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☆ Moderna and Merck cancer vaccine used with Keytruda reduces risk of deadly skin cancer spreading
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Moderna and Merck's experimental cancer vaccine, used in combination with Merck 's Keytruda, reduced the risk of the most deadly form of skin cancer spreading to other parts of the body in a clinical trial, according to the midstage trial results published Monday. Moderna and Merck's cancer vaccine reduced the risk of melanoma spreading to other parts of the body or death by 65% in patients with stage 3 or 4 of the disease compared with patients who received Merck's immunotherapy treatment alone, the trial has found. Moderna and Merck will present the data at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's annual conference in Chicago at 5 p.m. The clinical trial has enrolled 157 patients who have had their cancer surgically removed. Patients in the treatment group receive 1 milligram injections of the vaccine every three weeks for nine total doses and 200 mg intravenous infusions of Keytruda every three weeks for about a year.

Persons: Merck Organizations: Moderna, Merck, American Society, Clinical Locations: Chicago

☆ Cancer vaccines poised to unlock 'new treatment paradigm' with Merck/Moderna data
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Julie Steenhuysen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The hope is for "a completely new treatment paradigm in cancer that will be better tolerated and unique to individual patients' tumors," said Dr. Jane Healy, an executive overseeing in early cancer treatment development at Merck. The Merck/Moderna collaboration is one of several combining powerful drugs that unleash the immune system to target cancers with mRNA vaccine technology. Aiming at these unique proteins allows the immune system to kill cancer cells while leaving healthy tissue unscathed. With standard treatment, 90% of pancreatic cancer patients die within five years of diagnosis. The approach first primes the immune system with an older technology called a chimpanzee adenovirus vaccine that targets patients' tumors.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Keytruda, Jane Healy, Germany's BioNTech, Vinod Balachandran, we've, we're, Andrew Allen, Healy, Julie Steenhuysen, Caroline Humer, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Merck & Co, REUTERS, CHICAGO, Moderna Inc, American Society of Clinical Oncology, Merck, Moderna, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Thomson Locations: Kenilworth , New Jersey, U.S, Chicago, New York, Nature

☆ AstraZeneca's Tagrisso slashes death risk in certain post-surgery lung cancer patients
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Natalie Grover | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, June 4 (Reuters) - AstraZeneca's lung cancer therapy, Tagrisso, cut the risk of death by more than half in patients with a certain form of lung cancer who were diagnosed early enough to have their tumour surgically removed, trial data showed. The drug has regulatory approvals across multiple geographies for certain patients with so-called non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have a mutation of the EGFR gene. In the trial, Tagrisso or a placebo was given to patients to assess whether the AstraZeneca therapy could keep their cancer at bay. An estimated 88% of patients treated with Tagrisso were alive at five years compared to 78% on placebo, trial data also showed. AstraZeneca is also expecting to provide details on the impact of combining Tagrisso with chemotherapy in patients with advanced EGFR-mutated lung cancer later this year.

Persons: Tagrisso, Susan Galbraith, Dave Fredrickson, Natalie Grover, Angus MacSwan Organizations: American Society of Clinical Oncology, AstraZeneca, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Swedish, London

☆ As the market starts to cool down, Cramer says don't be afraid to stay bullish
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( Julie Coleman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

CNBC's Jim Cramer told investors on Friday to stay bullish going into the week ahead, even as the market starts to cool down. "I liked [the market] more yesterday than I do today because it's higher, and that's how you have to think." On Monday, Cramer will be watching Apple 's Worldwide Developers Conference, where new products, ideas and software updates will be on display. Cramer's bottom line is to stay bullish, as he believes the Fed won't drastically raise rates at its next meeting. "We are not going to overstay our bullish welcome mat because others are stomping on it," Cramer said.

Persons: CNBC's Jim Cramer, Cramer, everybody's, Brinker, Chipotle — Organizations: Apple, American Society of Clinical Oncology, Moderna, Merck, Bristol, Myers, Darden

☆ Novartis drug cuts recurrence risk by 25% in early-stage breast cancer
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Ludwig Burger | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The company on Friday said the relative risk reduction of cancer recurrence was 25.2% and that the results were broadly consistent regardless of patients' menopausal status or cancer progression status. Kisqali has been approved to treat hormone-driven breast cancer that has spread to other parts of the body, where Novartis has taken market share from Pfizer's (PFE.N) Ibrance. But that is in a subset of women who are at high risk of recurrence after surgery, typically diagnosed based on signs of cancer in the lymph nodes. Here, Novartis will face tough competition because the U.S. drugmaker has said Verzenio reduces the risk of recurrence by 35% in that group. Novartis will request approval for wider use in the U.S. and Europe before the end of the year, it added.

Persons: Kisqali, Eli Lilly, Verzenio, drugmaker, Eli Lilly's Verzenio, Jeff Legos, Vas, Ludwig Burger, Sriraj Organizations: Novartis, American Society of Clinical Oncology, Oncology, Hematology, Thomson Locations: FRANKFURT, Chicago, U.S, Europe

☆ Simpler hysterectomy may improve quality of life for some women with cervical cancer, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Thanks to more effective screening, more women have been presenting with cervical cancer at a younger age and an earlier stage of the disease. “Simple hysterectomy can now be considered as a new standard of care for patients with low-risk early-stage cervical cancer,” Plante said. “This is a really big deal for women with cervical cancer,” said Moore, who wasn’t involved with the study. If the findings lead to a change in practice for surgeons, it could “change the trajectory of cervical cancer globally,” she said. Cervical cancer is not common in the US or Canada, Moore said, but it is endemic in low- and middle-income countries.

Persons: Dr, Marie Plante, Plante, ” Plante, ”, Kathleen Moore, Virginia Kerley Cade, Moore, Sanjay Gupta, ” Moore, Stephanie V, Blank, “ It’s Organizations: CNN, American Society of Clinical Oncology, National Cancer Institute, Obstetrics, Gynecology, Universite Laval, Studies, Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Canadian Cancer Society, Virginia, Developmental Therapeutics, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, World Health Organization, Get CNN, CNN Health, Mount Sinai Health Locations: Chicago, Quebec, Canada

☆ Drug cuts risk of breast cancer recurrence for some early-stage patients, trial shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —A drug used in people in the early stage of the most common kind of breast cancer – HR+/HER2- breast cancer – significantly reduced the risk of the cancer returning after treatment, according to a new study. HR+/HER2- breast cancer has tested positive for progesterone and estrogen receptors and negative for HER2. Endocrine therapy generally works well, but for patients with HR+ or HER- breast cancer, there’s still a 10% to 40% chance that the cancer will come back, some studies show. The new trial found that when Kisqali is added to endocrine therapy, it reduces the risk of recurrence by 25% across a broad population of patients with early breast cancer. About 90% of patients who have breast cancer are diagnosed in the early stages.

Persons: there’s, Kisqali, ”, Dennis J, Slamon, Sara Tolaney, ” Tolaney, Anupama Goel, Goel, Dr, Sanjay Gupta, Alberto Montero, ” Montero, Montero Organizations: CNN, US Food and Drug Administration, American Society of Clinical Oncology, Novartis, UCLA, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Oncology, Dana, Farber Cancer Institute, Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center, CNN Health, UH Seidman Cancer Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine Locations: Chicago, Ohio, –

☆ FDA considers temporary cancer drug imports from unapproved companies to ease U.S. shortage
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

She is one of hundreds of Ontario cancer patients who received diluted chemotherapy in the last year and who are still undergoing treatment to beat the disease. The FDA in the past has taken similar action to loosen restrictions on imports when faced with drug shortages. At least 14 cancer drugs are currently in short supply across the U.S. Up to 20% of cancer patients rely on platinum-based chemotherapy drugs such as cisplatin and carboplatin for treatment, according to the National Cancer Institute. Some cancer patients could die if the shortages are not quickly resolved, doctors said.

Persons: Dawn Deslippe, Diane Marley, Richard Lautens, Drug Administration –, Julie Gralow, We're, Gralow, —, Abdul Rafeh Naqash, Naqash, Philip Schwieterman, Schwieterman Organizations: Windsor Regional Hospital, Toronto Star, Getty, Drug Administration, CNBC, FDA, U.S, The American Society of Clinical Oncology, World Health, Pharmaceuticals, National Cancer Institute, American Society of Clinical Oncology, Stephenson Cancer Center, University of Oklahoma, University of Kentucky, kiwis Locations: WINDSOR, Ontario, United States, U.S, carboplatin

☆ ASCO conference will put the focus on the fight against cancer. These stocks are in the spotlight
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Developments in cancer research will be in the spotlight as the American Society of Clinical Oncology hosts the world's biggest cancer research conference in Chicago, starting Thursday. The pair has already has won regulatory approval for Enhertu for metastatic HER2-low breast cancer, but the companies are also studying its use in a variety other HER2 tumors in breast cancers. Lilly's drug, Verzenio, is used in high-risk patients with HR-positive HER2-negative breast cancer that is more likely to reoccur and has already breached the patient's lymph nodes. In a research note earlier this month, Guggenheim analyst Seamus Fernandez said Kisqali is already taking market share from Pfizer's Ibrance in metastatic breast cancer. Merck's Keytruda is also being watched for what benefits it could offer early-stage lung cancer patients .

☆ HPV vaccine: Some studies say one and done might be better
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

The HPV vaccine protects against the strains that cause most HPV-related cancers. But not every country has the same vaccination options, which is part of the reason WHO has been pushing to change the way doctors give the HPV vaccine. A one-and-done approach to the HPV vaccine could be a huge help around the world, experts say. But she’d also like more people to get the HPV vaccine. So I think that’s really, really important,” Abraham said.

☆ This biotech stock could yield 33% upside ahead of cancer trial data, Wells Fargo says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Brian Evans | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Wells Fargo expects upcoming results from Novocure's LUNAR trial to be a catalyst for the stock. Novocure shares were gaining 3.5% on the back of the Wells Fargo upgrade, which lifted the stock's rating to overweight from equal weight. Analyst Larry Biegelsen also set a new price target of $104 per share, which represents 33% upside from Monday's closing price of $78.38. The LUNAR trial studied the efficacy of combining tumor treating fields, which target tumors with electrical frequencies, with more traditional therapies, including immunotherapies, to treat non-small cell lung cancer. NVCR YTD mountain Novocure stock could yield as much as 33% upside ahead of cancer treatment study data, Wells Fargo says.

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