Author Archives: Magdalena Kegel

A Phase 1 clinical trial that uses the gene editing tool CRISPR to engineer multiple myeloma cellular immunotherapy will soon be underway at the University of Pennsylvania. The small study, which also will enroll patients with other cancer types, aims to create cancer-fighting T-cells with the help of the…

The first patient has been dosed in a Phase 1 trial of P-BCMA-101, a new, more powerful type of CAR T-cell therapy to fight multiple myeloma, the therapy’s developer, Poseida Therapeutics, announced. The trial (NCT03288493), which will test the safety and effectiveness of P-BCMA-101 in adult relapsed or treatment-refractory myeloma…

Patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who are treated with new therapy combinations remain on their treatments far shorter than those participating in clinical trials, a study found. The research also noted that patients treated with Empliciti (elotuzumab) remained the longest on their medication when compared to other…

Newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients respond better to treatment when Empliciti (elotuzumab) is added to a combination of Revlimid (lenalidomide) and dexamethasone, a study from Japan demonstrates. The treatment was also well-tolerated, researchers said during a presentation at the American Society of Hematology (ASH) 59th Annual…

BioLineRx has launched a Phase 3 trial to assess if adding BL-8040 to standard treatment will improve the outflux of blood stem cells from bone marrow before a stem cell transplant in multiple myeloma. “I am very excited to test the role of BL-8040, a novel CXCR4 inhibitor with…

Weighing individual cancer cells could help doctors predict how multiple myeloma patients will respond to treatments, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology study reports. The findings could help doctors choose the right drug for the right patient, the team argued in the article they published in the journal Nature Communications. The…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Celgene and Bluebird Bio’s bb2121 — the first CAR T-cell therapy for multiple myeloma — Breakthrough Therapy Designation. Regulators at the European Medicines Agency (EMA) also acknowledged the potential of the treatment by granting it PRIME (PRIority MEdicines) eligibility. The…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) agreed to allow two clinical trials of Opdivo (nivolumab)-based combinations for myeloma to resume, after being put on partial hold in September 2017, the treatments developer, Bristol-Myers Squibb, announced. Safety issues detected in clinical trials of similar Keytruda (pembrolizumab)-based combinations prompted the FDA to…

Poseida Therapeutics is developing CAR T-cell therapies that can get rid of cancer-generating bone marrow cells before a blood cancer patient receives a stem cell transplant. This approach is less risky than using radiation or chemotherapy to eliminate myeloma and other blood cancer patients’ abnormal bone marrow cells. If cancer-generating…

Janssen plans to share new data from Phase 3 trials of Darzalex (daratumumab) for multiple myeloma at the 59th American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting, scheduled for Dec. 9-12 in Atlanta. The presentations will include analyses of Darzalex’s ability to prolong overall and progression-free survival when used in combination with…