Onco Actu du 12 janvier 2017

	1. Biologie
Gene discovery could shed light on how cancer cells spread [Cancer Research UK] The Sanger team looked at the spread of melanoma skin cancer cells to the lungs of mice that were engineered to be missing single genes. This identified 23 genes that were involved in regulating the spread of melanoma cells, 19 of which hadn’t previously been shown to have a role in this process.
Cancer spread cut by 75% in tests [BBC News] Tumours can "seed" themselves elsewhere in the body and this process is behind 90% of cancer deaths. The mouse study, published in Nature, showed altering the immune system slowed the spread of skin cancers to the lungs.
	4.2 Dép., diag. & prono. - Génome
Sequencing a genome for less than the cost of an X-ray? Not quite yet [STAT] “We’re not commenting on the exact math of that” $100 calculation, “but we’re very confident the architecture [of the new machines] will get customers close to that.”
	4.9 Dép., diag. & prono. - Sein
The Downside of Breast Cancer Screening [NY Times] “But breast cancer has a biology that doesn’t lend itself to screening. Healthy women get a breast cancer diagnosis, and this has serious psychological consequences and well-known physical harms from unnecessary treatment. We’re really doing more harm than good.”
	5.10 Traitements - Essais
New Drug Formulary Will Help Expedite Use of Agents in Clinical Trials [NCI] “Rather than spending time negotiating agreements, investigators will be able to focus on the important research that can ultimately lead to improved cancer care.”
	5.12.1 Immunothérapies - partenariats
Lilly and Merck Expand Immuno-Oncology Collaboration [Lilly] New Study to Evaluate Combination of LARTRUVO™ (olaratumab) and KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab).
	5.12.2 Immunothérapies - CAR-T
Celyad Announces Registration of the First Pancreatic Cancer Patient in its CAR-T NKR-2 THINK Trial in Belgium [Celyad] “The THINK trial is a world first, evaluating CAR-T NKR-2 cells in both hematological and solid tumors. Based on our outstanding of the preclinical data, our confidence in this technology is very high.”
	5.12.3 Immunothérapies-combinaisons
In a stunner, Merck leaps ahead of rivals with combo Keytruda/chemo attack on lung cancer [EndPoints] The FDA accepted the supplemental application and agreed to give the application a speedy review, offering a decision by May 10. And given the agency’s go-go record on rushing ahead on promising I/O therapies, Merck may be on the verge of making an even earlier breakthrough with its first combo approach.
	5.2 Pharma
Vertex Deals Cancer Drugs to Merck for $230M, Staying True to Plan [Xconomy] Two of the research programs in the clinic aim to inhibit pathways that repair DNA, specifically ones that help certain types of cancer survive and proliferate, Vertex said. The compounds are being studied across various Phase 1 and Phase 2 trials, with one known as VX-970 being the furthest along.
Merck KGaA splurges $230M on its pipeline, paying Vertex for a slate of early-stage cancer drugs [EndPoints] The German company is spending $230 million upfront to license rights to two clinical-stage and two preclinical programs from the Boston biotech, convinced that they’re starting down pathways on DNA repair and immuno-oncology that will lead them to a new product or two.
	5.2.2 Pharma - Fusions & Acquisitions
Maverick Therapeutics and Takeda Announce Five-year Collaboration to Advance T-Cell Engagement Therapies [Takeda] Collaboration to Develop a Novel Biologics Platform with the Potential to Improve the Therapeutic Utility of T-cell Redirection Therapy for the Treatment of Cancer.
A hungry Takeda continues deal spree with $125M T cell pact, option to buy [EndPoints] Two days after announcing a $5.2 billion deal to acquire Ariad, the global Japanese pharma company is back with the latest in a string of smaller pacts, investing $125 million in Maverick Therapeutics and picking up an option to buy the biotech and its T cell engagement platform.
	5.2.3 Pharma - économie
AbbVie vows to keep drug price increases below 10 percent [Reuters] While Gonzalez was making his presentation the pricing debate heated up considerably, as U.S. President-elect Donald Trump attacked the pharmaceutical industry during a news conference.
	6. Lutte contre les cancers
Arnie Purushotham: Multidisciplinary team meetings in cancer care need to change [BMJ Blogs] MDT meetings should facilitate meaningful multidisciplinary input into patient care, but these findings show that in reality this does not happen.
Dr. Peter Nowell, Who Helped Transform Cancer Research, Dies at 88 [NY Times] In 1976, Dr. Nowell published a landmark article in the journal Science describing the stepwise evolution of tumors. In a statement that seemed to anticipate the current push toward personalized treatment for cancer, he wrote, “Each patient’s cancer may require individual specific therapy.”
ASCO Releases Principles for Patient-Centered Healthcare Reform [ASCO] Increasing Patient Access to Quality Care, Avoiding Insurance Coverage Gaps, and Screening and Prevention Services Listed as Keys to Fostering the Best Possible Cancer Care.
	6.10.1 Politiques (USA)
Trump to pharma: You're 'getting away with murder,' and I'm the one to stop it [FiercePharma] Wednesday’s remarks are the latest in a series of drug-related statements by Trump that have kept pharma guessing. They follow more than a year of intense scrutiny and countless headlines about drugmakers’ frequent, sometimes extreme, price hikes.
What Trump gets wrong about drug companies [STAT] Rather than arbitrarily or punitively forcing drug companies to lower prices — or doing away with competition as we know it — Trump and his advisers would be wise to look at what’s wrong with the underlying system: Why is it so expensive to create a new drug?
Trump's Comments Are Big Pharma's Nightmare [Forbes] Donald Trump doesn’t care much for details. The message here is simple and clear: Donald Trump is going to be a populist president. Pharmaceutical companies are a popular villain. That’s it.
Donald Trump promises to slash drug prices by billions, pledging aggressive federal bidding process [EndPoints] During the election Hillary Clinton took the lead in attacking pharma and drug prices, leaving many in the industry hopeful that Trump would be friendlier to biopharma. Trump, though, stuck with a populist theme during the press conference, painting the industry as the villain in this drama.
	6.6 Publications
The Measure of All Things: Some Notes on CiteScore [The Scholarly Kitchen] CiteScore, in other words, will make other publications look more and more like Elsevier’s. This is what metrics do: they normalize. And since Elsevier is the dominant player in this market, Elsevier will reap the principal benefit of this realignment.
	6.7.1 Bioinformatique
How Microsoft computer scientists and researchers are working to ‘solve‘ cancer [Microsoft] “We are trying to change the way research is done on a daily basis in biology,” said Jasmin Fisher, a biologist by training who works in the programming principles and tools group in Microsoft’s Cambridge, U.K., lab.
	6.8 Communication
How do we solve the crisis in cancer communication? [STAT] Inspiring as it is, Alan’s story illustrates the tragedy of a communication crisis now plaguing oncology. Although ClinicalTrials.gov is supposed to help patients find appropriate treatment trials to join, it delivers information in a way that is difficult for a layperson to interpret.