A course of treatment with checkpoint inhibitors Yervoy (ipilimumab) and Opdivo (nivolumab) for patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma is every 3 weeks for a total of four doses. Almost forty percent of patients receiving this combined regimen discontinue treatment because of immune-related adverse events. Continue reading
Category Archives: Immunology & Immunotherapy
Priming cancer for immunotherapy
Augmenting the responses to checkpoint inhibitors, which remove the “breaks” from the immune response, is a very popular area of research. The general concept is to turn immunologically cold tumors hot. For example, triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is considered an immunologically cold tumor – anti-PD(L)1 therapy has shown responses of just 5-10%. Continue reading
Anti-APRIL Antibody BION-1301 for Multiple Myeloma
Multiple myeloma (MM) is a cancer of plasma cells in the bone marrow. Plasma cells are B lymphocytes (B-cells) that have been activated to produce immunoglobulins. When plasma cells become cancerous, the produce copious amounts of immunoglobulins and proliferate in the bone marrow, causing crowding-out of other essential hematopoietic cells, leading to reduced numbers of functioning white blood cells (leukopenia leading to immunosuppression), red blood cells (anemia), and megakaryocytes (thrombocytopenia). Continue reading
CLEC12A – a novel target for AML and MDS
CLEC12 (C-Type Lectin Domain Family 12 Member A) is negative regulator of granulocyte and monocyte functioning. It is a member of the C-type lectin/C-type lectin-like domain (CTL/CTLD) superfamily. It is also known as Myeloid Inhibitory C-Type Lectin-Like Receptor and Dendritic Cell-Associated Lectin. CLEC12 is a cell surface receptor that modulates signaling cascades and mediates tyrosine phosphorylation of target MAP kinases. Continue reading
Sitravatinib plus nivolumab in NSCLC
Sitravatinib (MGCD516) is an oral multi-tyrosine kinase inhibitor being developed by Mirati Therapeutics. Last week, the company announced that three of eleven patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with genetic alterations in MET, AXL, RET, TRK, DDR2, KDR, PDGFRA, KIT or CBL who were resistant to checkpoint [anti PD-(L)1 therapy] had confirmed partial responses; because of this, dosing in the 34-patient expansion cohort will proceed. Continue reading
Opdivo and Yervoy, the new front-line standard for poor/intermediate-risk renal cell carcinoma
The results of CheckMate 214 demonstrated that combination checkpoint immunotherapy with nivolumab (Opdivo; anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody) and ipilimumab (Yervoy; anti-CTLA-4 monoclonal antibody), is superior to sunitinib (Sutent; multikinase inhibitor) in the treatment of patients with newly diagnosed renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Interestingly, prior to sunitinib, another immunotherapeutic approach – interferon-alpha (IFN-α) – was the front-line treatment of choice for renal cell carcinoma, which, like melanoma, is very immune-responsive. Continue reading
New Link’s Indoximod + Keytruda looks promising in Phase 2 advanced melanoma
Indoximod + Keytruda looks promising in Phase 2 advanced melanoma
IDO (indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase) is an intracellular enzyme found in antigen presenting cells that mediates immune suppression in the tumor microenvironment. Continue reading
Sellas merges with Galena to advance WT1 peptide cancer vaccine
Sellas reversed merged into Galena, a peptide vaccine company whose lead product, NeuVax, for breast cancer failed. Sellas’ lead product is galinpepimut-S for AML (acute myelogenous leukemia) and mesothelioma, as well as other cancers. Continue reading
CD-19 CAR T-cell gets unanimous ODAC recommendation and Blincyto wins full FDA approval – managing cytokine release syndrome
This week, the FDA Oncology Drug Advisory Committee provided a unanimous recommendation to Novartis’ tisagenlecleucel, a CAR (chimeric antigen receptor) T-cell therapy directed against CD19 for the treatment of relapsed or refractory (r/r) pediatric and young adult patients with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). In addition, the FDA granted full approval to Amgen for Blincyto (blinatumomab), a bispecific monoclonal antibody that targets CD19, for indicated for the treatment of relapsed or refractory B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in adults and children. Blincyto received conditional approval in 2015 for this claim. Continue reading
Neo-antigen vaccines extend progression-free survival in melanoma
Two companies – Biontech, RNA vaccine and Neon Therapeutics, peptide vaccine – reported very positive results of neo-antigen vaccines in patients with refractory metastatic melanoma. Continue reading