Experimental cancer drug shrinks tumours in six cancer types, early trial shows
A phase 1 clinical trial of an experimental drug designed to stop cancer cells from hiding from the immune system found that it shrank tumours in 26 of 83 patients, with 15 experiencing tumour reductions of at least 30%. The drug, GRWD5769, was given as a tablet alongside the immunotherapy cemiplimab to patients with cervical, bladder, liver, bowel, lung, or head and neck cancers. All participants had previously failed to respond to treatment, and immunotherapy had either not worked or stopped working in every case. The drug works by inhibiting an enzyme called ERAP1, which cancer cells use to evade detection by the immune system’s T-cells. The results were presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting in Chicago by the trial’s principal investigator, Prof Fiona Thistlethwaite. Researchers noted that the drug was tolerated well by patients and that a larger study is planned. The drug was developed by Oxford-based Greywolf Therapeutics.
What’s reported
The trial enrolled 83 patients across the UK, France, Spain, and Australia.
Cancers studied: cervical, bladder, liver, bowel, lung, and head and neck.
26 patients had tumour shrinkage, with 15 showing reductions of at least 30%.
GRWD5769 halted disease progression for at least six months in 18% of cervical cancer patients, 32% of liver cancer patients, 36% of bladder cancer patients, 38% of head and neck cancer patients, 51% of bowel cancer patients, and 55% of lung cancer patients.
The drug is administered as a tablet that can be taken at home.
The trial remains ongoing, with a larger study planned.
Key figures
Prof Fiona Thistlethwaite: principal investigator, consultant medical oncologist, and medical director of the Christie clinical research facility.
Prof Stefan Symeonides: UK principal investigator, consultant medical oncologist at the Edinburgh Cancer Centre, and professor of experimental cancer medicine at the University of Edinburgh.
Dr Samuel Godfrey: research information lead at Cancer Research UK (not involved in the trial).
Sources: The Guardian
