ImmunoGen, Inc. (Nasdaq: IMGN), a biotechnology company that develops targeted antibody-based anticancer products, today announced that Roche has disclosed positive top-line results from the first randomized trial assessing trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1, previously known as trastuzumab-DM1) in HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer (MBC). T-DM1 consists of ImmunoGen's DM1 cancer cell-killing agent attached using the Company's linker to the HER2-targeting antibody, trastuzumab, developed by Genentech, a member of the Roche Group.
The top-line results disclosed by Roche in a press release today were that patients treated with T-DM1 had a significant improvement in progression-free survival compared with patients treated with Herceptin® (trastuzumab) plus chemotherapy (docetaxel) in the Phase II trial comparing these agents for first-line treatment for HER2-positive MBC.
The detailed findings from this randomized, 137-patient trial are being submitted for presentation at a future medical conference. Favorable preliminary data were reported previously from this trial at the 35th Congress of the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO), but progression-free survival data were not available at that time.
"This top-line information about T-DM1's performance in the first-line setting is very encouraging and adds to the favorable efficacy and safety data reported across a number of T-DM1 studies. We look forward to learning the detailed data when they are reported at a medical conference," said Daniel Junius, President and CEO.
Liver cells effectively serve as immune checkpoint regulating anti-cancer immunity