Therapeutic
Patient advocate by choice: Solve M.E.’s Oved Amitay
In this post we are thrilled to share a pre-event conversation with Solve M.E.’s President and CEO Oved Amitay, in which we discuss his team’s work
Merck and Moderna begin Phase III melanoma trial
Merck and Moderna announced the initiation of a Phase III clinical trial evaluating V940 (mRNA-4157) in combination with KEYTRUDA
Continued progress for Vaxxinity against Parkinson’s
Less than a month since we reported Vaxxinity’s “promising” results in a trial of UB-312, the company has released further encouraging news; new data
Vaccines are the “future” in cancer, says Dr Pravin Kaumaya
During the Congress last month we were pleased to meet Dr Pravin Kaumaya for a conversation about the state of play in the cancer vaccine field.
UK government and BioNTech join forces on cancer trials
Following the signing of a memorandum between the UK government and BioNTech in January 2023, an agreement has been established to provide “improved access”
Lassa vaccine in monkeys: protection not therapy
Researchers in France published a paper in Nature Communications in March 2023 detailing the results of an investigation into their Lassa fever vaccine candidate. MeV-NP was described in 2021 as providing “sufficient” protection against Lassa fever with just a single...
Moderna and Merck granted BTD for cancer therapy
Following positive results from a Phase IIb trial in December 2022, Moderna and Merck have announced that their personalised mRNA cancer vaccine, in combination with KEYTRUDA, has been granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation by the FDA. In a statement in February...
Scancell announces “encouraging” early Modi-1 data
In February 2023 Scancell announced completion of a monotherapy dose finding arm of the Phase I/II ModiFY clinical trial. Data demonstrated that the Modi-1 cancer vaccine was “safe and well tolerated” with “encouraging early efficacy” in a head and neck cancer...
Gritstone bio and NCI collaborate on clinical trial
In February 2023 Gritstone bio and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) of NIH announced a collaboration to evaluate an “autologous T cell therapy expressing a T cell receptor targeting mutated KRAS in combination with Gritstone’s KRAS-directed vaccine candidate”. The...
VBI Vaccines announces Phase II data for HBV therapy
In February 2023 VBI Vaccines announced interim data from a Phase II study evaluating a combination treatment of VBI-2601 (BRII-179) and BRII-835 (VIR-2218) in chronically infected HBV patients. The data demonstrates that the therapy was “generally well-tolerated". It...
Cancer vaccines strengthened against aggressive tumours
In research published in Nature biomedical engineering a team of scientists at Northwestern University’s International Institute for Nanotechnology (IIN) explored the effects of structural changes to cancer vaccines. Using chemistry and nanotechnology they changed the...
AC Immune Alzheimer’s vaccine shows promise in early trials
Swiss based AC Immune reported in January 2023 that ACI-24.060, its anti-amyloid-beta (Abeta) vaccine, had “elicited an anti-Abeta antibody response” and was “well tolerated” in patients with prodromal Alzheimer’s disease (AD). It will therefore move to a second...
Cancer vaccine potential in 2023: mRNA moves forward
Towards the end of 2022 we noted the positive results of a Moderna/Merck trial for a personalised cancer vaccine in combination with KEYTRUDA therapy. After the mRNA momentum of the pandemic, there appears to be a sense of optimism in the therapeutic community for the...
Moderna and Merck meet mRNA melanoma efficacy endpoints
In December 2022 Moderna and Merck announced positive results from a Phase IIb trial of mRNA-4157/v940, an investigational personalised cancer vaccine, in combination with Merck’s anti-PD-1 therapy KEYTRUDA. In this trial, the combination approach demonstrated a...
Exclusive interview with Dr Stephen Johnston
As we gear up towards the World Vaccine and Immunotherapy Congress in San Diego later this month we have been meeting a few of our speakers to get some exclusive insights before their sessions. Dr Stephen Johnston will be representing Calviri Inc. as founding CEO....
AELIX Therapeutics study in Nature meets endpoints
In November 2022 the results of the AELIX-002 trial were published in Nature by collaborators from Aelix Therapeutics and Gilead Sciences. This is the trial that Dr Christian Brander, Co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer at Aelix Therapeutics, hinted at in our...
Exclusive interview with Dr Andrew Vaillant
As we look back on the Congress in Europe and forward to future events, a conversation with Dr Andrew Vaillant of Replicor links our event in Barcelona to the World Vaccine and Immunotherapy Congress in San Diego. As Chief Scientific Officer with 20 years’ experience,...
Glioblastoma vaccine offers longer life to patients
In a study published in JAMA Oncology in November 2022, researchers from America and Europe collaborated to demonstrate “clinically meaningful and statistically significant extension of survival” for patients with glioblastoma. The results are described as...
Fentanyl vaccine shows therapeutic promise in rats
A study by researchers led by the University of Houston demonstrates potential to eliminate the high caused by the synthetic opioid fentanyl. The hope that it will block its ability to enter the brain has positive implications for tackling a widespread opioid...
Breast cancer vaccine: safe at Phase I trial
A study in JAMA Oncology in November 2022 suggests that researchers in the US are making progress with an experimental vaccine against breast cancer. Led by Dr Mary (Nora) L. Disis of the University of Washington Medicine Cancer Vaccine Institute, the team indicate...
