20 Nov MedImmune’s MEDI9197 Activates Immune System To Fight Tumors
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Dr. Ranade
Dr. Koustubh Ranade, PhD
Vice President of Research & Development Translational Medicine
MedImmune
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: In a healthy person, abnormal cells including cancer cells are typically detected and destroyed by the immune system in response to danger signals activated by the abnormal cells. However, some solid tumors avoid triggering danger signals, and thus the immune system cannot recognize and destroy cancer cells, permitting tumor growth. To help activate the patient’s immune system to fight these “hidden” cancer cells, MedImmune scientists have developed MEDI9197, a TLR 7/8 agonist, to trigger the needed danger signals.
Our latest data from the Phase 1 study of MEDI9197 demonstrated that through intratumor injection, the therapy binds to TLR7 and TLR8 receptors and activates dendritic cells, which call in other immune cells to fight the tumor.
MedicalResearch.com: What should clinicians and patients take away from your report?
Response: MEDI9197 is a new therapeutic that triggers the body’s natural danger signals and activates the immune system to fight tumors. MedImmune is using precision medicine to identify patients more likely to benefit.
MedicalResearch.com: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this study?
Response: In the future, MEDI9197 will also be studied in combination with other therapies, e.g. anti-PDL1 (durvalumab). MedImmune has direct evidence showing that an array of immune cells, both adaptive and innate cells, are being activated in humans. We will continue to investigate monotherapy and combination therapies to address each mechanism that cancer uses to escape immune destruction so that we can fully engage the immune system.
MedicalResearch.com: Is there anything else you would like to add?
Response: This precision medicine approach is a direct example of MedImmune’s strategy in Immuno-Oncology to:
1) understand how cancer evades the immune system,
2) use predictive biomarkers to identify patients more likely to benefit, and
3) investigate monotherapy and combination therapies to address each mechanism that cancer uses to escape immune destruction so that we can fully engage the immune system.
MedicalResearch.com: Thank you for your contribution to the MedicalResearch.com community.
Citation: Abstract presented at the 2017 SITC meeting November 2017
Pharmacodynamic activity of MEDI9197, a TLR7/8 agonist, administered intratumorally in subjects with subcutaneous or cutaneous tumors”
Cooper ZA, Morehouse CA, Wu Y, Steele K, Brucker D, Tseng L, Jure-Kunkel M, Mueller N, Ryan P, Grilley-Olson J, Hong D, Marabelle A, Munster P, Aggarwal R, Aspeslagh S, Dixon RG, Patel M, Vivek S, Brody J, Gupta S
https://www.sitcancer.org/2017/abstracts/info
Note: Content is Not intended as medical advice. Please consult your health care provider regarding your specific medical condition and questions.
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Last Updated on November 20, 2017 by Marie Benz MD FAAD