Clinical and biomarker analyses of SHR-1701 combined with famitinib in patients with previously treated advanced biliary tract cancer or pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma: a phase II trial

Advanced biliary tract cancer (BTC) and pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) have poor prognoses and limited treatment options. Here, we conducted this first-in-class phase II study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of SHR-1701, a bifunctional fusion protein targeting programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) and transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta), combined with famitinib, a multi-targeted receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor, in patients with advanced BTC or PDAC who failed previous standard treatment (trial registration: ChiCTR2000037927). Among 51 enrolled patients, the BTC cohort showed an objective response rate (ORR) of 28% (including 2 complete responses) and a disease control rate (DCR) of 80%, with a median progression-free survival (mPFS) of 5.1 months and a median overall survival (mOS) of 16.0 months. In the PDAC cohort, the ORR was 15% (2 complete responses), with a DCR of 60%, and the mPFS and mOS were 2.1 months and 5.3 months, respectively. Grade 3 or 4 treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs) occurred in 29.4% of patients, with no grade 5 TRAEs reported. Exploratory analyses revealed that primary tumor resection history, peripheral blood immunophenotype changes, and distinct immune-metabolic profiles were associated with treatment benefits. An immune/metabolism score integrating the features of six genes was developed as a predictive biomarker for immunotherapy response in multiple cohorts, allowing for the selection of patients most likely to experience positive outcomes from this therapy regimen. In conclusion, our study provides proof-of-concept data supporting the potential of SHR-1701 plus famitinib as an effective and safe subsequent-line therapy for refractory BTC and PDAC, highlighting the promise of targeting PD-L1, TGF-beta, and angiogenesis pathways simultaneously.