MEK Inhibitor News and Research

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GSK receives FDA approval for combination of Mekinist with Tafinlar for treatment of melanoma

GlaxoSmithKline plc announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Mekinist® (trametinib) for use in combination with Tafinlar® (dabrafenib) for the treatment of patients with unresectable melanoma (melanoma that cannot be removed by surgery) or metastatic melanoma (melanoma which has spread to other parts of the body) with BRAF V600E or V600K mutations.

9 Jan 2014

Researchers identify two novel BRAF fusions in melanomas

Stand Up To Cancer, the charitable initiative supporting ground-breaking research aimed at getting new cancer treatments to patients in an accelerated timeframe, announces that Jeffrey A. Sosman, M.D., a Stand Up To Cancer Melanoma Dream Team investigator, William Pao, M.D., Ph.D., a 2009 Stand Up To Cancer Innovative Research Grant recipient and colleagues identified two novel BRAF fusions in melanomas previously considered to be negative for molecular targets, and that melanomas with these fusions were found to be potentially sensitive to anticancer drugs called MEK inhibitors, according to a study recently published in Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

2 Jan 2014

Combinatory therapy may be effective in suppressing drug resistance in treatment of melanoma

Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C), the charitable initiative supporting ground-breaking research aimed at getting new cancer treatments to patients in an accelerated timeframe, announces that the Allan H. (Bud) and Sue Selig Stand Up To Cancer Melanoma Innovative Research Grant Recipient Roger S. Lo, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Medicine at the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) has published two studies in Cancer Discovery, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research which indicate that treatment using combinatory therapy may be effective in suppressing drug resistance in the treatment of melanoma.

21 Nov 2013

New hope for patients whose melanoma has metastasised to the brain

New data show that in patients whose melanoma (BRAF V600 mutation-positive) has spread (metastasised) to the brain, Zelboraf (vemurafenib) extends life expectancy by over six months compared to chemotherapy.1 These results are welcome news for patients suffering from metastatic melanoma, as up to half of these patients are diagnosed with brain metastases with many given less than six months to live.1

18 Nov 2013

Array BioPharma reports net loss of $0.13 per share for first quarter of fiscal 2014

Array BioPharma Inc. today reported results for the first quarter of its fiscal year ending June 30, 2014.

31 Oct 2013

New MDx prototype platform can detect BRAF V600 mutations in 90 minutes

A new diagnostic platform to detect BRAF mutations in melanoma and other cancer types is faster and more accurate compared with the standard method currently used in clinics, and this could help accelerate diagnosis and treatment, according to results presented here at the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics, held Oct. 19-23.

23 Oct 2013

AstraZeneca begins selumetinib Phase 3 clinical trial in NSCLC patients

AstraZeneca today announced the first patient randomized in a Phase 3 clinical trial for selumetinib, an oral, potent, selective MEK inhibitor, being investigated as second-line therapy in patients with advanced or metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer whose tumors are KRAS mutation-positive.

22 Oct 2013

Study compares spectrum of cancer-related gene mutations in two common types of cervical cancer

A new study has revealed marked differences in the genomic terrain of the two most common types of cervical cancer, suggesting that patients might benefit from therapies geared to each type's molecular idiosyncrasies.

26 Aug 2013

Secondary cancers in melanoma patients treated for BRAF gene mutation require new strategies

Moffitt Cancer Center researchers suggest secondary cancers seen in melanoma patients who are being treated for a BRAF gene mutation may require new strategies, such as enhanced surveillance and combining BRAF-inhibitor therapy with other inhibitors, especially as they become more widely used.

17 Aug 2013

Array BioPharma achieves milestone for initiation of MEK162 Phase 3 trial in patients with LGSOC

Array BioPharma Inc. announced today that a $5 million milestone was achieved after the start of Array's Phase 3 clinical trial in patients with low-grade serous ovarian cancer.

2 Jul 2013

Selumetinib demonstrates clinical benefit for patients with metastatic uveal melanoma

The experimental drug selumetinib is the first targeted therapy to demonstrate significant clinical benefit for patients with metastatic uveal melanoma, according to new Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center research presented on Saturday, June 1, at the 49th annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

3 Jun 2013

Tafinlar, Mekinist get FDA approval to treat patients with advanced melanoma

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved two new drugs, Tafinlar (dabrafenib) and Mekinist (trametinib), for patients with advanced (metastatic) or unresectable (cannot be removed by surgery) melanoma, the most dangerous type of skin cancer.

30 May 2013

Trovagene, MD Anderson partner to detect transrenal BRAF mutations in metastatic cancers

Trovagene, Inc., a developer of transrenal molecular diagnostics, announced that it has entered into a clinical collaboration with The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center to detect transrenal BRAF mutations in the urine of patients with advanced or metastatic cancers.

3 Jan 2013

MITF protein may help develop effective drug treatments for melanoma

Scientists at The University of Manchester have identified a protein that appears to hold the key to creating more effective drug treatments for melanoma, one of the deadliest cancers.

From The University of Manchester 19 Dec 2012

New data from AstraZeneca's FASLODEX studies on breast cancer to be presented at SABSC

AstraZeneca today announced the presentation of important new data from studies of FASLODEX (fulvestrant) Injection at the 2012 CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium taking place from 4-8 December at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, San Antonio, Texas.

5 Dec 2012

Paper illuminates importance of PKM2 in cancer development and progression

Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have tracked down a cancer-promoting protein's pathway into the cell nucleus and discovered how, once there, it fires up a glucose metabolism pathway on which brain tumors thrive.

26 Nov 2012

Array BioPharma first quarter 2013 revenue decreases to $15.8 million

Array BioPharma Inc. today reported results for the first quarter of its fiscal year ending June 30, 2013.

30 Oct 2012

Combination of dabrafenib and trametinib delays development of treatment resistance in MM patients

Combined treatment with two drugs targeting different points in the same growth-factor pathway delayed the development of treatment resistance in patients with BRAF-positive metastatic malignant melanoma.

1 Oct 2012

Sorafenib does not improve overall survival among patients with NSCLC

Treatment with the drug sorafenib as a third or fourth line therapy does not result in improved overall survival among patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), according to findings released at the ESMO 2012 Congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology in Vienna. However, a post-hoc biomarker analysis of the trial data that was also presented suggests that patients with EGFR-mutant tumors may benefit.

29 Sep 2012

Drug combinations show promise against metastatic melanoma

Promising new data on drug combinations to treat metastatic melanoma are presented at the ESMO 2012 Congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology in Vienna.