Interim evaluation of Active Biotech's TTS CD2 for renal cancer shows encouraging results in clinical Phase IIa
[We don't have so many cancertargeting companies, so I thought I should paste it here]
02/06-2003
Active Biotech is to present the results from clinical trials of its TTS (Tumour Targeted Superantigens) CD2 substance at the 39th ASCO (American Society for Clinical Oncology) Annual Meeting (May 31 - June 3, 2003), a major annual scientific conference. During the conference, preliminary results will be presented from an ongoing Phase IIa study on advanced renal cancer and results from Phase I studies on lung-cancer patients (see also press release dated April 23, 2003 at www.activebiotech.com).
Initial analyses of tumour response in the ongoing open Phase IIa study on patients with advanced renal cancer at a progressive stage treated with TTS CD2 show encouraging results. The majority of the renal-cancer patients included in the study previously underwent treatment with Interleukin-2 or Interferon-alpha, but the disease progressed nonetheless. Following treatment with TTS CD2, 40 percent of the evaluated patients had stable disease, meaning that their tumours have stopped growing, 4 months after the commencement of treatment. One patient shows a "partial response," entailing a reduction in tumour size of more than 30 percent according to RECIST criteria. Following treatment, this patient's tumour has shrunk to less than 10 percent of its original size. Other patients had some reduction in tumour burden but did not achieve a "partial response". The side effects of the treatment are few and mild. Recruitment to this Phase II study is complete and the entire study is expected to be fully reported by the end of the year.
"The treatment has been very well tolerated and shows encouraging activity even in patients who have failed standard therapies", says Professor Robert Hawkins at the Christie Hospital in Manchester, who is responsible for the Phase II study.
Background: Today, almost 80,000 people are affected by renal cancer annually, and during 2003, the disease will cause an estimated 34,000 deaths in Europe and the US. Renal cancer is primarily treated surgically and with immunotherapies such as Interferon-alpha or Interleukin-2. These immunotherapies have proven effective but only help a limited number of patients. Furthermore, renal cancer responds poorly to chemotherapy. There is an extensive need for new treatments in this area.
The level of details is even worse than the Abgenix/Amgen effort the other day. I will try to get hold of at least the abstracts to see if these patients were still in a state of steady stable disease after 4 months (which would be a good result) or if the tumor had started to progress again. It would also be helpful to learn how advanced the cancer was.
The agent is a mAb fused to a bacterial toxin. This combination is supposed to generate a very aggressive immune response. How they manage to avoid that the agent is attacked while still en route, I have not really managed to figure out.
And to make things even more complicated. A new improved version TTS-CD3 has already been introduced into the clinic.
The company - Active Biotech - is a leftover from the time Pharmacia was a completely Swedish company.
Erik |
