An approach to treating pancreatic cancer foretold as successful

Experimental treatment seems to have succeeded in stopping the progression of one woman Pancreatic cancerThe doctor reported on Wednesday New England Journal of Medicine..

The apparent success of therapies by fine-tuning the genes of immune cells to attack tumor cells can be a major step forward not only in treatment but also in treatment. Pancreatic cancerBut the same is true for other cancers.

“I’m really excited about this,” said Dr. Carl June, who pioneered different types of immunotherapy for certain blood cancers over a decade ago. June was not involved in the new report.

Kathy Wilkes, 71, from Ormond Beach, Florida, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in early 2018. She initially underwent at least eight times of chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and surgery called whipple surgery to remove part of the pancreas.

However, within a year the cancer had spread to her lungs.

“When I talked to a local oncologist and asked what to do, he had only one answer. It was chemotherapy. And I said,” It’s not my answer. ” Wilkes told NBC News.

She found a 2016 case report. New England Journal of MedicineIt details how people with advanced colon cancer were helped by an type of gene therapy targeting a mutation in the cancer called KRASG12D.

“I thought,’That’s the test I want.’ I knew it was a test to save me and save my life. I just have that feeling. Was, “said Wilkes.

With that in mind, she contacted the author of the report, Eric Tran. Tran was at the National Institutes of Health when treating patients with colorectal cancer, but then she moved to the Providence Cancer Institute in Portland, Oregon. There Wilkes found him and asked about getting the same type of treatment.

Wilkes was found to have the same genetic mutations as colon cancer patients, despite different forms of cancer. Tran, who was involved in her treatment, was also the author of the latest New England Journal of Medicine report.

In an approach, we took a sample of Wilkes T cells, a type of immune cell that attacks invaders in the body. Scientists then genetically modified these cells and reprogrammed them to recognize and attack tumor cells.

The T cells were then proliferated billions of times in the lab and then returned to Wilkes by a single intravenous infusion.

The approach is reminiscent of CAR-T therapyA treatment developed by June at the University of Pennsylvania.

“This is a potentially one-off treatment,” said Dr. Rom Ryderner, co-author of the new report and co-director of the Head and Neck Cancer Treatment Program at the Providence Cancer Institute. I did.

The Wilkes injection was June 14, 2021. Within a month, the report found that her lung tumor had shrunk by more than half. After 6 months, her tumor was reduced by 72% of its original size.

However, it is unclear how long the treatment will last.

But the new remedy is a “living drug,” said Rydoner, who treated Wilkes. That is, the modified T cells need to continue to grow and proliferate in the immune system and continue to be monitored in case the cancer recurs.

Wilkes says her cancer is stable, but she will undergo additional tests and scans this month as part of her annual update.

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most deadly forms of the disease. It is more difficult to treat because it is rarely found before it spreads.about 11% of patients According to the American Cancer Society, it is expected to survive five years after diagnosis.

Another patient with pancreatic cancer who received the same treatment at the Providence Cancer Institute did not survive. It is unclear why some people seem to have succeeded in the treatment, while others seem to have failed.

“We are working hard to answer that question,” Tran said. “Understanding the mechanism can help us develop better treatments.”