We improved the bispecific antibody platform that primarily engages natural killer (NK) cells to kill cancer cells through antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) by adding IL-15 as a crosslinker that expands and self-sustains the effector NK cell population. The overall goal was to target B7-H3, an established marker predominantly expressed on cancer cells and minimally expressed on normal cells, and prove that it could target cancer cells in vitro and inhibit tumor growth in vivo. The tri-specific killer engager (TriKETM) was assembled by DNA shuffling and ligation using DNA encoding a camelid anti-CD16 antibody fragment, a wild-type IL-15 moiety, and an anti-B7-H3 scFv (clone 376.96). The expressed and purified cam1615B7H3 protein was tested for in vitro NK cell activity against a variety of tumors and in vivo against a tagged human MA-148 ovarian cancer cell line grafted in NSG mice. cam1615B7H3 showed specific NK cell expansion, high killing activity across a range of B7-H3+ carcinomas, and the ability to mediate growth inhibition of aggressive ovarian cancer in vivo. cam1615B7H3 TriKE improves NK cell function, expansion, targeted cytotoxicity against various types of B7-H3-positive human cancer cell lines, and delivers an anti-cancer effect in vivo in a solid tumor setting.
16 December 2019 in Prostate Cancer and Prostatic Diseases
Background: Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) is the backbone of systemic therapy for men with prostate cancer (PC); almost one-half of patients receive treatment during their disease course. However, a range of cognitive and other central nervous system (CNS) changes have been associated with ADT. In this review, we discuss extant data describing these complications and the mechanisms through which medications used to deliver ADT may affect them. Methods: We performed a MEDLINE search for appropriate papers published between January 2000 and December 2018. Relevant papers were selected and reviewed; additional publications were identified by manually assessing references from included papers, and recent congress abstracts. Results: Of ~230 search outputs, 33 were selected for inclusion. Some studies suggested a clear association between ADT and CNS effects in men with PC, whereas others did not. Accurate assessment is limited by test instrument variability, inadequate sample sizes, short follow-up duration, and limited prospective longitudinal studies. The approved second-generation androgen receptor (AR) inhibitors enzalutamide and apalutamide were associated with some CNS-related adverse events (AEs) in clinical studies, including fatigue (which can interfere with cognitive function). The androgen synthesis inhibitor abiraterone acetate was associated with a low CNS AE profile when compared with enzalutamide. The AR antagonist darolutamide demonstrated a comparable incidence of cognitive disorder in clinical trials to that of ADT alone. Conclusions: Adequately caring for men receiving ADT requires an understanding of the symptoms, incidence and magnitude of cognitive effects, and a feasible approach to cognitive assessment and management in clinical settings. Some CNS effects could relate to blood–brain barrier penetration and direct AR inhibitor activity; drug safety profiles may differ by the degree of blood–brain barrier penetration of particular agents. Ongoing clinical trials seek to define the CNS tolerability of newer AR pathway-targeted therapy options more clearly.
12 February 2022 in Prostate Cancer and Prostatic Diseases
Background: Altering the systemic milieu through exercise has been proposed as a potential mechanism underlying exercise-driven tumour suppression. It is not yet known whether men with advanced prostate cancer can elicit such adaptations following a program of exercise. The purpose is to examine myokine levels of serum acquired from metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) patients recruited to the INTERVAL-GAP4 trial before and after 6 months of exercise and its tumour-suppressive effect. Methods: Twenty-five men with mCRPC (age = 74.7 ± 7.1 yrs) were randomised to supervised multimodal (aerobic and resistance) exercise (EX) or self-directed exercise control group (CON). Body composition was assessed using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA), and fasting blood in a rested state was collected at baseline and at 6 months. Serum levels of myokines (SPARC, OSM, decorin, IGF-1, and IGFBP-3) were measured. Serum was applied to the prostate cancer cell line DU145, and growth was assessed for 72 h. Results: No significant change in body composition was observed. Adjusted serum OSM (P = 0.050) and relative OSM (P = 0.083), serum SPARC (P = 0.022) and relative SPARC (P = 0.025) increased in EX compared to CON. The area under curve (AUC) over 72 h showed a significant reduction in DU145 growth after applying post-intervention serum from the EX vs CON (P = 0.029). Conclusion: Elevated myokine expressions and greater tumour-suppressive effects of serum after 6 months of periodised and autoregulated supervised exercise was observed in men with mCRPC. Exercise-induced systemic changes may slow disease progression in men with advanced prostate cancer.
Purpose:This study provides a contemporary assessment of the treatment patterns, health care resource utilization (HRU) and costs among metastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer (mCSPC) patie...
Metastatic prostate cancer remains lethal with a 5-year survival rate of about 30%, indicating the need for better treatment options. Novel antiandrogens (NAA)—enzalutamide and abiraterone—have been the mainstay of treatment for advanced disease since 2011. In patients who progress on the first NAA, responses to the second NAA are infrequent (25–30%) and short-lasting (median PFS ~3 months). With the growing adoption of NAA therapy in pre-metastatic castration-resistant settings, finding better treatment options for first-line mCRPC has become an urgent clinical need. The regulatory approval of two PARP inhibitors in 2020—rucaparib and olaparib—has provided the first targeted therapy option for patients harboring defects in selected DNA damage response and repair (DDR) pathway genes. However, a growing body of preclinical and clinical data shows that co-inhibition of AR and PARP induces synthetic lethality and could be a promising therapy for patients without any DDR alterations. In this review article, we will investigate the limitations of NAA monotherapy, the mechanistic rationale for synthetic lethality induced by co-inhibition of AR and PARP, the clinical data that have led to the global development of a number of these AR and PARP combination therapies, and how this may impact patient care in the next 2–10 years.
29 November 2022 in Prostate Cancer and Prostatic Diseases