A new generation of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies with advanced functions could hold the answer to improved safety and efficacy for these effective but potentially dangerous cancer therapies, shows research led by Boston University. The scientists showed it is possible to add ‘on’ or ‘off’ switches to CAR T cells, which can be activated using oral drugs with a known safety profile.
Top-line phase III results showing Hutchmed Ltd.’s targeted therapy fruquintinib reduced the risks of death and disease progression by 34% and 68%, respectively, for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer could “lay a solid foundation for Hutchmed to initiate discussions with regulatory authorities worldwide,” a spokesperson of Hutchmed, told BioWorld.
Neukio Biotherapeutics Co. Ltd. has raised $50 million to support preclinical validation and clinical development of new cell therapies for cancer. The series A-1 round was led by CD Capital, Beijing Alwin Asset Management Co. Ltd. and Surplus Capital, with contributions from previous investors Lilly Asia Ventures, Sherpa Healthcare Partners Co. Ltd., and IDG Capital.
Chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapies and mRNA-based vaccines represent two of the most significant new modalities to gain regulatory approval in the past decade. Capstan Therapeutics Inc. has emerged from stealth with bold ambitions to combine these two approaches in mRNA-programmed cell therapies that will be generated in vivo from patients’ endogenous cells. It has so far secured $165 million in equity funding to pursue that vision.
Over the past decade cancer immunotherapy has redefined standard care in many kinds of tumor, but low response rates remain a problem and there have been some shock trial failures where checkpoint inhibitors have failed to work as expected. To help, Neobe Therapeutics Ltd. is attempting to tackle an important constituent of the tumor microenvironment, the extracellular matrix.
New and updated preclinical and clinical data presented by biopharma firms at the European Society for Medical Oncology Congress 2022, including: Akeso, PDC*Line, Starpharma, Transcenta, Zymeworks.
Proto-oncogene tyrosine-protein kinase receptor Ret is a widely expressed oncogene and chromosomal rearrangements involving RET lead to fusion genes and RET kinase activation, which occur in lung cancer in about in 2% of cases of non-small cell lung cancer.
Researchers from Stanford University have published an article on the discovery of novel analogues of ponatinib that retained antitumor efficacy with substantially reduced cardiotoxicity.
Lift Biosciences Ltd. has shown that its first-in-class cell therapy destroyed on average over 90% of the tumoroid in a PDX (patient-derived xenograft) organoid across five solid tumor types, including bladder cancer, rectal cancer, colorectal cancer, gastric cancer and squamous cell non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
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