Onco Actu du 15 mai 2018

	1. Biologie
Pancreatic cancer foiled by a switch of tumour subtype [Nature] Mutations in the gene KDM6A drive an aggressive subtype of pancreatic cancer by causing repositioning of an enzyme complex that modifies histone proteins associated with DNA, leading to altered gene expression.
	1.4 Biologie - Technos
Beam Therapeutics Spotlights CRISPR 2.0 with Precise Gene Editor, $87M [Xconomy] The advance is called base editing, and it is aimed at fixing tiny genomic mistakes called single-point mutations.
Feng Zhang, David Liu's base-editing CRISPR startup officially launches with $87M [FierceBiotech] Beam thinks the potential for its approach is vast: "Over half of the genetic changes known to drive disease in clinical databases are point mutations, misspellings in the genome," Evans said.
	2.5 Etiologie - Gènes
Are common diseases generally caused by 'common' variants? [Mermaid's Tale] So, yes, common diseases are caused by common variants--tens or hundreds of them! Enumerating them is becoming a stale, repetitive costly business and maybe 'business' is the right word. The public is paying for more, but in a sense getting less.
	4.1 Dép., diag. & prono. - Prostate
A win for readers: coverage of new prostate cancer screening guidelines focuses on shared decision making [HealthNewsReview] While the Task Force’s prostate cancer screening recommendations have been controversial over the past few decades, they have consistently been based on rigorous evidence syntheses—unlike organizations such as the AUA which did not embrace this approach until 2013.
	4.2 Dép., diag. & prono. - Génome
Breast cancer patients increasingly receive multigene testing [Stanford Medicine] The increase in genetic tests — and the complexity of their results — also points out the need for additional genetic counselors, Kurian said.
The Ancestral Pace of Variant Reclassification [JNCI] In summary, it is clear that variant reclassification is not a rare event. Advances are needed in delivering updated genetic information to patients, and those in most need, such as minority populations with the highest reclassification rates, may be most disadvantaged if solutions are not developed soon.
	4.5 Dép., diag. & prono. - Colorectal
Immunoscore for colon cancer [BMJ Blogs] As for the patients, the authors claim that “the Immunoscore provides a reliable estimate of the risk of recurrence”, but with the wide 95% confidence intervals they cite, it does no such thing. It’s just an incremental improvement on the usual TNM score, with huge uncertainties for individual patients.
	4.9 Dép., diag. & prono. - Sein
Women could 'pay the price' of botched attempts to tackle screening scandal [The Telegraph] Promises to offer all victims of the NHS breast screening scandal a mammogram within six months are unrealistic – and could leave those with suspected cancer to “pay the price,” leading medics say.
Margaret McCartney: Can we now talk openly about the risks of screening? [BMJ] It’s a rare thing for me to criticise the Department of Health for scaremongering over the effect of its mistakes, but there we have it. And let’s not forget that, by its own modelling, as many as 810 women will have avoided the risks of overdiagnosis and overtreatment.
	5.12.7 Immunothérapies - vaccins
PET scan tracer could predict efficacy of cancer “vaccine” [Stanford Medicine] The new tracer could allow researchers to check to see that the T cells in the tumor are in fact activated.
	5.2 Pharma
TP brings on Adverum’s ex-CMO following launch of first-in-human study [FierceBiotech] TP is developing ropotrectinib (TPX-0005) to target solid tumors with ALK, ROS or NTRK genetic mutations. The San Diego-based company hopes it will overcome the treatment resistance seen with other precision cancer therapies.
Cambridge spinout CellCentric gets $26M for single-asset epigenetics approach to prostate cancer [EndPoints] The money is expected to carry the p300/CBP inhibitor through Phase IIb in prostate cancer and allow the small virtual team to establish separate programs in hematological or other cancers.
Targeting the tricky P13K pathway in cancer, MEI gets $75M to push program through registration study [EndPoints] The company acquired the program back in 2013 from San Francisco-based Pathway Therapeutics, and has brought the oral drug to clinical proof-of-concept trials in both follicular lymphoma and indolent lymphoma and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.
	5.2.2 Pharma - Fusions & Acquisitions
Eli Lilly Bolsters Cancer Drug Pipeline with $110M Deal for AurKa [Xconomy] AurKa focuses its research on a family of enzymes that play a role in cell division of cancer cells. These enzymes, called Aurora kinases, are abundant in tumors and have emerged as potential targets for new cancer drugs.
Lilly to buy cancer drug developer AurKa Pharma [Reuters] AurKa’s chief drug under development was discovered by Lilly, but the drugmaker sold the compound in 2016 to TVM Capital Life Science, which established AurKa.
Eli Lilly’s oncology R&D spree continues with $576M deal to buy a startup and reel back Aurora A drug [EndPoints] In this new deal, Lilly wants to retrieve an Aurora kinase A inhibitor dubbed AK-01 that’s been demonstrating some early-stage promise in Phase I studies. TVM (AurKa’s parent company) bagged the drug back in 2016, when Lilly was shedding assets that didn’t fit its priority list.
	5.2.3 Pharma - économie
ATyr slashes headcount, cuts costs after ORCA runs aground [FierceBiotech] Details of the data have yet to emerge, but aTyr said what it learned over the past month suggests its ORCA antibodies lack the efficacy to advance. That prompted aTyr to call off IND-enabling activities and layoff staff. ATyr’s diminished resources are now focused on its last hope, ATYR1923.
Novartis’ tone-deaf response to Michael Cohen: troubling, but not surprising [STAT] The apparent lack of due diligence by Novartis underscores a disturbing pattern in which the company has repeatedly run into trouble by haphazardly tossing around money to win friends and boost business.
	5.3.4 Traitements - AMM (FDA, EMA,...)
EMA Recommends a New Formulation and Extension of Indications for Dasatinib [ESMO] It concerns treatment of paediatric patients with Ph+ CML in chronic phase.
	5.9 AACR
Last Month in Oncology with Dr. Bishal Gyawali: April 2018 [ecancernews] In most such big meetings, there is an optimistic atmosphere, although that doesn’t always translate to similar optimism in the clinic. However, I do hope that some of the big news from AACR 2018 translates to become important advances for cancer patients worldwide.
	6. Lutte contre les cancers
Head of Biden Cancer Initiative draws on own diagnosis to speed research [STAT] We’re trying to create the cancer research and care system that people think we already have.
Health Affairs New Issue: Precision Medicine [Health Affairs] The May issue of Health Affairs is centered on the use of precision medicine and genetic information to better diagnose and treat patients. It features real-world examples of how precision medicine works and proposes policy prescriptions advancing its implementation and impact in the United States and the world.
Brain cancer to get more funding in tribute to Tessa Jowell, says No 10 [The Guardian] Research funding will double to £40m and all NHS hospitals will perform gold standard tumour diagnosis tests.
	6.10.1 Politiques (USA)
Azar, striking an aggressive tone, suggests Trump will call out drug companies behind major price hikes [STAT] The American public, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said, deserves to know which companies are “gouging consumers.” Azar suggested that Trump would be quick to call out individual drug companies in the future.
Trump Administration's 3 Biggest Ideas For Lowering Drug Prices [NPR] "I've been a drug company executive. I know the tired talking points: the idea that if one penny disappears from pharma profit margins, American innovation will grind to a halt," Azar said. "I'm not interested in hearing those talking points anymore."
HHS Secretary Azar talks about more brass knuckle tactics on drug prices, but investors shrug it off again [EndPoints] In the speech today, Azar attacked two of the big weapons that have been suggested for reining in prices, but also said they would likely remain on the table unless the industry played ball in negotiating better terms for drugs like Revlimid.
What Trump Should Actually Do About the High Cost of Drugs [NY Times] Amid a long list of proposals, the president’s big idea for cutting drug costs at home is raising them abroad.
Just Saying Yes to Drug Companies [NY Times] The bottom line is that American exceptionalism has prevailed again: We’re still the only major nation that lets the drug companies charge whatever they like.
	6.11 Patients
Cancer patients urged to discuss 'end of life' plans [BBC News] The study found that maintaining a "fighting attitude" could have a negative effect on terminal cancer patients' end of life experience.
Pressure to stay positive may be a negative for cancer patients [The Guardian] It said one of the biggest barriers to introducing conversations about dying was the pressure to stay positive, even when patients received a terminal diagnosis.
	6.7 DMP, Big Data & applis
Techonomy NYC: With Precision Medicine, Every Disease will be a ‘Rare Disease’ [Techonomy] “The holy grail, I think, also integrates in the power of patient-reported outcome data… as well as genomic data,” she added.
How big data can help prostate cancer patients [ecancernews] On May 14th, the members of the PIONEER consortium (Prostate Cancer DIagnOsis and TreatmeNt Enhancement through the Power of Big Data in EuRope) participated in the launch of a new public-private Pan-European prostate cancer research initiative in Amsterdam.
	6.7.2 Applis
Apple Health Records: Where early adopters see the biggest impact so far [Healthcare IT News] With 39 hospitals using the health record in an iPhone and many changes predicted for the future of EHRs, here’s a look at what first movers have found.
	6.9 Controverses
As Twitter explodes, Eric Lander apologizes for toasting James Watson [STAT] Lander, co-chair of President Obama’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology and a former leader of the Human Genome Project, called Watson’s views “abhorrent,” characterizing them as “sexist, racist, and anti-Semitic.”
A cancer researcher said she collected blood from 98 people. It was all her own. [Retraction Watch] The former researcher at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center swapped her own blood samples for those taken from 98 human subjects. The misconduct affects two grant progress reports and two papers.
Blood, sweat and tears in biotech — the Theranos story [Nature] Eric Topol extols a gripping account of the rise and fall of the US medical-testing company.
J&J defends itself in trial over baby powder asbestos claims [Reuters] J&J has also been battling some 6,000 cases claiming its baby powder caused ovarian cancer.