Onco Actu du 17 juin 2016

	1. Biologie
Tumors have found a bloody new way to grow and spread [Science] Vasculogenic mimicry roiled the cancer field because it undermined the leading idea for how tumors obtain their blood supply.
	2.11 Etiologie - Alimentation
Coffee's cancer risk downgraded (as long as you don't drink it hot) [NHS Choices] "The bottom line here is that drinking very hot liquids is a cause of squamous cell cancer of the oesophagus, but the IARC classification can't tell us anything about the size of the risk – so we shouldn't take from this that there's a high risk of developing oesophageal cancer after drinking very hot drinks."
	4. Dépistage, diagnostic et pronostic
Animated Dynamics Closes on $1.7M for Cancer Imaging Technology [Xconomy] Animated Dynamics says that early pilot studies have shown that the technology offers “high predictive value” in evaluating the response and non-response of cancer drugs, yielding results within 24 hours.
	4.11 Dép., diag. & prono. - Ovaire
New technique could spot ‘invisible’ ovarian tumours during surgery [Cancer Research UK] “It is reasonably plausible to assume that if more cancer is removed the survival will be better,” he said. “However, long-term follow-up studies need to be performed in large patient groups to prove such effects.
	4.7 Dép., diag. & prono. - Col de l'utérus
QIAGEN launches QIAsure Methylation Test to determine cervical cancer risk [Qiagen] The QIAsure Methylation Test is highly complementary to HPV screening tests and follows either a positive high risk HPV test or a finding of abnormal cells in cytology from a Pap smear and can be used on either clinician collected or self-collected samples.
	5.12 Immunothérapies
First Human Test of CRISPR Proposed [MIT Technology Review] One gene to be edited out, PD-1, is a key off switch of the body’s immune response. Without it, the T cells may overcome certain tumors’ ability to avoid detection. However, removing such controls could also present new risks to patients.
	5.2 Pharma
Merck’s KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab) Demonstrates Superior Progression-Free and Overall Survival Compared to Chemotherapy as First-Line Treatment in Patients with Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer [Merck] Based on these results, an independent Data Monitoring Committee (DMC) has recommended that the trial be stopped, and that patients receiving chemotherapy in KEYNOTE-024 be offered the opportunity to receive KEYTRUDA.
Merck Extends Cancer Immunotherapy Reach to First-Line Lung Cancer [The Street] The magnitude of Keytruda's benefit was not disclosed Thursday, but Merck said the data are strong enough to support approval filings in the U.S. and Europe. Importantly, the patients enrolled in Merck's Keytruda study also had to have lung cancers that expressed high levels of the protein PD-L1, defined as a tumor proportion score of 50% or more.
Merck's Keytruda prolongs life in big lung-cancer study [Reuters] Merck hopes the new data will allow its injectable drug, which has a list price of about $150,000 a year, to be used earlier as a treatment for the most common form of lung cancer.
Scancell slumps as drug problem disrupts melanoma trial [Reuters] British drug developer Scancell has suspended dosing in a cancer clinical trial because of quality problems with an immunotherapy treatment, wiping more than a quarter off the value of its shares on Friday.
	5.3 Traitements - FDA, EMA,...
Adaptive pathways [EMA] EMA has provided a comprehensive response to a letter from a group of nine professors and scientistsExternal link icon on the adaptive pathways approach, in which the authors make a number of comments and suggestions. EMA's response further clarifies the concept of adaptive pathways.
	5.4 Traitements - Economie
Cotellic is Roche's latest cancer med to hit a snag at NICE [FiercePharma] It wasn’t all bad news out of the company’s home continent Thursday. Gazyvaro, the follow-up to superstar Rituxan, nabbed a green light in Europe in combination with Teva’s Treanda for treating patients with previously treated follicular lymphoma.
Pioneering cancer drug combination approved [BBC News] The combination was licensed across Europe only last month. The speed with which it was approved by NICE means patients in England will be the first to have access to the therapy on the continent.
Roche skin cancer drugs 'too expensive', says UK cost agency [Reuters] Roche's two-drug combination of Cotellic and Zelboraf for melanoma was rejected by Britain's healthcare cost agency NICE.
Drug combination for fighting skin cancer approved for NHS use [The Guardian] Nice, often criticised for being slow to approve drugs for the NHS, has moved at record speed, and the manufacturer Bristol-Myers Squibb has made the process easier by agreeing to a discount on the price the NHS is charged which brings it below Nice’s cost-effectiveness ceiling of £30,000 per year of quality life gained.
UK cost agency speeds approval of Bristol melanoma drug cocktail [Reuters] The British list price of the two drugs, based on the median duration of treatment, is approximately 78,500 pounds ($111,000) per patient, or $30,000 less than the U.S. price.
	6.1 Observation
Less educated women less likely to spot breast cancer symptoms [Cancer Research UK] The researchers at the University of Surrey surveyed a group of 961 UK women - educated to different levels - who had never been diagnosed with breast cancer.
	6.10 Politiques
The EU’s cancer community: better with the UK? [The Cancer Blog] Whichever way the vote goes, one positive result is that Europe’s cancer community has come under renewed focus from several angles – workforce, research and care – even if its value under the EU umbrella is contested.
	6.8 Communication
Puzzling Progress: What Strides Look Like in Cancer Research [CANCER RESEARCH Catalyst] The following three points are building blocks of a single argument that might offer one possibility for convincing those who think we haven’t made much progress.