CD318-targeted CAR-T Cell Therapy in Patients With Pancreatic Cancer (ResCPa)

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is one of the most lethal cancers, with limited therapeutic options and a five-year survival rate below 10 % in advanced stages. Standard treatments, such as multi-agent chemotherapy, provide only marginal survival benefits and are often associated with significant toxicity. Novel approaches are urgently needed.

The ResCPa study is a first-in-human, multicenter, phase I/IIa investigator-initiated trial evaluating the safety, feasibility, and preliminary efficacy of autologous CD318-targeted chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy in patients with metastatic or locally advanced PDAC that has progressed after standard-of-care treatment. CD318 (also known as CDCP1) is highly expressed in primary and metastatic PDAC tissue but rarely found in healthy tissues, making it a promising and potentially safe immunotherapy target. Preclinical studies have shown potent anti-tumor activity of CD318-CAR-T cells in vitro and in PDAC mouse models without target-specific toxicity.

Eligible patients will undergo tumor tissue screening for CD318 expression. Those meeting the criteria will proceed to leukapheresis for autologous T-cell collection. The CD318-CAR construct, optimized in preclinical work, will be introduced via a GMP-produced lentiviral vector, and CAR-T cells will be expanded using automated manufacturing (CliniMACS Prodigy). Following lymphodepleting chemotherapy, patients will receive CD318-CAR-T cells in a dose-escalation design to determine the recommended phase II dose, with the option of dual dosing.

The primary objectives are to assess safety, tolerability, and feasibility of manufacturing and delivering CD318-CAR-T cells. Secondary objectives include preliminary anti-tumor activity (objective response rate, progression-free survival, overall survival), CAR-T cell expansion and persistence, and immunological correlates of response or resistance. Patients will be followed for at least 12 months post-infusion, with extended safety follow-up per regulatory requirements.

In parallel, an extensive translational research program will investigate CAR-T cell phenotypes, tumor microenvironment changes, and mechanisms of treatment resistance using single-cell multi-omics, spatial proteomics and transcriptomics, organoid co-culture models, and microbiome profiling. Insights from these studies aim to guide optimization of next-generation CAR-T therapies for PDAC and other solid tumors.

This trial is conducted by a German academic-industrial consortium including the University Hospital Tübingen, Miltenyi Biotec, University Hospital Freiburg, Klinikum rechts der Isar (TUM), Berlin Institute of Health (BIH), and other partners. The study is supported by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) within the "National Decade Against Cancer" initiative.