Prolaris — a genetic test that predicts the aggressiveness of prostate cancer — can accurately identify which men with intermediate- or high-risk disease will benefit from adding androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) to standard radiation therapy, a study shows. This Myriad Genetics’ test was found to be superior to other methods at predicting cancer spread (metastasis) in…
Conditions
Conditions
Tebentafusp Named FDA Breakthrough Therapy for Advanced Eye Cancer
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted breakthrough therapy designation to Immunocore‘s tebentafusp (IMCgp100) for HLA-A2 positive, inoperable, or advanced uveal melanoma — a common and difficult-to-treat form of eye cancer — the company announced in a press release. The breakthrough therapy status was awarded after a Phase 3 trial showed that tebentafusp worked…
Grants of $4.6M to Support Trials of Cancer Therapy in Early Alzheimer’s
The National Institute of Aging (NIA) and the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF) have awarded $4.6 million to a team of researchers studying the potential of the cancer therapy Revlimid (lenalidomide) in treating people with early stage Alzheimer’s disease. Two clinical trials, each supported by one of these grants, are planned. The first is now recruiting…
FDA Grants Fast Track Status to Celsion’s GEN-1 for Advanced Cancer
Celsion‘s immunotherapy candidate, GEN-1, has received fast track designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for advanced ovarian cancer. This designation helps speed the approval of potential medicines that address unmet medical needs in serious or life-threatening conditions. It grants greater access to FDA input throughout the regulatory process and makes GEN-1 eligible…
Cancer-sniffing Dogs May Help Train Robot Noses to Detect Tumors Early
Understanding the molecular components of odors used by trained dogs to detect prostate cancer could help researchers to develop computers with similar diagnostic accuracy, a new study shows. The study, “Feasibility of integrating canine olfaction with chemical and microbial profiling of urine to detect lethal prostate cancer,” was published in PLOS One. An ongoing need in…
Trial Will Test AFM24-Tecentriq Combo for EGFR-positive Advanced Cancers
Affimed will team up with Roche to conduct a Phase 1/2a clinical trial investigating its innate cell engager AFM24 — a form of immunotherapy — in combination with Tecentriq (atezolizumab) for the treatment of EGFR-positive solid cancers that progressed despite prior therapies. Under a new collaboration agreement, Affimed will fund and conduct the trial, while…
Phase 1 Trial to Test BDNF Gene Therapy in Alzheimer’s Patients
A Phase 1 trial will evaluate the use of gene therapy in delivering brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) to the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease or mild cognitive impairment (MCI), which often precedes dementia. Researchers at the University of California San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine are preparing to open a three-year trial in 12…
Imfinzi No Longer Available in US for Advanced Bladder Cancer
After consulting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), AstraZeneca has announced that Imfinzi (durvalumab) — which last year failed a confirmatory Phase 3 trial — will no longer be available in the U.S. for people with locally advanced or metastatic bladder cancer. AstraZeneca has opted to voluntarily withdraw Imfinzi after the therapy’s failure,…
Ilixadencel-Sutent Combo Shows ‘Meaningful’ Survival in Advanced Kidney Cancer Patients
A combination of ilixadencel plus first-line treatment with Sutent (sunitinib) prolonged overall survival to a clinically meaningful extent in newly diagnosed patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC), a form of kidney cancer, a Phase 2 trial found. People given this combo treatment in the MERECA trial (NCT02432846) lived 10 months longer than those on Sutent…
Pivotal Phase 3 Trials of Oral Simufilam Planned for Year’s End
Cassava Sciences plans to launch two Phase 3 clinical trials evaluating the efficacy of simufilam, its investigational oral treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, in the second half of this year, the company announced. If successful, results of these studies in patients with mild-to-moderate disease will support a request for simufilam’s approval. “For over 10 years we’ve…
Keytruda Will No Longer Treat Advanced Small Cell Lung Cancers in US
After failing to significantly extend survival in a confirmatory Phase 3 trial, Keytruda (pembrolizumab) will no longer be available in the U.S. for people with previously treated metastatic small cell lung cancer (SCLC). According to Merck, known as MSD outside North America, the company decided to voluntary withdraw this indication after consulting with the U.S. Food…
Racial Discrimination Can Be Barrier in Healthcare, Surveys Find
Racial discrimination is a barrier to care in Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, according to two U.S. surveys conducted on behalf of the Alzheimer’s Association. This opinion was supported by more than one-third of Black Americans (36%), and nearly one-fifth of Asian Americans (19%) and Hispanic Americans (18%). Furthermore, the majority of non-white caregivers surveyed experienced…