Eliminating Brain Tumors with an Immunotoxin
TO IMPROVE THE SURVIVAL OF PATIENTS with brain tumors, Vidya Chandramohan, Ph.D., focuses on developing bacterial toxin-based therapies for glioblastoma. Glioblastoma-targeting immunotoxins were made by fusing the D2C7 antibody that binds to proteins on most brain tumor cells and Pseudomonas bacterial toxin. The D2C7 immunotoxin was developed 30 years ago in the laboratory of Darell D. Bigner, MD, Ph.D.
Update on Recombinant Poliovirus Cancer Immunotherapy
The Phase-2 study of PVSRIPO in recurrent glioblastoma, combined with an immune checkpoint inhibitor (pembrolizumab), is now active and recruiting patients at Duke (NC), Jacksonville Baptist (FL), University Hospitals Cleveland (OH), with other sites at Oregon Health (OR), Ohio State (OH), Harvard Dana Farber/Mass General/Beth Israel (MA), Univ. of Connecticut (CT), and Univ. of California San Francisco (CA) coming on board.
Slowing Tumor Growth
GISELLE LÓPEZ, MD, Ph.D., CONCENTRATES ON a lesser-known brain tumor, called oligodendroglioma, in the hopes that her work will make a difference not only in the lives of those affected by the rare brain tumor but also offer scientists a better understanding of how brain tumors behave.
Thinking Outside the Box to Find Better Treatments
HIS RESEARCH IS FUELED BY THE EMOTIONAL CONNECTION HE FEELS WITH HIS PATIENTS, especially those with incurable brain cancers. Medical Oncologist Mustafa Khasraw, MD, looks for new ways to treat brain cancer, including using old drugs in new ways or combining medicines and treatments to get more powerful results. Khasraw thinks outside the box regarding new treatments and how they are evaluated in clinical trials.