Data from IMUC’s ICT-107 Phase I trial on glioblastoma multiforme accepted for publication

ImmunoCellular Therapeutics (NYSE MKT: IMUC) announced today that clinical data from its Phase I trial of ICT-107 was accepted for publication, and is currently in the online edition of the prestigious medical journal Cancer Immunology, Immunotherapy (http://www.springerlink.com/content/n0018574g9m4v587/fulltext.pdf). In the publication, the data showed that the expression of four ICT-107 targeted antigens in the pre-vaccine tumors correlated with longer overall survival (OS) and progression free survival (PFS) in newly diagnosed glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) patients. Median PFS in newly diagnosed GBM patients was 16.9 months and median OS was 38.4 months.    

Tumors from post-vaccine resections in five patients showed a decrease in or loss of the cancer stem cell associated antigen CD133 relative to their pre-vaccine counterparts, which may be promising because previous studies have consistently shown increased expression of CD133 in recurrent tumors. The idea of cancer stem cell therapeutics has received increasing attention, including through publications noting IMUC's progress in the clinic with its ICT-107 vaccine targeting antigens associated with cancer stem cells and articles in the recent issues of Nature and Science noting the significance of cancer stem cells to tumor growth.

In the Phase I study to evaluate the safety and immune responses to ICT-107, 21 patients were enrolled, including 17 newly diagnosed (16 evaluable as one did not receive any treatment) and three recurrent GBM patients and one with brainstem glioma. Tumor associated antigen expression analysis showed all patients had at least three of the antigens and 75% had all six of the antigens targeted by ICT-107. At a median follow-up of 40.1 months, six of the newly diagnosed patients showed no evidence of tumor recurrence. "We are extremely pleased that our clinical results were accepted for publication," said Manish Singh, Ph.D., ImmunoCellular's president and CEO. "The publication of the data in yet another respected medium, as well as the recent Nature articles detailing the importance of cancer stem cells to tumor growth, validate the potential of our clinical programs for the treatment of patients with either newly diagnosed or recurrent GBM."

Source: ImmunoCellular Therapeutics, Ltd.