Immunotherapy

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Plain language summary This editorial talks about combining radiation therapy (using high-energy rays to kill cancer cells) and immunotherapy (boosting the body's immune system to fight cancer) to treat advanced lung cancer. When used together, these therapies can work better to kill more cancer cells and help patients live longer. But, there's still a lot we don't know. For instance, we need to figure out the best timing and doses for these treatments, and which patients will benefit the most. The article stresses that more research is needed to answer these questions and make this combined treatment a more effective option for advanced lung cancer patients...

Aim: To compare the protein-protein interactions of antibodies targeting PD-1 and its ligand (PD-L1) with their targets in an attempt to explain the antibodies' binding affinity. Materials & methods: The structural features of complexes between pembrolizumab, nivolumab, durvalumab, atezolizumab, avelumab and PD-1/PD-L1 are described, with the use of software and based on crystallographic data. Results: Pembrolizumab has more structural features, including the number and type of the bonds and total binding surface area, which could rationalize its different clinical behavior compared with nivolumab...

The therapeutic armamentarium for gastroenterologists in treating ulcerative colitis (UC) has been rapidly growing since the introduction of monoclonal antibodies directed against anti-TNFs. Ustekinumab is a monoclonal antibody binding the shared p40 subunit of IL-12 and IL-23, and the inhibition of these two cytokines, implicated in host response to microbial pathogens, has demonstrated clinical efficacy in different immune-mediated diseases, including moderate-to-severe UC. This narrative review summarizes the newest clinical evidence regarding the efficacy, effectiveness and safety of ustekinumab in moderate-to-severe UC, including specific situations (pregnancy, breastfeeding, elderly/pediatric populations, extraintestinal manifestations, acute severe UC, pouchitis and dual biological therapy)...

Aims: Allergen-specific immunotherapy uses a sublingual (sublingual immunotherapy [SLIT]) or subcutaneous (subcutaneous immunotherapy [SCIT]) route. This pharmacovigilance study aimed to determine the number and type of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) for SLIT and SCIT using carbamylated monomeric allergoids (CMAs) in children. Materials & methods: This pharmacovigilance study analyzed real-world post-marketing reports collected from a safety database of Lais sublingual tablets and injective Lais-in, containing CMAs for over 10 years...

Filgotinib is an oral small molecule that selectively inhibits JAK1. It is already approved for the treatment of moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis (UC). Ongoing studies are evaluating the efficacy and safety of filgotinib in Crohn's disease (CD). The purpose of this review is to summarize the available data regarding filgotinib in the management of UC and CD. We used Pubmed, Embase and clinicaltrials.gov websites to search all available data and currently ongoing studies regarding the efficacy and safety of filgotinib in inflammatory bowel diseases...

Tweetable abstract Immunotherapy for head and neck cancer shows promising new directions - and challenges ahead. What can we learn from recent trials to improve patient selection and optimize combination therapy?

Aim: The OPTIMIzE registry study evaluated real-world outcomes in patients with advanced melanoma receiving immuno-oncology therapies. Materials and methods: Data were collected for patients treated with anti-programmed death 1 (PD-1) monotherapy (nivolumab or pembrolizumab; n = 147) or nivolumab plus ipilimumab (n = 81) from 2015-2017 and followed for ≥3 years. Results: Nivolumab plus ipilimumab versus anti-PD-1 monotherapy was associated with a nonsignificantly lower risk of death (adjusted HR: 0...

Haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a rare complication of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy. A 55-year-old male with stable chronic lymphocytic leukemia presented with fevers and symptomatic anaemia after nine cycles of nivolumab for metastatic melanoma. Investigations were consistent with autoimmune haemolytic anemia and corticosteroids were initiated. Thrombocytopenia and elevated liver enzymes without evidence of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia transformation was present. Ferritin was elevated, and thus HLH was considered and subsequently confirmed on a bone marrow biopsy...

This review describes the litifilimab (BIIB 059) development program to date for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE). Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs), major producers of type I interferons (IFN-I), play a key role in SLE pathogenesis. Litifilimab, a humanized monoclonal antibody, binds to BDCA2, a protein uniquely expressed on pDCs. The consequence of BDCA2 ligation is the inhibition of IFN-I as well as IFN-III, cytokine and chemokine production. Phase I and II LILAC trial parts A and B achieved primary end points in SLE and CLE patients, confirming the importance of pDCs and IFN-I in SLE and CLE...

Baricitinib is a JAK1-2 inhibitor recently approved in Europe and Japan for the treatment of moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis in adult patients at doses of 2 and 4 mg daily. The aim of this article is to discuss the safety profile of baricitinib in atopic dermatitis using data from clinical trials and the supporting literature, with a focus on infectious adverse events. An integrated analysis of safety data from eight clinical trials described infections as the most frequent treatment-emergent adverse events, mainly of mild-to-moderate severity, notably upper respiratory tract infections and herpes simplex exacerbations...

The IL-17 pathways are involved in the pathophysiology of many inflammatory skin conditions, including hidradenitis suppurativa. Secukinumab, an IL-17A inhibitor, has been used for years in inflammatory skin disorders such as psoriasis. To date, the only US FDA-approved medication for hidradenitis suppurativa is adalimumab, a TNF-α inhibitor. Recently, secukinumab has demonstrated promising results in the treatment of hidradenitis suppurativa in the phase III SUNSHINE and SUNRISE clinical trials...

Data from the phase III ENHANCE clinical trials provide compelling evidence that ensifentrine, an inhaled 'bifunctional' dual phosphodiesterase 3/4 inhibitor, can provide additional benefit to existing treatments in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and represents a 'first-in-class' drug having bifunctional bronchodilator and anti-inflammatory activity in a single molecule. Ensifentrine, generally well tolerated, can provide additional bronchodilation when added to muscarinic receptor antagonists or β2 -agonists and reduce the exacerbation risk...

WHAT IS THIS SUMMARY ABOUT?: This is a summary of the results of 2 clinical studies that looked at a medicine called tezepelumab . Tezepelumab is approved in the United States of America (USA), the European Union (EU) and several other countries for the treatment of severe, uncontrolled asthma in people aged 12 and above. The results of these 2 studies, called PATHWAY and NAVIGATOR , formed the basis for tezepelumab's approval for use. Tezepelumab is a type of biologic treatment called an antibody...

Aim: To investigate the stability of the anti-pneumococcal (PCP) and anti-haemophilus type B (Hib) immunoglobulins (IgGs) in human IgG-depleted serum samples frozen at -20°C. Materials & methods: Modified commercially available immunoassays (ELISAs) were bioanalytically validated. These ELISAs were used to measure levels of the two anti-bacterial IgG in samples kept at -20°C for up to 15 months. Human IgG-depleted serum was spiked with GAMMAGARD Liquid to obtain those samples. Results: Both ELISAs passed the validation test...

Background: Data are limited for clinical outcomes with house dust mite (HDM) allergen immunotherapy beyond 2 years' observation. Materials & methods: A post-marketing drug-use survey assessed the safety and effectiveness of the 300 index of reactivity (IR) HDM tablet during use for up to 4 years in Japan. Results: 538 patients were evaluable for safety and 383 for effectiveness. Most adverse drug reactions (ADRs) occurred early and were local reactions; 5.6% of 249 total events were reported during years 2 to 4 as new ADRs after the interim analysis...

Asthma is a common chronic respiratory disease in which epithelial cytokines and airway inflammation play critical pathophysiological roles. Thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP), an epithelial cytokine, is central in the initiation and persistence of airway inflammation in asthma. Tezepelumab is a human immunoglobulin G2λ (IgG2λ) monoclonal antibody developed for treating moderate-to-severe asthma by specifically binding to TSLP and preventing its binding to the TSLP receptor on inflammatory cells...

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells targeting CD19 have changed the treatment landscape of patients with relapsed/refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. Infections are one of the most frequent complications after CAR T-cell therapy. Most of these infections are bacterial, although viral infections can also occur in this setting. Adenovirus-induced hemorrhagic cystitis is a rare infectious complication and is usually observed after bone marrow or solid organ transplantation. Herein we report a case of adenovirus-induced hemorrhagic cystitis in a patient experiencing urinary symptoms within the first month after CAR T-cell infusion...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.