(Press-News.org) San Antonio, Texas (June 6, 2011)—Investigators at SNM's 58th Annual Meeting are presenting results from a phase 1 clinical trial for a cancer therapy that has the potential to kill colorectal tumors with less destruction of healthy tissue. Further research could lead to the use of this radioimmunotherapy to eliminate residual cancer after surgery or as a standard treatment to keep tumors from returning or spreading to other organs.
"Compared to the conventional way of guiding radiation to tumors with radiolabeled antibody, pretargeted radioimmunotherapy offers an attractive potential alternative because the delivery of therapeutic isotope is rapid and is separated from the long antibody delivery process, thereby reducing the harmful effects of radiation to the body, especially the bone marrow," says Rafke Schoffelen, MD, scientist of the study at Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen, The Netherlands. "This results in an optimal scheme with maximum therapeutic effect and minimal side effects."
According to the American Cancer Society it is estimated that more than 141,200 Americans in 2011 will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer, and 48,000 will die of the disease. Colorectal cancer is currently the third most commonly diagnosed cancer and the third leading cause of cancer death for both men and women across the country. This form of cancer develops in the colon and rectum, usually as a result of polyps, or abnormal growths, that extend from mucous membranes in the lower gastrointestinal tract. Once cancer is detected, the most common treatments are surgery and chemotherapy, but chemotherapy is associated with many side effects, some of them serious and lifelong. This pretargeted radioimmunotherapy is engineered to be an effective alternative with far fewer adverse effects.
In recent years the development of radioimmunotherapy has led to increasingly targeted cancer therapies that combine antibodies pinpointing specific physiological processes of the cancer and medical isotopes that deliver a dose of radiation to the cancer tissue. Pretargeted radioimmunotherapy takes this a step further by breaking the therapy into two phases. In the first phase, an antibody is infused that recognizes both an antigen from the tumor and the building blocks of proteins that serve as a vehicle for the radioisotope. When the antibody has cleared the rest of the patient's system, leaving only the tumor-bound antibody, a second phase is administered in the form of an injected small protein labeled with the medical isotope. The drug binds with the already tumor-bound antibody and delivers the radiation dose. The fraction of the drug that is not bound is quickly cleared from the rest of the body by the kidneys and out through the urine.
The objective of this study—the first of its kind to treat patients with metastatic, or spreading, colorectal cancer with pretargeted radioimmunotherapy—was to improve patients' prognosis without compromising their quality of life. It is conducted in collaboration with Garden State Cancer Center, Belleville, Immunomedics Inc. (NASDAQ: IMMU) and IBC Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Morris Plains, N.J., developers of the pretargeting mechanism and reagents.
First, patients were administered a test-cycle to map the path and predict the radiation dose of the subsequent therapy injection. The antibody, TF2, was infused followed by the small protein, IMP288, carrying a non-therapeutic isotope, 111In, which was measured by whole-body planar and single photon emission computed tomography imaging. Patients were then administered TF2 again, and the therapeutic isotope and agent 177Lu-IMP288. Research showed effective targeting of tumors and minimal healthy tissue damage, which could lead the way for further studies with higher or multiple dosing strategies and greater targeting of cancer tissue.
INFORMATION:
Scientific Paper 358: R. Schoffelen, O. Boerman, W. van der Graaf, C. van Herpen, R. Sharkey, W. McBride, C. Chang, E. Rossi, D. Goldenberg, W. Oyen, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Garden State Cancer Center, Belleville, NJ; Immunomedics, Inc., Morris Plains, NJ; IBC Pharmaceuticals, Morris Plains, NJ; "Phase I clinical study of the feasibility of pretargeted radioimmunotherapy (PT-RAIT) in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC): First results," SNM's 58th Annual Meeting, June 4-8, 2011, San Antonio, TX.
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San Antonio, Texas (June 6, 2011)—Research presented at SNM's 58th Annual Meeting is taking targeted molecular imaging to a new level by combining two commonly used imaging agents into one molecular imaging procedure. The combination of these agents creates a comprehensive examination of the extent of cancer spread within a variety of organ systems in the body.
"During a time when health care costs are under intense scrutiny, consolidated procedures such as this one that provide comprehensive imaging data are a benefit to everyone—to clinicians, healthcare administrators ...
Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is the leading genetic cause of death in children under 2, with no treatment other than supportive care. In the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (Early Edition, week of June 6), researchers at Children's Hospital Boston show how loss or mutation of the SMA gene causes progressive muscle degeneration and weakness, and suggest a promising approach to treating the condition, sometimes referred to as a "Lou Gehrig's disease of babies."
Spinal muscular atrophy, or SMA, affects one in every 1 in 6,000-10,000 infants, but an estimated ...
San Antonio, Texas (June 6, 2011)—A study presented at SNM's 58th Annual Meeting may provide a new tool for detection of malignant-stage ovarian cancer. Researchers found that positron emission tomography and computed tomography (PET/CT), which images both functional and anatomical changes in the body, was useful for preoperative cancer imaging of ovarian masses when used with a radiotracer that is actively metabolized by cells as fuel. Physicians imaging patients suspected of having malignant tumors can see where cancerous cells are hyper-metabolizing the tracer and accurately ...
San Antonio, Texas (June 6, 2011)—A study revealed at SNM's 58th Annual Meeting is comparing the breast-tumor detection capabilities of two very different imaging technologies—breast-specific gamma imaging (BSGI), which provides functional images of breast physiology, and ultrasound—for women with complex breast imaging cases that require further evaluation. Many women who have dense breast tissue (radiodense breasts) are difficult to image using mammography, currently the gold standard of breast imaging. For women whose mammograms are not clear enough to determine whether ...
San Antonio, Texas (June 6, 2011)—Patients undergoing molecular imaging to evaluate their stomach's ability to clear food are going to have an altogether new kind of breakfast. A study presented at SNM's 58th Annual Meeting has confirmed that nuclear medicine technologists can effectively use oatmeal products radiolabeled with a medical isotope to target and image the emptying of the stomach.
"The current standard for molecular imaging of gastric emptying is radiolabeling egg meal, but there are patients who, either due to lifestyle choices or allergies, cannot eat eggs," ...
(Boston) - Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) researchers found that girls who followed the Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet pattern had a lower incidence of excess weight gain as measured by body mass index (BMI) over the 10-year period of their adolescence. These findings are reported in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
Obesity is a major public health problem, with 17 percent of American children overweight and 67 percent of adults either overweight or obese. Excess weight during childhood leads to numerous health problems ...
The implementation of virtual water into trading deals has been suggested as a realistic solution to solving the global inequality of renewable freshwater, but new research suggests that it may not be as revolutionary as first thought.
In a study published today, Tuesday 7 June, in IOP Publishing's journal Environmental Research Letters, researchers have claimed that virtual water is unlikely to increase water use equality, primarily because the existing amount of virtual water is not large enough to overcome the inequalities that exist.
Lead author David Seekell, ...
Boston, Mass (June 6, 2011)—A new study finds that the cancer care provided by the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) for men 65 years and older is at least as good as, and by some measures better than, Medicare-funded fee-for-service care obtained through the private sector. The study, reported in the June 7 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine, was led by Nancy Keating, an associate professor of health care policy at Harvard Medical School.
Several factors could account for the high quality of VHA care. "Care in the VHA is much better coordinated than most other settings," ...
The 2011 Formula 1 Grand Prix of Europe will take place on the Valencia Street Circuit on 24, 25 and 26 June this year.
Formula 1 enjoys a fan base in the millions throughout the world and also attracts spectators in their tens of thousands wherever each race is held. This summer sees the prestigious Grand Prix of Europe take place in Spain's Valencia, a city which typically enjoys massive tourist numbers each summer regardless.
Valencia hotels in the port area of the city can expect a bumper week, as the city's street circuit is located in that part of town. The ...
Men who report having bullied peers in childhood appear to have an increased risk of perpetrating violence against an intimate partner in adulthood, according to a report posted online today by the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
The authors point out, as background information, that roughly one-quarter of women will experience violence from intimate partners, and that prior research suggests up to 40 percent of men have been perpetrators of such violence. The authors sought to determine whether a history of school bullying ...
