January 2016, Vol. 3, No. 1

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A New Year for Immunotherapy

Sanjiv S. Agarwala, MD

Letter to Our Readers

Dear Colleague,

agarwala_cmyk98pxI hope you had great holidays and a happy New Year! In this first issue of the year, we feature an in-depth review about immune checkpoint inhibition in patients with colorectal cancer. This is a continuation of our series on immunotherapy in specific disease states. In this article, we provide information on microsatellite instability and DNA mismatch, as well as data on combination therapy with the drugs pembrolizumab, nivolumab plus ipilimumab, and durvalumab.

“Because the prognosis for patients with recurrent or metastatic colorectal cancer is very poor, alternative strategies such as immunotherapy are needed to improve outcomes for patients with advanced disease,†the author concluded.

In addition, we highlight recent data on pembrolizumab combination therapy and data indicating antitumor activity.

You will read about the latest research in immunotherapy as part of the conference coverage of the 2015 Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer 30th Anniversary Annual Meeting. In particular, we discuss the clinical benefits associated with T-cells in patients with glioblastoma, the significance of mitochondrial activity in CD8T–natural killer cell interaction, and targeted therapy in patients with renal or ovarian cancers who express B7-H4 receptors.

In this issue, we also provide an interesting perspective on the impact of the Affordable Care Act. Let us know your thoughts about this article.

We hope you will enjoy this issue, and look forward to your continued feedback. This is a brand new year for immunotherapy. Look to Immunotherapy in Oncology for the latest data on advancements in molecular sequencing, targeted therapies, and new diagnostic modalities.

Best regards,

Sanjiv S. Agarwala, MD
Editor-in-Chief
Immunotherapy in Oncology

Natural Killer Cells - February 9, 2016

Using Natural Killer Cells in Immunotherapy: What Is Known, and Where to Next

In their review article, Carin I. M. Dahlberg, PhD, from the Cell Therapies Institute, Nova Southeastern University, Fort Lauderdale, FL, and the Cell and Gene Therapy Group, Center for Hematology and Regenerative Medicine, Karolinska University Hospital Huddinge, NOVUM, Stockholm, Sweden, and colleagues evaluated natural killer (NK)-cell–based therapies targeting cancer. In [ Read More ]

Melanoma - February 9, 2016

Pembrolizumab Combination Shows Robust Antitumor Activity

In 3 phase 1 and 2 studies, improved overall response rates (ORRs) were shown in patients with metastatic melanoma taking pembrolizumab (Keytruda) in combination with 3 other immunotherapies, including epa­cadostat, talimogene laherparepvec (Imlygic), and ipi­limumab (Yervoy). All 3 studies demonstrated significant antitumor activity. In addition, long-term follow-up data in a [ Read More ]