Onco Actu du 18 avril 2018

	1. Biologie
Scientists uncover 80 potential lines of attack against prostate cancer [Institute of Cancer Research] The researchers obtained genetic information from the tumours of 112 men with prostate cancer and pooled it with data from other studies, together analysing samples from 930 prostate cancer patients.
	4.12 Biopsies liquides
QIAGEN launches AdnaTest liquid biopsy kits in prostate and lung cancer [Qiagen] The new AdnaTests build on QIAGEN’s proprietary AdnaTest Combination of Combinations Principle technology, a highly specific immunomagnetic cell-selection system for enriching circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from peripheral blood that allows sensitive analysis of cancer-associated gene expression.
	5. Traitements
Medicine’s secret ingredient — it’s in the timing [Nature] Axel Grothey, an oncologist at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota says that the challenges facing chronotherapy are twofold: “You need more solid data. And you need to show it is feasible.” The strategy can be impractical for cancer therapies, he says.
	5.2 Pharma
In light of Incyte’s epacadostat debacle, NewLink scraps PhIII plans for its own IDO drug [EndPoints] NewLink has apparently heeded its rival’s warning. The plan now is for the clinical team to look into an alternative way to test indoximod in melanoma — the design, trial size and feasibility
	5.2.3 Pharma - économie
4,000,000 Reasons to Back China Biotech [Bloomberg] With cancer rates rising, Jiangsu Hengrui has a shot at becoming the next Roche or Pfizer.
J&J raises sales forecast on strong demand for cancer drugs [Reuters] Quarterly sales of its cancer treatments surged 45 percent to $2.31 billion, accounting for nearly a quarter of its pharmaceutical unit’s revenue.
	5.3.4 Traitements - AMM (FDA, EMA,...)
U.S. Food and Drug Administration Approves Opdivo® (nivolumab) + Yervoy® (ipilimumab) Combination as First-Line Treatment for Patients with Intermediate- and Poor-Risk Advanced Renal Cell Carcinoma [BMS] The Opdivo + low-dose Yervoy combination is the first and only treatment to show significantly superior overall survival versus sunitinib in intermediate- and poor-risk advanced renal cell carcinoma, including a survival benefit regardless of PD-L1 expression.
	5.4 Traitements - Economie
James Raftery: A more fundamental review of QALYs is needed [BMJ Blogs] NICE has indicated that it is not prepared, at least for now, to use the updated version, but recommends further research. The issue seems to be due to problems of consistency with previous judgements.
	5.9.12 AACR - biopsies liquides
GRAIL Announces Data from Prototype Blood Tests for Early Cancer Detection [GRAIL] CCGA is a prospective, observational, longitudinal study designed to characterize the landscape of cell-free nucleic acid (cfNA) profiles in people with and without cancer. The planned enrollment for the study is more than 15,000 participants across 141 sites in the United States and Canada.
Blood test shows promise for spotting early cancers [Science] Using full-genome sequencing to analyze DNA shed into the blood by dying tumor cells, the widely watched company saw evidence of cancer in 65% of about 200 patients already known to have the disease.
	5.9.3 AACR - mélanome
Cancer Cells Actively Fuel Growth and Metastasis by Reprogramming Healthy Cells, Roswell Park Team Shows [Roswell Park] Research to be presented at AACR 2018 explains how melanoma tumors create an environment nurturing cancer.
Checkmate's I-O combo reverses PD-1 resistance in melanoma patients [FierceBiotech] While the investigators saw a response in the injected tumors, they also found that the treatment affected noninjected ones, including metastases in the liver, spleen and lungs, “showing more convincingly than has been shown in the past that a local therapy can achieve systemic efficacy.”
TLR9 Agonist CMP-001-Pembrolizumab Combination Shows Early Efficacy in Patients With Metastatic Melanoma Resistant to Anti-PD-1 [AACR] To date, across both the dose escalation and expansion cohorts, 15 patients have responded,” Milhem said. The objective response rate (ORR) is 22 percent. The ORR is 23 percent and 15 percent for patients on weekly and q3w treatment, respectively.
Combination therapy strengthens T cells in melanoma pre-clinical study [MD Anderson Cancer Center] The study combined OX40 agonist antibody and GSK2366771. OX40 is a protein critical to cell signaling required for T cells to fully function; while OX40 agonist antibodies are drugs that make the process more efficient. GSK236671 is an investigational drug that inhibits a pathway often linked to cancer called PI3K.
	5.9.4 AACR - poumon
AACR Annual Meeting 2018: A Round-up of Practice-changing Lung Cancer Immunotherapy Clinical Trials [Cancer Research Catalyst] The promising data from these highly anticipated trials pave the way for an array of new treatment options for patients with NSCLC, which accounts for more than 80 percent of all newly diagnosed lung cancers, and of which 70 percent are diagnosed at an advanced stage.
Immune Therapy Improves Lung Cancer Patients’ Survival [The Scientist] Pembrolizumab has already replaced chemotherapy as the treatment of choice in patients with tumors that express PD-L1 in more than 50 percent of cells, according to the AACR statement. However, the KEYNOTE-189 trial did not assess whether patients with high PD-L1 expression benefited from the combination therapy.
Drug Reduces Size of Some Lung Cancer Tumors, Relapse Rate After Surgery [Johns Hopkins] Larger studies are needed to examine the effects of combination immunotherapies, longer courses of a neoadjuvant drug and to define the role of the anti-PD-1 in reducing recurrences and curing early stage cancers.
	5.9.7 AACR - divers
Experts Discuss Insights From Molecular Tumor Boards, Clinical NGS Programs at AACR [Genome Web] Given the volume of cases moving through that program — 150 to 200 per week, on average — it is not feasible to bring together a molecular tumor board for most of the cases, he explained. Instead, that team has worked out methods for automating the annotation and analysis process, while establishing physician support tools that provide information on the levels of evidence supporting potentially actionable mutations.
An Augmented Reality Microscope for Cancer Detection [Google Research Blog] The platform consists of a modified light microscope that enables real-time image analysis and presentation of the results of machine learning algorithms directly into the field of view.
Short-acting Calcium Channel Blockers Were Associated With Increased Risk of Pancreatic Cancer in Postmenopausal Women [AACR] The authors conducted a prospective cohort study of 145,551 postmenopausal women ages 50 to 79 who were enrolled in the Women’s Health Initiative, a long-term national health study, between 1993 and 1998.
Dual Inhibition of IDO1 and PD-L1 Safe in Patients With Advanced Solid Tumors [AACR] As of Oct. 29, 2017, efficacy data for 15 patients with advanced pancreatic cancer treated at various dose levels revealed no responses. Four patients had stable disease, resulting in a disease control rate of 27 percent; one patient discontinued treatment following clinical progression.
	5.9.9 AACR - immunothérapies
How does leukemia escape from immunotherapy? [Fred Hutch] Paulson, Schmitt and colleagues harnessed an emerging technology called single-cell RNA sequencing, or scRNA-seq to help them understand what was going on. scRNA-seq enables researchers to look at the identity and activity of many different cells at once.
In CheckMate -141, Opdivo (nivolumab) Demonstrated Sustained Overall Survival (OS) Advantage over Standard of Care in Patients with Recurrent or Metastatic Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck (SCCHN) [BMS] Opdivo remains the only PD-1 inhibitor to demonstrate statistically significant OS versus standard chemotherapy in the primary analysis of a Phase 3 trial in these patients, with benefit maintained with long-term follow-up.
	6.1 Observation
It is time to end the post-code lottery for secondary cancer care [The Telegraph] Many women who gave evidence to the Inquiry’s focus groups reported approaching their GPs several times with symptoms such as backache and tiredness before the GP referred them on to the breast clinic for a secondary diagnosis. Regions varied enormously.
More activity, healthier diet tied to extended survival after colon cancer [Reuters] To investigate whether ACS guideline adherence might extend colon cancer survival, the authors looked at 992 people participating in a clinical trial of treatment for advanced colon cancer who reported on their diet and physical activity during and after chemotherapy.
	6.11 Patients
Why I dread yet another cancer confessional [The Guardian] It got me thinking about how we should talk about terminal illness, and the responsibilities of broadcasters to do this carefully. Does cancer somehow excuse journalists from the long-held belief that they shouldn’t be the story and that their job is to dispassionately report the news?