Cetuximab News and Research

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Cetuximab is an investigational IgG1 monoclonal antibody designed to target and block the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR), which is expressed on the surface of certain cancer cells in multiple tumor types. Cetuximab is designed to bind to EGFR and prevent natural ligands called growth factors from binding to the receptor and inducing phosphorylation, i.e., activation of signaling to the tumor. The most common drug-related adverse events reported in clinical trials of cetuximab have been an acne-like rash and asthenia. Severe allergic reactions may occur in a small percentage of patients.

Inexplicable cases of anaphylaxis caused by uncommon red meat allergy, study finds

While rare, some people experience recurrent episodes of anaphylaxis--a life-threatening allergic reaction that causes symptoms such as the constriction of airways and a dangerous drop in blood pressure--for which the triggers are never identified.

28 Nov 2017

Scientists discover new non-genetic cause of resistance to anti-cancer therapies

The targeted anti-cancer therapies cetuximab and panitumumab are mainstays of treatment for advanced colorectal cancer, the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States.

16 Oct 2017

Immunotherapy found to be smarter, kinder treatment for people with head and neck cancer

The immunotherapy nivolumab is kinder than chemotherapy for people with advanced head and neck cancer - easing many of the negative effects of the disease on patients' quality of life.

24 Jun 2017

ASTRO issues new clinical guideline for management of oropharyngeal cancer with radiation therapy

The American Society for Radiation Oncology today issued a new clinical guideline for the management of oropharyngeal cancer.

17 Apr 2017

Scientists identify new biomarkers that could guide bowel cancer treatment

Colorectal carcinomas arise in different forms, so all treatments do not work for all patients. OncoTrack, a public-private consortium supported by the Innovative Medicines Initiative Joint Undertaking, has conducted one of Europe's largest collaborative academic-industry research projects to develop and assess novel approaches for identification of new markers for colon cancer.

13 Feb 2017

Reduced radiation can maintain high cure rates in patients with HPV-related oropharyngeal cancers

Human papillomavirus-positive oropharynx cancers (cancers of the tonsils and back of the throat) are on rise.

27 Dec 2016

UCLA-led research finds promising results for more personalized head and neck cancer treatment

Researchers have found that people with advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma and the KRAS-variant inherited genetic mutation have significantly improved survival when given a short course of the drug cetuximab in combination with standard chemotherapy and radiation.

23 Dec 2016

Scientists find new way to bypass bowel cancer's defence against treatment

BLOCKING a molecule could bypass bowel cancer's defence against the drug cetuximab, according to new research presented at the National Cancer Research Institute Cancer Conference in Liverpool.

9 Nov 2016

IMRT linked to reduced xerostomia and feeding tube dependency in oropharyngeal cancer patients

Radiation therapy is the main treatment modality in the management of head and neck cancer.

4 Oct 2016

Approval of PD-1 inhibitor scratches surface of potential immunotherapies in recurrent HNSCC

The recent approval of pembrolizumab (Keytruda) in recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) following progression on a platinum-based chemotherapy was a significant advancement for the disease.

26 Sep 2016

TAILOR study shows treatment with Erbitux plus FOLFOX improves survival in RAS wild-type mCRC patients

Merck, a leading science and technology company, will present data at the ESMO 18th World Congress on Gastrointestinal Cancer from the pivotal Phase III TAILOR study in patients from China, the first prospective trial to evaluate an anti-EGFR antibody in the first-line therapy of patients with RAS wild-type metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC).

4 Jul 2016

Pembrolizumab drug shows significant clinical responses in metastatic head and neck cancer patients

Treating head and neck cancer patients with recurrent or metastatic disease with the PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab resulted in significant clinical responses in a fifth of the patients from a phase II clinical trial, researchers at the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania and other institutions reported at the 2016 American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting.

7 Jun 2016

New research solves mystery of why cetuximab drug proved futile for many colorectal cancer patients

Cancer researchers have identified a marker that shows up in a blood test that determines which patients with colorectal cancer that has spread would benefit from receiving the drug cetuximab.

13 May 2016

Adjuvant Chemotherapy Colon Cancer Trials Should ‘Stratify By MSI, KRAS, BRAF’

A post hoc analysis of the PETACC-8 trial has revealed an interaction between microsatellite instability and BRAF and KRAS mutation status when determining the prognosis of patients with resected stage III colon adenocarcinoma.

22 Jan 2016

Study reveals why colorectal cancer still returns in some patients after treatment

Cetuximab, marketed as Erbitux, is one of the key therapies for metastatic colorectal cancer. Yet the cancer still returns in some patients, shortening overall survival.

17 Nov 2015

Landmark 'basket study' shows efficacy of vemurafenib in multiple nonmelanoma BRAFV600-mutated cancers

Researchers from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center have announced results from the first published basket study, a new form of clinical trial design that explores responses to drugs based on the specific mutations in patients' tumors rather than where their cancer originated.

20 Aug 2015

TNK Therapeutics acquires multiple preclinical and clinical stage CAR-T immunotherapy programs

Sorrento Therapeutics, Inc. announced today that its wholly-owned subsidiary, TNK Therapeutics, Inc., has acquired multiple preclinical and clinical stage chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T immunotherapy programs as well as underlying CAR-T technology through the acquisition of two privately-held biotechnology companies.

10 Aug 2015

Scientists successfully test new tumor diagnosis method

Scientists at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf, in cooperation with colleagues at the University of Zurich and the Ruhr-Universität Bochum, have for the first time successfully tested a new tumor diagnosis method under near-real conditions. The new method first sends out an antibody as a "spy" to detect the diseased cells and then binds to them.

4 Aug 2015

Array Biopharma reports strong fourth quarter and full year 2015 financial results

Array BioPharma Inc. today reported results for the fourth quarter and full year of its fiscal year ended June 30, 2015.

3 Aug 2015

$Phase 3 study shows Vectibix meets primary endpoint in patients with chemorefractory wild-type KRAS mCRC$

Phase 3 study shows Vectibix meets primary endpoint in patients with chemorefractory wild-type KRAS mCRC

Amgen today announced that a Phase 3 study evaluating Vectibix (panitumumab) and best supportive care (BSC) met its primary endpoint, demonstrating a statistically significant improvement in overall survival (OS) in patients with chemorefractory wild-type KRAS (exon 2) metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) compared to those patients treated with BSC alone.

19 Jun 2015