Metastatic solid tumors may be curable now. Among the most profound results presented over the weekend at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2024 Congress were the 10-year data from the Checkmate-067 and Keynote-006 trials, the phase III trials that tested Opdivo (nivolumab, Bristol Myers Squibb Co.) and Keytruda (pembrolizumab, Merck & Co. Inc.) as first-line agents in advanced or metastatic melanoma.
The newest data show increased survival times for heavily pretreated patients receiving Briacell Therapeutics Corp.’s breast cancer treatment. The company’s phase II results produced positive overall survival data using the cell-based immunotherapy Bria-IMT to treat late-stage metastatic breast cancer.
With positive first-in-human findings on board, Relay Therapeutics Inc. plans a pivotal study next year to test RLY-2608, an allosteric, pan-mutant and isoform-selective inhibitor of PI3K alpha in breast cancer. During a conference call on the data, TD Cowen analyst Yaron Werber noted that “next year’s going to be a pretty busy year for you. How fast can you start the phase III? Is there any way to pull it into the first half of the year as opposed to the second half?” CEO Sanjiv Patel said the company is “moving as fast as we possibly can,” and an update will be provided once a sit-down with regulators is finished.
Pinotbio Inc. has synthesized antibody-drug conjugates comprising an antibody covalently linked to DNA topoisomerase I inhibitors through a cleavable linker reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer.
Latvian Institute of Organic Synthesis has identified selenium compounds acting as estrogen receptor α (ER-α; ESR1) modulators reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer.
Nanjing Mingde New Drug Research Co. Ltd. has divulged proteolysis targeting chimeras (PROTACs) comprising an E3 ubiquitin ligase-binding agent coupled to an estrogen receptor α (ER-α; ESR1)-targeting moiety via linker. They are reported to be useful for the treatment of breast cancer.
Icecure Medical Ltd.’s Prosense system demonstrated a 100% success rate in destroying breast cancer tumors that were less than or equal to 25 millimeters, according to a study published in the British Journal of Radiology.
Researchers at Rockefeller University have identified a signaling loop between breast cancer cells and sensory neurons that promoted tumor metastasis, and showed that in animal models, treatment with the approved anti-nausea medication aprepitant could disrupt that loop.
For the first time in six years, the U.K.’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is refusing to recommend a breast cancer treatment. It cited price as the issue.
