Toshiba (TYO:6502) said today that it, along with Japan’s National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology have developed a novel pencil beaming scanning system which they claim significantly reduces the size of the system without lowered performance. The company said that the newly designed system can be mounted on a rotating gantry with superconducing beam […]
Oncology
OncoSec inks deal with Merck to study drug-device therapy for metastatic melanoma
OncoSec Medical (NSDQ:ONCS) said today that it inked a clinical trial collaboration and supply agreement with Merck (NYSE:MRK) to evaluate the combination of its ImmunoPulse IL-12 electroporation device with Merck’s Keytruda therapy in a Phase II clinical trial. The trial aims to evaluate the drug-device combination in patients with metastatic melanoma – specifically patients who experienced disease […]
Novocure touts quality of life data for Optune, chemo combo
Novocure (NSDQ:NVCR) touted health-related quality of life analyses from a pivotal Phase III trial combining its Optune device with standard temozolomide chemotherapy for patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma. The data showed that adding Optune to temozolomide did not negatively impact health-related quality of life, except for itchy skin which the company attributed to skin irritation […]
Study: Nanoparticle shrinks tumor size by 80% in mouse model
Researchers from the Mayo Clinic have developed a type of cancer-fighting nanoparticle that is designed to shrink breast cancer tumors and prevent recurrence. In a mouse model, the therapy yielded a 70-80% reduction in tumor size and mice treated with the nanoparticles demonstrated resistance to future tumor recurrence a month later. The nanoparticle is coated […]
NovoCure launches 2 pediatric trials of TTFields
NovoCure (NSDQ:NVCR) said today it is launching 2 pilot trials exploring the use of tumor treating fields to treat pediatric patients with high grade gliomas. The St. Helier, N.J.-based company produces the Optune, a mobile device that delivers low-intensity, intermediate frequency, alternating electric fields, referred to as “tumor treating fields” to inhibit cancer cell replication and cause cancer […]
Advanced Proteome Therapeutics moves into Johnson & Johnson’s Innovation lab
Boston-based biotech Advanced Proteome Therapeutics (CVE:APC) said today that it is moving into Johnson & Johnson‘s (NYSE:JNJ) Innovation lab, JLabs, in Toronto. The 40,000 square-foot incubator is home to a number of life science start-up companies, including Avrobio and Immune Biosolutions. Johnson & Johnson Innovation doesn’t take an equity stake in the companies occupying its lab space, […]
Aeterna shares tumble after cancer-killing agent fails in Phase III trial
Shares in Aeterna Zentaris (NSDQ:AEZS) fell more than -50% this morning after the company said that the Phase III trial of Zoptrex did not meet its primary endpoint in women with locally advanced, recurrent or metastatic endometrial cancer. The ZoptEC pivotal trial was designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of a hybrid molecule made up […]
This test can detect tiny ovarian tumors sooner than current tests
Massachusetts Institute of Technology engineers have developed a way to detect ovarian tumors that are smaller than 2 mm in diameter, allowing for detection 5 months earlier than existing tests. A synthetic biomarker, which is a nanoparticle that works with tumor proteins to release fragments into the urine for detection, helps the MIT-developed test create […]
Nanoparticle vaccine triggers immune system to fight multiple cancer types
Researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center have developed a nanoparticle vaccine immunotherapy that fights multiple cancer types, according to a preclinical study published in Nature Nanotechnology. The nanovaccine, which the team calls a 1st of its kind, is made up of tumor antigens inside of a synthetic polymer nanoparticle. Get the full story […]
Study: Sirtex’s microspheres improve quality of life, but don’t extend survival
Sirtex Medical (ASX:SRX) said today that it’s yttrium-90 resin microspheres did not extend survival significantly compared to Bayer’s sorafenib in a study of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. Although the 459-patient trial did not meet its primary endpoint, the company reported that patients treated with its microspheres experienced less than half the number of severe, treatment-related […]
Study: Gamida Cell’s NiCord cell graft yields fewer infections, shorter hospital stays
Gamida Cell said today that its NiCord cell graft produces fewer infections, shorter hospital stays and shorter time to engraftment compared to standard umbilical cord blood transplantation. The company’s work was published in Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation. Get the full story at our sister site, Drug Delivery Business News.