Data Support TMB as Marker for Durvalumab Activity in NSCLC
April 2nd 2019Tumor mutational burden identified patients who obtained a survival benefit with the PD-L1 inhibitor durvalumab, as initial therapy versus chemotherapy for advanced non–small cell lung cancer, even though the primary analysis of the randomized trial showed no difference between treatment groups, according to a new analysis.
CAR T-Cell Therapy and Lymphodepletion Shows Early Efficacy, Tolerability in Advanced Sarcoma
April 1st 2019The administration of HER2-directed CAR T-cell therapy and lymphodepletion chemotherapy demonstrated antitumor activity and was found to be safe in pediatric and adult patients with advanced HER2-positive sarcoma.
Predicting Responders to ICB Therapy in Advanced Melanoma
March 29th 2019Recent work looking at the response to immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapy given before surgery for advanced melanoma found increased infiltration of B cells, a type of white blood cell, in patients who responded to therapy compared with those who did not.
NCCN Panel Digs Into Reality of CAR T-Cell Reimbursement
March 21st 2019A panel during the opening day of the 2019 National Comprehensive Cancer Network Annual Conference examined the recent process for National Coverage Determination for chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy and what it means for the future of innovative treatments.
Novel Drug Targets Stem Cell Activity in Pancreatic Cancer
March 21st 2019Napabucasin, a novel therapy that targets cancer stem cell pathways, is being investigated in a phase III clinical trial that is believed to be the largest study ever conducted in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma in the metastatic setting
Making the Case for Earlier CAR T-Cell Therapy in Lymphoma
March 2nd 2019Real-world data on the use of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy in large B-cell lymphoma bear out the pivotal results from ZUMA-1 and demonstrate not only that the treatment approach is here, but also that it’s time to address issues of efficacy, safety, cost, and moving this approach into earlier lines of therapy.
Rare Neurologic Diseases Are Not Truly Rare
February 28th 2019Despite being labeled as rare diseases, a number of neurologic conditions impact more patients than most would believe. The consultant with expertise in ophthalmology, gene therapy, and rare and orphan diseases, chimed in about how these diseases can often be overlooked.
FDA Grants Pembrolizumab Priority Review for Advanced SCLC
February 20th 2019The FDA has granted a priority review designation to a supplemental biologics license application for pembrolizumab (Keytruda) as a treatment for patients with advanced small cell lung cancer whose disease has progressed following ≥2 prior lines of therapy.