Antisoma cancer drug shows promise

This follows a similar case reported earlier from the same trial.

The latest patient had four separate tumors at different sites, with a total diameter before treatment of almost 20cm. Six months after starting treatment with AS1411 overall tumor shrinkage was around 70%. This outcome is particularly notable because the patient had relapsed after three prior therapies.

“It is exciting to see a second case of profound tumor shrinkage in this relatively small study. We are particularly encouraged to see a response like this in a patient who has already failed several previous therapies,” commented Dr Damian Laber, principal investigator.

Following its extension last year, the trial includes twelve patients with renal cancer and five with lung cancer.

“We are delighted to see further clinical evidence for AS1411 activity against renal cancer. We are also seeing activity across a wide range of other solid and blood cancers in preclinical studies. These findings, together with the very benign safety profile seen so far, make us very excited about the potential of AS1411,” said Glyn Edwards, CEO of Antisoma.