443, U54CA210180, R01CA262462, R50CA274277, R01CA188228, P30CA006973, U19CA264504)
  • National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (P41EB028741)
  • U.S. National Library of Medicine (T15LM007059)
  • National Center for Research Resources (S10RR026824)
  • National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Genetics › Glioma Diagnosis and Treatment
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer-related Molecular Pathways
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pathology and Forensic Medicine › Cancer Mechanisms and Therapy
Keywords
recurrent glioblastoma, MDM2 inhibitors, wild-type p53, p53 reactivation, drug resistance mechanisms, temozolomide combination therapy, cancer cell death, oligodendrocyte differentiation, Olig2, pharmacodynamics, tumor tissue drug concentration, progression-free survival
MeSH terms
Adult, Aged, Brain Neoplasms, Female, Glioblastoma, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Neoplasm Recurrence, Local, Tumor Suppressor Protein p53, Drug Resistance, Neoplasm, Cell Line, Tumor, Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-mdm2

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