Immuno-Oncology

Immunotherapy agents targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway will be the most robust area for news at the 2016 ASCO Annual Meeting, but there will be much new data about recently approved and novel anticancer drugs for clinicians to digest.

Yong-Chen William Lu, PhD, discusses a phase I dose-escalation study investigating the genetically engineered CD4 T cells' ability to target the MAGE-A3 protein.

​Keith Kerr, BSc, MB, ChB, FRCPath, FRCPE, of the University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, Scotland, discusses PD-L1 immunohistochemistry in lung cancer.

Stuart Lutzker, MD, PhD, vice president of BioOncology Exploratory Clinical Development, Genentech, discusses results of the first-in-human study of OX40 agonist in patients with refractory solid tumors.

Gary D. Steinberg, MD, Bruce and Beth White Family Professor, professor of Surgery, director of Urologic Oncology, University of Chicago Medicine, discusses the FDA approval of atezolizumab (Tecentriq) as a treatment for patients with with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma (mUC) whose disease progressed during or after platinum-based chemotherapy, or within 12 months of receiving platinum-containing chemotherapy, either before or after surgery.

Forty percent of patients with advanced melanoma who started taking pembrolizumab during the clinical trial that led to its initial approval were still alive after 3 years, with many responders in remission even after stopping treatment.

The FDA granted the PD-L1 inhibitor atezolizumab (Tecentriq) an accelerated approval as a treatment for patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma (mUC) whose disease progressed during or after platinum-based chemotherapy, or within 12 months of receiving platinum-based chemotherapy, either before or after surgery.

The FDA approved nivolumab (Opdivo) for the treatment of patients with classical Hodgkin lymphoma that has relapsed or progressed after autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and posttransplantation brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris).

The recombinant oncolytic poliovirus PVS-RIPO has received breakthrough therapy designation from the FDA as a potential treatment for patients with recurrent glioblastoma multiforme.

Thierry M. Jahan, MD, discusses a study looking at the investigational cancer vaccine CRS-207 and its potential in mesothelioma.

Mohammed Haseebuddin, MD, discusses results of a study which demonstrated that elevated preoperative classical monocyte PD-1 mean fluorescence intensity level and lower CM was linked to poor survival in patients with clear cell renal cell carcinoma, as well as the challenges with using PD-1 as a biomarker in these patients.

John Haanen, MD, PhD, discusses why the best combination regimens and the ideal patient population for immunotherapy treatments in lung cancer are still largely unknown.

Robert Dreicer, MD, provides insight on the IMvigor 210 study and how atezolizumab will dramatically change the treatment paradigm for patients with metastatic urothelial carcinoma, who have a severe unmet need.

Krishna Vanaja Donkena, PhD, Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, discusses using immune and checkpoint markers to predict cancer-specific survival in bladder cancer.

The European Commission has approved the combination of ipilimumab and nivolumab as a treatment for patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma regardless of BRAF status.

TMX-101 (Vesimune), a liquid formulation of the toll-like receptor 7 agonist imiquimod, appeared safe and demonstrated preliminary clinical activity, including the potential to induce an immune response, in patients with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer.

Mark Ball, MD, discusses the clinical, pathological, and genomic profiles of exceptional responders to anti–PD-1 therapy in renal cell carcinoma, the future of immunotherapy, and what significance genomic testing may hold.