For decades most cancers have been treated with the standard of care treatments which typically include surgery, radiation and/or chemotherapy. Now there is talk that immunotherapy represents "the future of cancer treatments."
CEL-SCI Corporation, a Vienna-based biotech firm is now investigating their flagship investigational cancer immunotherapy called Multikine (Leukocyte Interleukin, Injection), in a global Phase 3 clinical study what they believe is the logical next step in immunotherapy development. Based on the results of earlier human studies, researchers at CEL-SCI believe that immunotherapy should be administered as an initial therapy before a patient's immune system has been debilitated by surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. Data from Multikine Phase 2 human studies demonstrated that when Multikine was administered for only 3 weeks immediately after diagnosis, the treatment reduced and in some cases eliminated all signs of a tumor before surgery, radiation and/or chemotherapy, for head and neck cancer patients, were administered.
CEL-SCI is the first to advance an investigational cancer immunotherapy into Phase 3 studies where it is actually administered as a first-line treatment immediately after diagnosis in the three-week window before any standard of care treatments. Most other cancer immunotherapy treatment regimens must be administered over longer periods of time and cannot be given in the brief three-week period before the current standard of care (surgery and/or radiation and chemotherapy) must be administered.
Other investigational cancer treatments and immunotherapies are usually tested as a last resort on patients who have already undergone and failed standard of care treatments. Therapies which are used as a last resort and show some efficacy, will have reached their clinical study primary endpoint in a fairly short period of time. That is because patients with end-stage disease generally have a shorter life expectancy.
If Multikine regimen is proven successful, the drug will, (1) reduce the number of cancer recurrences and, (2) increased the overall survival of the patients who were treated with the drug. The hope is that someday Multikine will be administered as the first treatment right after initial cancer diagnosis for many different types of cancers.
Dr. Eyal Talor, CEL-SCI's Chief Scientific Officer speaks to Newswise LIVE to discuss the following:
•What is head and neck cancer. Can you provide us with a short overview?
•How are cancers in the head and neck region treated today? How difficult is the standard-of-care for these patients?
•Should there be a new shift in how head and neck cancer is treated?
•How does Multikine work in harnessing the patient's immune system against cancer?
•Can you give us a quick update on the Multikine trial?
•How will Multikine improve the lives and clinical outcome of patients?
•Where can more information be found on the Multikine trial?
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